Toyota will develop the third-generation model without any help from Subaru, according to reports.
A new report out of Japan suggests Toyota is already working on a replacement for the GR86 sports coupe. Citing Japanese magazine Mag-X, Drivereports the new model will be developed exclusively by Toyota and won't spawn a Subaru-badged sibling. However, Subaru may still help Toyota by building the new GR86 at its factory.
Mag-X claims the new GR86 will arrive in 2028, sporting a hybridized three-cylinder turbocharged engine under its hood. This supports previous rumors made by Best Car that claimed the coupe will borrow the superb G16E-GTS currently used by the GR Corolla and GR Yaris. However, these reports also said the new GR86 would arrive in 2025.
The latest rumors claim the third-generation model will use a smaller 1.4-liter version of this engine with electrical assistance thrown in for good measure.
Toyota
Mag-X claims that the electric motor may be situated between the transmission and the engine. The reason Toyota is rumored to be developing a new chassis is that the current architecture cannot support the three-cylinder engine without significant alterations to the crash structure. On the other hand, Best Car believes the new GR86 will be based on a shortened version of the Lexus IS sedan – go figure.
As mentioned, Subaru is expected to continue building the GR86 in order to keep its factories running at full speed. However, this might result in several administrative complications, as the Subaru-cho factory in the Gunma Prefecture is around 250 miles away from the Motomachi plant where the G16E-GTS engine is screwed together.
If this is the case, the price of transporting engines from one facility to another will be passed on to the customer, says the publication.
Toyota
It's worth mentioning that Toyota is already experimenting with three-cylinder GR86s, trialing these vehicles in the Super Taikyu race series and running them on synthetic fuel. At the time of the announcement, Gazoo Racing's chief engineer Naoyuki Sakamoto said, “We are thinking for the future about the possibility of using it, but there are no concrete plans at the moment.”
As for the brilliant GR Supra, Mag-X believes the replacement will debut as an all-electric sports car. Like the upcoming GR86, Toyota will reportedly handle the development on its own, which means its alliance with BMW may fall by the wayside. Then again, Toyota itself has said GR models will only adopt hybrid powertrains by 2030, so rumors of an electric Supra could be wrong.
We have to take all these claims with a pinch of salt, as Toyota hasn't issued any official statements to confirm anything. Fans of Gazoo Racing will just have to sit tight for now.
Toyota
Keyword: The Toyota GR86 May Finally Get A Turbo In 2028