Further details emerge of hybrid turbo Toyota GR86 – report

Information about a third-generation Toyota GR86 continues to trickle out of Japan, with a Japanese magazine publishing a new unsubstantiated report about the sports car's next iteration being unveiled in 2025.

Respected Japanese publication Best Car – which has a strong track record of reporting top-secret plans from Toyota – claims a new GR86 is being developed using a 1.6-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine found in the GR Yaris, with a hybrid system.

If accurate, it would give the life cycle of the current GR86 – and its Subaru BRZ twin – of just four years internationally, compared to the 10-year span of the original 86 and BRZ twins.

Despite the second-generation Toyota GR86 being unveiled in April 2021 – a few months after its BRZ twin in late 2020 – Best Car claims upcoming fuel economy standards in Japan are the catalyst for the all-new model, as originally reported in October 2022.

The publication claims the 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine will be mated with a hybrid system borrowed from other Toyota cars – including the recently-unveiled Crown sedan – boosting performance to 220kW while improving fuel economy and tailpipe emissions.

The third-generation GR86 reportedly uses a modified version of the chassis found under the Lexus IS sedan – which is now a decade old – adapted for a shorter wheelbase.

Giving further weight to the possibility of a new model is that the current GR86 is due to be removed from sale in Europe after July 2024 as it will no longer comply with laws for advanced safety technology.

It's said the windscreen in the current GR86/BRZ is too low to be fitted with traffic sign recognition cameras used by electronic speed limiters – a future requirement for all new cars sold in the region.

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Furthermore, new cars sold in Australia after March 2025 will be required to have autonomous emergency braking (AEB) as standard – a safety feature currently lacking from GR86 and BRZ models optioned with a manual transmission.

Given the second-generation GR86/BRZ was largely a major facelift of the first generation – with new body panels, cabin, and a different engine – developing a third-generation model so soon could be a way for Toyota and Subaru to extend the life of the chassis by another five or six years and help amortise manufacturing costs before having to start from scratch.

So far, Best Car is the only publication known to have received information from Toyota insiders with knowledge of the new GR86, but the outlet admitted in October to being sceptical before claiming to have successfully corroborated the plans.