CONFIRMED - Is this the rebirth of the corolla/celica rwd vehicles?

[Good Times]

http://www.autocar.co.uk/contentImages//Car/Subaru/Concepts/848852419.jpg

I have no clue how reliable this news is but it does drum up some interest on the Toyota/Subaru alliance. It's definitely not the first bit of news I've seen between these two manufacturers so I'm guessing it's somewhat legit? At any rate it does make for some interesting fireside talks as it would be nice to see the rebirth of the corolla/celica series. No word on the diesel version but I know Subaru will be adding the diesel to their lineup so maybe we may see a diesel version on the Toyota side too? :drool:


Toyota and Subaru are joining forces to develop a sensational new sports coupé together, shown above in an Autocar image.

An inside source revealed top-secret sketches, showing that the car’s brief is to be compact, lightweight, rear drive and fast. Although the Subaru and Toyota versions of this coupé will look different from one another around the front and rear, both will be powered by Subaru’s 2.0-litre flat four engine, making this the first time that a Subaru boxer engine has powered a Toyota.

A naturally aspirated version of the petrol boxer engine with 175bhp is being considered for the base model, and there is potential for a hot 2.5-litre turbocharged model later.

This will be a car inspired by the classic rear-drive AE86 Toyota Corolla GT coupé from the 1980s, a car known for tail-happy handling. Yet beneath the skin we can expect a reworked Impreza, shortened, lightened and with a bespoke coupé body.

Subaru’s trademark four-wheel drive system will be ditched to save weight, complexity and cost. However,

if the standard model is a success then later plans could include a spiritual successor to the Toyota Celica GT4, featuring the 2.5-litre turbo boxer engine and four-wheel drive.

Affordability is the priority for this so-called ‘Toyobaru’. Costs will be driven down thanks to technology sharing between the two car makers. Sources suggest that the coupé could cost as little as £10,000

in Japan, but it’s likely to be closer to £20k in the UK, rising to £25k for the turbo model. Subaru will build the car at its Gunma plant in Japan, while Toyota is in charge of development.

The final design of the coupé is due to be signed off in July, with production set for 2010. Toyota, which holds an eight per cent stake in Subaru, is said to be keen to attract Japan’s disaffected youth with a Mazda MX-5 rival. In fact, an open-top derivative of this coupé could be another longer-term option.

After a launch in Japan, it’s believed the new coupé’s main market will be North America, but it should also make it to the UK. There’s a big market here for sports coupés and Toyota could benefit from an enthusiast’s car that revives the lustre of the Celica.


Source: Autocar (http://www.autocar.co.uk/News/NewsArticle/Subaru-Concepts/232133/#)

[Good Times]

Is this good news or what?! :D



TOKYO -- Toyota's long-anticipated sports car will arrive in 2011. It will be jointly developed with Subaru and boast a boxer engine.

The compact, rear-wheel-drive " affordable" car will be built at a new Japanese plant to be set up by Fuji Heavy Industries, parent of the Subaru brand.

Each company will market the car separately and badge it as its own.

The model is part of a sweeping expansion of the tie-up between the Japanese companies.

At a news conference here today, CEO Katsuaki Watanabe also said that Toyota Motor Corp. would boost its stake in Fuji Heavy to 16.5 percent, from its current 8.7 percent.

Toyota will pay 31.1 billion yen ($311 million) for the increased holding, effectively snapping up the last of the shares sold back to Fuji Heavy by General Motors in 2005.

Under the growing partnership, Toyota will supply Fuji Heavy with a compact car. Fuji Heavy also will start receiving minivehicles -- cars with engines no bigger than 660cc -- from Toyota affiliate Daihatsu, starting in 2009.

No more minicars

Fuji Heavy will eventually jettison all of its own minicar development.

Under the hood of the sports car will be Subaru's trademark horizontally opposed engine. The companies did not say how many cylinders the engine will have.

The car will sit on a new Subaru platform and be " designed" by Toyota, the companies said.

" I think there is high potential for this car," Watanabe said, adding that it will be sold in Japan and overseas. " We haven't had a sports car for a long time. This is a long-awaited-for model."

Pricing would be " not prohibitively high," he said.

Other details, such as engine displacement and production volume, are under wraps. But Fuji Heavy President Ikuo Mori said he has driven the test vehicle and is pleased.

" I'm confident we have an excellent car," Mori said.

New Fuji plant

Fuji Heavy will build a plant next to its Gunma Oizumi engine and transmission factory to manufacture the sports car. It will start operation in late 2011.

Work there may expand to include other Toyota-commissioned vehicles, Mori said. Fuji Heavy is deciding how big to make the plant and how much money to invest.

The new car fills a gap left by the retirement of the MRS two-seater. Toyota's midengined MR2 dates back to 1984. It was rechristened the MRS in 1999 and retired last year.

Other sporty models over the years have included the Celica, which was discontinued in 2006, and the Supra, on the roads for nearly a quarter of a century from 1978 to 2002.

Watanabe said the success of the joint manufacturing at Fuji Heavy's Lafayette, Ind., plant pushed him to go ahead with the sports car. That plant now makes Camrys for Toyota.

" We thought what might be the next step," he said. " Fuji Heavy is a very reliable partner. I hope to identify new areas for collaboration as we continue with the relationship."


Source: AutoNews.com (http://www.autonews.com)

[Seanz0rz]

i absolutely cannot wait!!!!!

pure speculation here but:

id expect engines ranging from 1.5-2.4 litres, 4 cylinders (most likely with a turbo). a 6 cylinder version seems unlikely as all the automakers push towards higher fuel economy and reducing weight while increasing power output. they will probably set this to compete with the v6 mustang, new genesis coupe (which i LOVE btw), and maybe that 4 cylinder camaro thats been kicked around the internets in the past months, not to mention stuff like the 350/370z.

hopefully this is truely a replacement to the celicas and supras of the past. i could see them making a version like the celica, then hopping it up quite a bit to create a supra trim level, like the old cars. i think this would be a very successful way to do this.



my only major concern is that toyota has a gigantic hard on for hybrid stuff, which is heavy, and weight always spoils performance in every way. please give us a car, thats all we want, a car. no electric motors and batteries, just a nice H with a turbo and a good 6 speed transmission. thats all i ask. dont screw this up toyota...

[DHC6twinotter]

I will say, it is hard to beat the sound of a flat 4 motor. Hard to beat the sound of an STi, so I would image these new Toyotas would sound pretty swell as well. :D

Not sure I completely like the idea of Subaru and Toyota sharing body work...where's the creativity in that? Oh well...at least it'll be rwd and turbo. :thumbup:

I think this is a step in the right direction.

just my $.02.

[Seanz0rz]

i doubt very much they will share any body panels. from what ive been reading on the subject, it most definitely wont be a rebadge, like so many american vehicles. and since suburu is AWD only, its rumored that an awd system would be available, if not standard on the subie, and maybe an option on the toyota.

[Good Times]

I don't see this being a Supra but rather just a void to fill in the Corolla/Celica RWD/AWD configuration. Somehow I definitely see this just being a rebadged Subaru. Something similar to the Toyota/GM partnership with the Corolla/Matrix/Prism/?.

But that's my thought. At any rate a diesel or hybrid diesel would be nice to see. Highly doubt it but I do know that Subaru's working on a diesel configuration across their entire platform so maybe there's hope?