FastMotoring Motor News In Speed

However you want to call it, Toyota 86, GT86 or the concept name it was given as FT86, doesn’t matter. The good news is the legendary Toyota AE86 (made popular by the Japanese anime – Initial D) successor is here. The All-New rear wheel drive Toyota sports coupe – named as Toyota 86 in Malaysia and few other countries as GT 86.

The Toyota 86 is 2 door, 4 seaters, front engine, rear wheel drive sports coupe. By rear wheel drive coupe, means drifting in some of our mindset. After all, we can’t get a way from the well drifting action done by the Toyota AE86. The front fascia is complete newly design by Toyota. The LED integrated headlights comes with HID with auto leveling function as standard.

The dashboard is very driver oriented and gives have much visibility and clear view of the gauges & switches. Having said that, the don’t expect much gizmo gadget like the Lexus LFA as this is still an entry level sports car. Gear stick and handbrakes are easily reachable, standing by for the driver to use them to do some actions.

From the rear and the window line we can see the design was also inspired by the legendary Toyota 2000GT (Toyota sports coupe in 1960′s). The LED rear lights gave the Toyota 86 a sportier finish. Not to be missed would be the dual 86mm exhaust waiting to be warm up with high revs.

Customers will have 2 variant to choose from, a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed auto transmission with pedal shifters on the steering wheel. Also included it’s the aluminium sports pedal to encourage driver to floor the pedal to get most out from the 2.0L boxer engine. The engine coded as D-4S is a joint development with Subaru. It produces 200hp and 205Nm torque.

The Toyota 86 is given a sets of 17″ rims, specifically design only for the Toyota 86.Specially fine-tuned for the chassis and suspension of the Toyota 86. The Toyota 86 is designed with low centre of gravity and optimize for best front and rear weight distribution. All these contribute to better handling.

Fitted with Alcantara leather material to semi bucket seats to give the driver more support to take on the G-Force when cornering. The keyless entry with push-start button is also included with the car.

Toyota 86 priced from RM243,000 for the manual transmission & RM249,000 for the auto transmission with paddle shifters. Which in our opinion, it is a high price tag to pay for this car. In the United States, the Toyota 86 is sold around the same price tag as a Mazda 3 MPS. Logically, a Toyota 86 should be sold around RM180,000 which is about the price of a Mazda 3 MPS. This leaves us a doubt on why the Toyota 86 are priced are much higher in Malaysia market. In Australia, Toyota 86 is selling about $30,000 AUD. However, UMW Toyota has brought in a bunch of colours for you to choose from, White Pearl, Crystal Black Silica, Lighting Red, Orange Metallic, Galaxy Blue Silica & Sterling Silver Metallic. We love this car, but we think the price tag it’s on the high side. 

Photo Gallery: Toyota 86 / Toyota GT86 Malaysia

A long-awaited new Toyota rear-wheel-drive sports car has now been unveiled in its home market, Japan. Toyota newest sports car is officially known as Toyota 86 or “hachi roku”.

The unveiling occurred when Toyota president Akio Toyoda drove a production prototype down the main straight of the Fuji Speedway, south of Tokyo.

Mr Toyoda said the new rear-wheel-drive sports car was all about “waku doki” – a car that creates excitement and gets your heart racing. “I am very proud of this car,” Mr Toyoda said. “Thank you for the patience of car lovers. They are going to enjoy this car.”

Developed in close conjunction with Subaru, the new 2012 Toyota 86 features the world’s first horizontally opposed D-4S engine, combining “boxer” engine technology with Toyota’s cutting-edge D-4S direct injection technology. The engine is installed front mid-ship to create an ultra-low centre of gravity and low inertia. It is the world’s only horizontally opposed engine and rear-wheel-drive package.

The D-4S, with separate twin injectors for both direct injection and port injection, boasts a high compression ratio of 12.5:1. This provides high output and high torque over a wide range of engine speeds and contributes to improved environmental performance. The engine’s redline is 7500rpm with maximum output of 200PS (147kW) @ 6,800rpm and 205Nm of torque @ 6,600rpm. Even so, the engine achieves fuel efficiency and environmental performance that rivals that of a standard 2.0-litre sedan. The D-4S engine is mated with a 6-speed manual transmission or a special sports-driving 6-speed automatic transmission.

As a result, the 86 offers fun driving at a level unprecedented in earlier sports cars. It carries on the spirit of the AE86 Corolla in its aim to be a car that evolves with its owner.

The lightweight 2+2 configuration rear-wheel-drive platform was designed to achieve superior handling and create the world’s smallest mass-production four-passenger sports car (by volume). The foldable rear seats create a luggage space that can accommodate four spare wheels or two sets of golf clubs.

The interior design seeks the real meaning of sports cars by emphasising the form, placement and materials of each element. The seatbacks and cushion surfaces are designed to provide support during acceleration G-forces from the front, the back and to the sides. In addition, the shape of the front seats is designed to prevent elbows from interfering with gearshift operation.

The circular steering wheel has a diameter of 365 mm, the smallest in a Toyota-brand vehicle. The wheel’s surface was optimised with exhaustive feedback from test drivers to enhance steering performance and grip.

A three-cluster meter built around the tachometer has been designed with particular attention paid to display placement, markings and typeface to enhance visibility and readability during sports driving.

The Toyota 86 will be launched in Australia by mid-2012. In the other hand, we hope that UMW Toyota will be introducing this model in Malaysia too. Meantime, let’s check out the photos & videos after the jump.

Photo Gallery: Toyota 86

YouTube Videos

Subaru announced on November 1 that it will show an all-new concept version of its upcoming BRZ sports car at the 2011 Los Angeles International Auto Show. Dubbed the Subaru BRZ Concept- STI, the concept car represents the next step in lightweight performance sports cars combined with the race-bred tuning of Subaru Technica International (STI).

SUBARU BRZ Concept – STI Specifications

Body size (Overall: Length x Width x Height): 166.7 X 70.9 X 50.4 inches
Wheelbase: 101.2 inch
Engine: Subaru Boxer “FA” engine – 2.0-liter naturally-aspirated four-cylinder Horizontally-Opposed Boxer engine
Tyres size: 215/45R18 (Front), 225/45R18 (Rear)

The production Subaru BRZ will begin production in end of Q1 2012 (Spring 2012 in USA) as the only mass-produced front-engine, Boxer engine rear-wheel drive sports car in the world. Meantime, check out the photo gallery for more about new Subaru BRZ after the jump.

Photo Gallery: Subaru BRZ Concept STI