Toyota FT-86 concept harks back to affordable AE86
The iconic Toyota Sprinter Trueno, also known as the Corolla GT-S in some markets, was a 2-door hatchback that was first introduced in 1983. It had a 1.6-litre 4-cylinder engine with maybe 130 hp and, more importantly, a balanced rear-wheel-drive chassis. It became more commonly known as the AE86, nicknamed after its chassis designation, and is popular on the Japanese drift scene till today, even though production ended in 1986. It achieved worldwide popularity only during this past decade, as the hero car in the Japanese animated series Initial D. And now, Toyota is readying a successor in the form of the FT-86 concept at the 2009 Tokyo Auto Show.
The FT-86, with the “86” pronounced as “hachi roku” in Japanese, is a compact rear-wheel-drive sports car, going back to the roots of the original. Toyota briefly says that it is intended to be light and compact, with a low ride height and a manual gearbox.
Power comes from a 2.0-litre 4-cylinder boxer engine, likely because Subaru will supply it, and will have its own version of the car. The actual FT-86, already confirmed for production, will be affordable and should cost under Dhs 100,000. After “budget” cars like the Ford Mustang, Chevy Camaro and Nissan Z have all become overpriced nowadays, it looks like Toyota is building a niche for itself in the lower end.
After the recession hit and Toyota suffered its first loss in decades, the company replaced its boss with a younger member of the founding Toyoda family. In all his honesty, he admitted that quality is suffering and exciting models are lacking, while also admiring Hyundai for their current rise in sales in the worst of times. It looks like he is taking the company in the right direction.
Comments
aaamohamad
the car looks sexy..i liked it…i hope the engine is good enough with this size, since it from subaru.
i think it will be good to modify it as u like since its not a complicated engine…
and hope it wont exceed the 100k..although am a bit scared from this point…lets not forget we have some greedy dealers here in GCC..
its good that the “boss” admitted what u mentioned above…
still many people feel the opposite…
hope they improve with time..as they were before..
AARON
years after toyota brought 1 good looking car , lotus 1.8ltr engine supplied by toyota would have been more practical for this car .
vivz990
sexy stuff!!! after years of makin us suffr wid dull models, they finally hav something exciting..and hope the young leader will bring back to us those best of Toyotas 🙂
spyke
Finally something exciting to look at from toyota
eazy_mas
Nice from Toyota, just a car that I have been waiting for some time.
Rhymes
Omgg this carrr is sexyyyyyyyyyyyy
Murf
real wheel drive! 😀 and check out the interior!
where do i order one?! 😉
danee
the ae 86 was truely an awesome car…
and its successor , the ae 90 srinter trueno was even better…. it had a 4A-GE engine a 1.5 liter 20v inline 4 which could produce 160hp as stock (thats THE most powerful 4 cylinder engine toyota EVER made. Even now, after 18 years toyota could not produce anothe engine that could match that. The new 2010 corolla gt with its 1.8 liter turbocharged engine can only manage a 153 hp….)
neway, back to the topic, i just hope that this car could bring a tenth of a fun car that an ae86 or an ae90 was……….
ROJ
Lets hope it revives the proper thrill of oldschool RWD cars.. No fancy electronics hopefully, assuming its priced cheaply..
ibin
Ooooh~..
Now isn’t this a neat surprise..
I can’t wait to exhibit my Initial D skills on this beauty..
Ashfaq
Looks like the seats will be plastic..:P:P….is this the proto-type of the car or the real version??
Neeb
Sweet! OMG, I’m in LOVE with this car!! I read they might change the styling 🙁 Is it true?
Neeb
hey Ashfaq, the plastic seats have a nice shape, I like the way they look. do u?
Neeb
Are you all guys? I’m a female admirer (sp?) of the FT-86.
Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury
Come join the forums at https://www.drivearabia.com/myride
Pok La
Neeb, I’m a guy. Also admire the original 86, though to own is is next to impossible here in Malaysia.
About the FT, if it’s fun to drive, it’s ok with me. Better yet if it’s cheap but reliable..