First up is a G Sports Concept version of the already concept Toyota FT-86, the Toyota and Subaru joint venture for an affordable sport car which has been dubbed the Toybaru. But this FT-86 gets a body treatment which includes a wider nose and big wheel arches, a carbon fibre bonnet with vents and a much bigger spoiler bolted on the back. Under the bonnet the 2.0 litre Boxer four gets a turbo added to give more power, but Toyota aren’t saying what. Best guess is somewhere north of 300bhp if you use the top end Impreza as a guide. Should make the FT-86 pick up its skirts and scoot, but doesn’t really fit in with the ethos of an ‘affordable’ sports car, which is what the FT-86 is designed to be.
The FT-86 G-Sports Concept features a sports suspension, new aerodynamic elements, lots of carbon fiber trim, and race-style Recaro seats in addition to its most intriguing feature--a turbocharged version of the 2.0-liter flat four found in the regular FT-86 Concept. The high-performance engine sends power to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual. The Toyota FT-86 Concept was originally revealed at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show as a 2 + 2 coupe powered by a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated flat four. The non-turbocharged engine was said to have been chosen for its light weight and lower cost. The car is expected to head to production in late 2011 in Japan, with subsequent market roll-outs to follow, priced around the $25,000 mark.
The base vehicle of the G’s series is equipped with internal and external components that include sports suspension, aerodynamic parts and racing-style seats. A special focus has been placed on “driving seasoning” to make handling fun, through fine-tuning carried out by the GAZOO Racing test drivers who drove the Lexus “LF-A” in the 24 Hours Nürburgring race in Germany and developed the “iQ”-based “GAZOO Racing tuned by MN” (GRMN).