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New Toyota Supra on course for 2018 launch
Toyota and BMW’s joint sports car project is set to spawn two different-sized four-wheel-drive hybrids: a Supra successor and BMW Z5
New information suggests the long-awaited Toyota Supra will arrive in 2018, shortly after the BMW Z5 with which it will share many parts.
BMW and Toyota have been jointly working on the models since 2012, but have now begun to move development off in their own directions. BMW has been spotted testing its convertible Z5 on the road and Toyota is said to be at a similar stage of development.
While the Z5 will effectively be a replacement for its Z4, the Supra will come as the long-awaited successor to Toyota's discontinued coupé, which was last produced in 2002. The new Supra will take inspiration from the FT-1 concept of Detroit 2014 (shown below), and will sit above the GT86 in Toyota's line-up.
That positioning tallies with the return of one of Toyota’s classic sports car names. While the Celica badge has traditionally been used for models of the GT86’s size, the Supra name would give the firm a mainstream sports car flagship. It also allows the new car to be considerably more expensive than the GT86, reflecting what is likely to be a complex powertrain and high-tech construction.
Hybrid four-wheel drive
The two models are due to feature a hybrid four-wheel-drive set-up incorporating a BMW petrol engine and electric motors whose energy is stored in supercapacitors.
BMW is understood to be bringing its expertise in construction to the project, with the new sports car likely to follow the existing i3, i8 and 7 Series, by making use of carbonfibre in its architecture.
Despite the technical similarities of the two models, Ian Robertson, BMW’s board member with responsibility for sales and marketing, has previously stated that BMW and Toyota have come up with a proposal that can satisfy different areas of the sports car market.
“The one thing we’re clear on now is that a platform for both companies can work,” he said. “The cars in themselves don’t actually need to be positioned the same. The platform can spawn two positionings.
“The concept works, the platform can deliver and now we have two proud sets of engineers - one group German, one group Japanese - who are each fighting and arguing for the car they want.”
When asked if the platform was scalable, to allow for the sort of difference in wheelbase that there could be between a Supra and a Z5 (pictured above), Robertson said: “Gone are the days when one platform was one platform. Most of our platforms are scalable these days.”
Production
Robertson also said that no decision on production had been taken, but he suggested that a single factory would be used for both cars. “One part of the next phase will be deciding who builds the car - which company and in which country. We need to find out where the markets are and whether the biggest markets are the same for both companies.” It’s thought that a plant in the United States or Europe is more likely to be used than a facility in Japan.
Toyota’s luxury brand, Lexus, does not currently have access to the joint sports car program, but senior company officials have refused to rule out the idea in the longer term. “Toyota is next door,” said Lexus’s European boss, Alain Uyttenhoven. “We are one company and our head is Akio Toyoda, and we could do it. Right now, we are not going to have a common platform between BMW and Lexus. Purely speaking, though, we have access to everything which is Toyota.”
New Toyota Supra Will Cost $63,500 In The U.S., Claims Source
Published on the SupraMKV forums, this information allegedly comes from a reliable source. They proclaim that the 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six cylinder engine will produce 335 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque, figures which have been speculated on in the past.
Of more interest is an alleged starting price of roughly $63,500 in the United States. If true, that MSRP would put the Supra almost perfectly in the middle of the entry-level Porsche 718 Cayman that starts at $56,900 and the more powerful 718 Cayman S which is available from $69,300. Positioning the new Supra against the Cayman is a brave move by Toyota and is perhaps a sign of just how confident the Japanese carmaker is in its new flagship.
Toyota Reportedly Wants To Bring Back The Celica And MR2
The Toyota Supra is continuing its slow march to production and a new report is suggesting it could eventually be joined by a new Celica or MR2.
According to Road and Track’s Bob Sorokanich, Supra assistant chief engineer Masayuki Kai made the revelation last week during his test of the highly anticipated sports car. During a discussion, Kai said “We want to have [the] Celica back, we want to have the MR2 back.”
Kai went on to say the company decided to bring the Supra back first because it had the “biggest demand from the market.” Now that the model is almost here, it’s possible that a new Celica or MR2 could be launched.
Kai suggested nothing is set in stone, but hinted a modern-day Celica could be an all-wheel drive performance coupe. The MR2, on the other hand, could keep its mid-engine layout. However, the company still has to figure out if a business case can be made for the models.
Sports cars sell in relatively small numbers and Kai noted they use a lot of components which can’t be shared with more mainstream models. One solution would be to team up with another automaker like they did with BMW for the Supra and Subaru for the 86.
It’s unclear if another company would be willing to work with Toyota on a new sports car, but Kai praised Mazda and said he believes there are a “lot of things we need to learn” from the company. Kai also suggested that without the BMW and Toyota partnership, there probably wouldn’t be a new Z4 or Supra.
While it would be interesting to see a new Celica or MR2, both models went out of production in the mid-2000’s. The MR2 wasn’t a huge hit in the United States as Carsalesbase data shows sales peaked at 32,309 units in 1985 and dropped to a few thousand units towards the end of its production run. The Celica did significantly better as Toyota was selling more than 50,000 units as recently as 2000. However, sales quickly dropped off from there.