Why Doesn’t Toyota Make Sports Cars?

Here at GP, we enjoy a good wild sports car rumor. And the most recent one from Japan is a doozy (originally seen by CarBuzz). Toyota and Mazda are working together on a pair of sports cars, according to the Japanese website Best Car Web. But this is not a Toyota GR86/Subaru BRZ scenario. On the same platform, there will be two separate cars.

Toyota is rumored to be releasing an EV under the GR moniker in 2026. It will be a two-seat sports car that is comparable to the Supra in size. It will have a 500 horsepower output from dual motors and a freshly created all-wheel drive system. It will make use of the cutting-edge solid-state battery technology developed by Toyota. The new GR sports EV won’t take the place of the GR Supra, according to the report. It will debut after the GR Supra’s battery-powered variant.

This agreement would also result in Mazda receiving a sports vehicle. However, theirs would be the eagerly anticipated RX-7 replacement with a rotary engine. kind of. Although Mazda’s vehicle would be rear-wheel-drive, have a smaller battery pack, and use the rotary engine as a range-extender, it would share the same base as Toyota’s vehicle and the GR electric motor. Compared to the model Toyota plans to produce, it would be a lighter vehicle.

These rumors might be true in some cases. If Mazda and Toyota worked together to build a battery-powered sports vehicle platform, the prices would be lower than if either manufacturer worked on the project independently. Although Lexus has previously stated that it is creating a new electric LFA supercar, Toyota will likely search for a flamboyant vehicle to demonstrate its new solid-state battery technology in 2026.

One of the automakers with the greatest skepticism toward battery-electric cars is Mazda. We also know that the manufacturer intends to release a rotational range extender for the intriguing but terribly short-range MX-30. Therefore, if Mazda were committed to create an RX replacement, the speculated sports vehicle feels like something it would manufacture.

Why did Toyota discontinue producing sports cars?

Toyota was adamant about over-engineering its cars to the point that, yeah, everything could endure for close to 20 years. But compared to comparable, lighter, and far less expensive cars at the time, the sports car you selected would not be nearly as enjoyable to drive.

Why didn’t Toyota produce a Supra of their own?

When Toyota and BMW collaborated to create the fifth-generation Supra, Supra aficionados screamed foul. They assert that it is less of a worthy replacement for the first four models and is more German in nature. The head engineer of the vehicle disputes the criticism and explains why Toyota was unable to create the vehicle on its own.

“It wasn’t a question of cutting expenses. There had to be an inline-six in the Supra. a strong inline-six from BMW, “Tetsuya Tada, head of Toyota’s performance, insisted in a Jalopnik interview. Although the engine wasn’t available (or even disclosed) when development began, Mercedes-Benz also builds a good straight-six.

Tada noted that building the Supra internally would have put off the vehicle’s release by two to three years, possibly pushing it back to 2023. Even if partnering with BMW wasn’t done purely to cut costs, it did enable both businesses to make sizable savings. Tada told Jalopnik that an all-Toyota Supra would cost over $100,000.

The idea of a Toyota sports car being defeated by making the vehicle so pricey, he claimed. The Supra was not constructed utilizing composite materials like carbon fiber because of this as well. It wasn’t worth making it thousands of dollars more expensive to save a few hundred pounds.

Why aren’t sports vehicles being produced anymore?

The preference of consumers for crossover and SUV-style vehicles has likely been the major cause in the decline in the production of sports and performance vehicles.

Even sedans, the backbone of the automotive industry, which are performance cars, have seen significant sales declines.

Customers seek the crossover and SUV cars’ practicality, comfort, and convenience. From the standpoint of the typical automobile consumer, you really can “have it all” because these cars now drive so well as well (see our comment below on performance).

The truth is that for the typical buyer—who makes up the majority of the market—these vehicles actually are great, despite the fact that many aficionados shudder in terror at the sight of a family crossover vehicle.

Simple logic dictates that automakers will build the vehicles that consumers wish to purchase.

Does Toyota produce supercars?

Toyota has a long history of being criticized for producing fantastic cars that are also utterly boring. But more recently, the Japanese manufacturer has begun to display signals that it intends to permanently shed its boring image.

The company’s offerings have become more intriguing and dynamic during the last two or three years. Additionally, we heard of the Supra’s comeback. This particular model used to be the embodiment of the brand’s sporty image.

Toyota has now declared that it will build its very own authentic supercar. A production model based on the organization’s Toyota Gazoo Racing division’s GR Super Sport concept is currently being developed.

Does Toyota produce hypercars?

I previously wrote about a Toyota GR GT3 supercar idea that had just been unveiled at Japan’s largest auto customization event, Tokyo Auto Salon. At the time, very little was known about this automobile because Toyota’s Gazoo Racing—the company’s racing and customization arm—had not released any information regarding its engine or transmission. All that was known about it was that it might serve as the foundation for a future GT3 racing vehicle. That was the only information available, aside from the sleek, long-nosed machine on the stand.

The Toyota Group is reportedly getting ready to release what could be called a “LFA Part II,” a road-going supercar that will compete with the most potent hypercars in the world and follow in the footsteps of the highly acclaimed but currently out-of-production Lexus LFA. This information comes from Japan’s biggest selling auto magazine, Best Car.

Priorities come first. The dual exhaust pipes on the as-yet-unnamed supercar—just let’s call it the GR GT3 Concept—are merely aesthetic candy to mislead the media, contrary to what several newspapers had said. That’s right, those exhaust pipes exist and serve a specific function.

This Japanese hypercar, which is predicted to debut in 2025, will reportedly be driven by a freshly created twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 engine producing 710 horsepower and coupled to a next-generation plug-in hybrid system, increasing the car’s total horsepower to a jaw-dropping 940-hp.

The rear-drive GR GT3 idea will utilise a strengthened Toyota GA-L platform, like to the one found in the Lexus LC, add a rear transaxle layout, and end up in two totally different versions—one for the racetrack and one for the showroom.

Which Toyota sports car is the best?

In our ranking of the top 10 Toyota sports cars, the GR Supra comes in first. The GR Supra, the fifth-generation Toyota Supra, was unveiled in 2019 and has since been produced.

Because previous models did not serve as inspiration, Supra enthusiasts were disappointed with the new Supra’s design. However, the new GR Supra boasts an updated look and better performance.

The collaboration between Toyota and BMW has also given the new Toyota Supra every characteristic of a contemporary sports car.

The GR Supra, on the other hand, has two BMW engines, which improve performance. a 255 horsepower 2.0-liter inline-four turbocharged engine. Additionally, there is a 2.0-liter inline-four turbocharged engine with 400 NM of torque.

Is there a muscle car from Toyota?

You might have drove this if you have a PlayStation and have played the game Gran Turismo. The GT-Four had a ton of power. All-wheel drive, a 5-speed transmission, and a 2-liter Inline-4 turbocharged with 254 horsepower. This was a road-legal race car with lots of muscle. The 1995 Rally Catalunya was won by the Celica ST205, which would compete in the World Rally Championship for several years.

What is a Toyota sporty?

Nissan GR Supra For 40 thrilling years, this Toyota sports vehicle has endured and proven to be a fan favorite. You may own a piece of automotive history with this coupe. A 3.0 inline 6-cylinder engine that generates a whooping 382 horsepower may turbocharge your vehicle.

Why does Toyota use BMW motors?

BMW’s involvement, according to Toyota’s performance chief, was compelled by necessity in part because BMW possessed the tools required by Toyota for the Supra, particularly Bimmer’s roaring 3.0-liter inline-six engine.

Exists a 3JZ or not?

All of your comments have been heard by Toyota. The clamor for a manual transmission are endless. All the criticisms that it utilizes a BMW engine as opposed to a Toyota-built powerplant These complaints will soon cease to exist. The recently unveiled 2021 Toyota Supra features a new A91 Edition, greater power from its six-cylinder engine, which is sourced from BMW, and even a more reasonably priced four-cylinder variant. We had a nagging feeling, though, that Toyota was keeping something much more intriguing a secret. a racecar that is even more thrilling than the Supra GT4.

Toyota has chosen to debut its newest Supra model online after deciding to postpone the 2021 Supra media drive due to coronavirus worries. The Toyota Supra 3JZ Edition, which is scheduled to debut as a 2022 model, only has two objectives: to silence the critics and destroy the C8 Corvette.

There has always been a vocal minority of people who disagree with Toyota’s choice to adopt BMW’s B58 inline-six engine in the fifth-generation Supra. There were Supra enthusiasts who desired another Toyota-built inline-size like to the storied 2JZ found in the fourth-generation vehicle, despite the B58’s considerable degree of adjustability. Today, Toyota unveiled the Supra 3JZ Edition, making that dream a reality.

The 3JZ will be a V8 with two turbochargers, in contrast to its predecessor, which was a twin-turbo inline-six. It’s possible that this is the engine from the Supra racecar prototype we saw being tested. Despite how fantastic this engine already sounds, we now know just how powerful it will be.

According to Toyota, the 3JZ has a 4.0-liter displacement and generates 1,000 horsepower and 840 lb-ft of torque. The rear-wheel-drive design of a typical car had to be abandoned in favor of all-wheel-drive in order to transmit this enormous amount of grunt to the road. With a 0-60 mph time of under 2.5 seconds, the C8 Corvette is easily surpassed. Even a manual gearbox version could be released soon, but Toyota anticipates that the 0-60 mph time would be more than three seconds. The 3JZ’s price has not yet been disclosed, but given that it has more than double the power of the Supra 3.0, we anticipate it to be well over $100,000.

A fading breed: sport automobiles.

This year, few automakers have announced the removal of vehicles from their lines. Vehicle portfolios frequently change in response to consumer demand for new cars. But some detractors have observed a depressing pattern. In recent years, sports cars, notably the exciting and flamboyant coupes and convertibles, have lost some of their appeal. And while there may be a number of driving forces behind the fall, the shift in purchasing patterns may point to one gloomy and obvious cause. It’s a factor that could have consequences in the future and lead to the demise of the sports car.