Toyota GT-86 Officially Revealed

It's a day I never thought would come.  After numerous teaser concept cars, the production version of the Toyota FT-86 is here.  First of all, it's going to be called the GT-86 in Europe, and just "86" in Japan.  The US version is still likely to be marketed as a Scion (probably called the FR-S), and there will be a Subaru version (for now being called the BR-Z, although we'll find out soon enough.)  Regardless of what it's called or where it's sold, the Toyobaru/Subieyota is finally coming into focus as a production car, and we have some of the greasy details and real pictures to share with you.

A lot of these details are probably things you've already heard, but here are the basics.  The GT-86 is a front-mid engined 2+2 coupe, with the engine behind the front axle, driving the rear wheels.  There are two seats in the back for legless children/insurance purposes, and the emphasis has been put on low weight, low center of gravity, centralized moment of polar inertia, and all the other nerdy things that make a car responsive and fun to drive.

Just the dimensions are enticing.  At 166.9" (4240mm overalll), it's 20" longer than a current Cooper.  The roofline (50.6"/1285mm) is 5" lower than a Cooper, and I'm pretty sure Toyota has a typo in their press release when they state that it's 101" wide, but we'll figure that out soon.  Other details: a 53 to 47 front/rear weight distribution ratio, a center of gravity 18.7" (475mm) off the road.

The low center of gravity is largely due, of course, to the use of a boxer (horizontally-opposed) engine.  Co-developed with Subaru, the GT-86's "D4S" four-cylinder displaces 1,998cc (2.0L) and has twin-cam 16v heads, as well as both port and direct injection (like some current Lexus motors) which allows a high 12.5:1 compression ratio.  For reference, that's a full point higher than the old Toyota/Yamaha 2ZZ-GE I4 from the Celica, Lotus Elise, etc - which was a pretty impressive motor back then.  Power output is 197bhp at 7,000rpm, and 151lb-ft of torque (205nM) at 6,600rpm.  You'll have a choice of either a 6-speed manual or automatic transmission.

Chassis wise, it's fairly simple.  McPherson struts hold up the front end, while double wishbone independent suspension is found at the back.  With a low kerb weight, good weight distribution, and a rev-happy engine, the GT-86 has all the hallmarks of a natural driver's car.  Sort of like a Honda S2000 with a boxer engine, a hard top, and some extra seats.

As for the styling, there's not a lot to be said that hasn't already been said about the numerous prototypes and concepts we've seen over the years.  It's surprisingly clean and simple, and hasn't been watered down a whole lot from it's previous interations.  There are some neat details - like the "86" badge that incorporates the opposed pistons of the boxer engine, the small front fender vents, the little channel that streams behind the Toyota badge, etc - but mostly it's clean, simple, well-proportioned, and not over-wrought.  Especially in comparison to, say, the Genesis Coupe.

The interior is the same story.  It's simple but effective.  There's a bit of Mazda to some of the design - maybe it's just me - but I do like the contrast-colored tach, which is mounted in the center and bigger than the speedometer.  Proper.  Nothing especially fancy, but this is supposed to be a car starting in the lower 20's, and it certainly looks less low-rent than the Scion tC it will be stealing sales from.

This will not likely be a high-volume product for Toyota.  Sure, there's a market for simplistic, lightweight, rear-drive coupes - but there's a bigger market for Camrys.  This is more of a bone thrown to the Toyota enthusiasts (who still exist!  they do!) after all these years of crap.  It honestly looks like it's going to be a great car, one that focuses on the experience rather than the numbers, which is refreshing.  We definitely don't have all the parts of this story yet - what will be different about the Scion version?  What will be different about the Subaru version?  Who's getting turbos?  But there will be more details when it's revealed November 30th at the Tokyo Auto Show.  Stay tuned until then!  Gallery below.