The new GR chief had the pleasure of the driving the Starlet during his youth days.
Toyota's motorsports division, Gazoo Racing (GR), has said that more models will emerge from its portfolio. While the models are yet to be known, Japan's Best Car was curious about what Tomoya Takahashi, the new GR President, would like to return and join the automaker's high-performance lineup.
Takahashi chose the Toyota Starlet, a subcompact car deemed one of the greatest Toyotas of the '90s. It was lightweight and had a turbocharged setup, making the model a fun car to drive around. Earlier iterations even had a rear-wheel-drive (RWD) configuration. The GR chief recalled enjoying driving the car in its EP82 (fourth-gen) and EP91 (fifth-gen) forms.
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“I was enjoying the snowy roads and mini circuits in my hometown Hokkaido with EP82 and EP91. When the first Civic Type R came out, I was shocked [by] the hot hatchback, but I joined Toyota because I wanted to make a car that surpassed it,” said Takahashi (translated from Japanese to English).
The nameplate may sound unfamiliar to North America as the Toyota Starlet only had a short-lived run in the market in the 1980s. But with the global presence of Gazoo Racing, making Toyota's boring cars more exciting than ever, a revived Starlet with a GR badge should make a name for itself in no time.
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However, Takahashi said it is just a personal opinion and not influenced by what's next for Toyota's motorsports division. Previous GR Chief Koji Sato also shared which model he would like to see make a return, and he chose the Celica. Sato is the President of Toyota following Akio Toyoda's decision to step down and become the automaker's Chairman of the Board.
Whatever GR has in the pipeline, Takahashi should continue adapting the brand's principles, including “make ever-better cars.” The brand's future should be in good hands with Takahashi at the helm, especially considering his excellent taste shown by his dream of bringing back the Starlet.
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Keyword: Toyota Starlet's Revival Is The New Gazoo Racing President's Dream