2024 Toyota GR GT: Electric flagship imagined
Toyota has shown us a race car version of what appears to be a road car, but will it end up being a halo product for the company?
A 2024 Toyota GR GT has been imagined as an all-new flagship coupe from the Japanese car giant.
Toyota has previously teased the vehicle as a motorsports-only GT3 concept car, and evidence suggests a road-going version could be on the way, complete with a high-performance petrol – or fully-electric – powertrain.
The Toyota GR GT3 Concept’s silhouette shares a striking similarity to the Mazda RX-Vision GT3 Concept – and given the two companies have been working more closely together since Toyota took a five per cent stake in Mazda, it makes sense they could be collaborating on a halo coupe project.
In recent days, Japanese publication Best Car reported Toyota is working on a battery-powered coupe from Gazoo Racing alongside Mazda, with as much as 368kW (500 horsepower) being reported.
Interestingly, Toyota’s TS050 LMP1 racing car also used a 368kW electric motor.
Given Mazda is rumoured to be using a rotary engine in its version – after recently patenting a hybrid triple-rotor powertrain – it’s possible Toyota could end up using a Le Mans-derived 2.4-litre twin-turbo V6 or Toyota road car-sourced 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 alongside a high-performance hybrid system.
Best Car also reports development of the sports car is (unsurprisingly) being undertaken by Gazoo Racing, Toyota’s performance and motorsports division.
When the GR GT3 Concept was unveiled, Toyota said it was looking at “commercialising motorsports cars rather than simply adapting production vehicles for use in motorsports,” meaning the carmaker is aiming to launch a production car after it’s been developed and proven in racing.
What’s more, GT3 racing regulations specify that at least 20 road-legal vehicles are manufactured within the first two years, which the racing version should be based on.
Earlier this month, Toyota confirmed the GR GT3 Concept had been “given the green light for development” during a closed-door event, according to Robby DeGraff, industry analyst from US research firm AutoPacific.
These renderings by Photoshop guru Theophilus Chin provide a glimpse at what a road-going version of the car could look like.
Toyota Racing Development President David Wilson told US publication Car & Driver recently the GR GT3 Concept could end up wearing a Lexus badge.
“It’s fairly safe to connect the dots and suggest that that could be a precursor to the next global GT3 car for Lexus,” Wilson said.
While not confirmed, one option could see the coupe could take inspiration for its name from another flagship product from the Japanese company’s past – the Toyota 2000GT.
Much like the Nissan Z dropped its numerals following the 370Z, the Toyota GR GT could usher in a new generation for the brand, while still adopting many of the design features celebrated on the original 2000GT.
Like the Toyota sports car from the 1960s, the GR GT uses a long bonnet, in-set headlights, a triangular point at the rear quarter glass, and a large fender vent behind the front wheels, reminiscent of the 2000GT’s access panels which hide the battery and air filter.
The rear-end of this hypothetical GR GT also appears to echo the pointy tail of the 2000GT.
Whether the 2024 Toyota GR GT does make it to production has yet to be seen, but evidence of something coming from the company is mounting.
What do you think? Should Toyota bring a pure-electric flagship coupe to market? Let us know in the comments section below.
The post 2024 Toyota GR GT: Electric flagship imagined appeared first on Drive.