Honda Cars : Toyota Supra to get a turbocharged 2.5-liter hybrid engine - report - photos | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

C'mon Honda, 2017 would sound like a good year to bring back the Prelude!

Toyota's highly-anticipated Supra successor is coming into focus as a new report is indicating the model will be launched by the end of 2017.

That's still several years off, but sources are indicating the model could be powered by a turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine which is outfitted with a hybrid system. The engine could produce more than 400 bhp (298 kW), but there has also been speculation about a hybridized 3.5-liter V6.

As we have previously reported, the Supra successor is expected to go into production as a result of Toyota's tie-up with BMW. The model is slated to ride on a revised version of the GT 86 platform and have suspension tuning by BMW.

Toyota GT 86 chief engineer Tetsuya Tada has already confirmed the company wants to launch the car as soon as possible and rumors suggest we could see a concept as early as this year's Tokyo Motor Show. Little else is known about the model but it will reportedly have styling inspired by the FT-HS concept.

Source;
http://www.worldcarfans.com/113021153691/toyota-supra-to-get-a-turbocharged-25-liter-hybrid-engine

Honda Cars : Toyota to let loose two more sports cars after the 86 | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

C'mon Honda, Next Gen Prelude is just waiting to happen!!!!

By Samuel Ee
SINGAPORE - The radical new Toyota 86 compact coupé is only the first of three new sports car line-ups that the Japanese carmaker is planning as part of a new business model that seeks to create a bond with buyers.

"The 86 is in the middle but we don't know when the other two will be ready," says Tetsuya Tada, the chief engineer of the 86, the first sports car for the Japanese giant carmaker in recent history.
A lightweight 2+2 model, the 86 has a 2.0-litre horizontally opposed engine in front to drive the rear wheels in classic fashion.

Mr Tada continues: "The 86 needed five years to develop, so at least five years is required for the others. A normal passenger car about two to three years. But sports cars need special parts, so it's five years."

Also not determined is whether the other two cars will be coupés or convertibles, or if they will have different engine/drive layouts "because technology changes, so we have to find the best layout".

So it is entirely possible that one of the line-ups could have a mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout like the discontinued two-seater MR2 (also called the MR-S in its final iteration).

But one thing is certain - the higher-end sports model is likely to be introduced before the entry-level car.

Mr Tada explains with a smile: "The president (Akio Toyoda) has asked me to make a successor to the Supra as soon as possible." The chief engineer was speaking in Germany at the recent launch of the Toyota 86 Experience to highlight the model's sporty abilities.

"The 86 was not conceived for pure speed but for driving pleasure," he explains.

It was inspired by the AE86 Levin of 1983, the original lightweight Toyota coupé which also happened to be Mr Tada's first car when he joined the firm.

It also has the ability to be extensively customised as per owner's wishes.

"The philosophy of the 86 is that it is an open concept," says Mr Tada.

The conventional way is for the carmaker to produce a car and call it perfect, which means the users don't have to or can't do anything else.

For example, if the rims and tyres are changed, the manufacturer's warranty is void.

Instead, the 86 was created as a car with the potential to change into something the customer wants it to be.

"Why? Because if you ask 100 people what you think of the car, you will get 100 answers. They all have different views," he said.

Hence the open concept, which will satisfy customers because the car evolves with them and make 100 people's dreams come true.

Taking it one step further, Toyota has even made Playstation integration possible.

A black box can record a track day session, and the telemetry downloaded to be played back and shared with other gamers on their Sony Playstation consoles. As a result, the addition of a turbo or supercharger can be simulated to see how it will enhance the naturally aspirated 86's performance.

So far, the success of the 86 has been a surprise, not least of all for rivals Nissan and Honda.

"They realise from the 86's sales that they have to go back to this kind of car. If everybody goes back to their roots, everyone can have a one-make race," says the former racer.

He reveals that Toyota wants to make sports cars again because "it is a very important strategy".

"We have two pillars - an ecological car and driving fun. We must balance these two aims otherwise users won't recognise us a true carmaker."

But Mr Tada notes that the mass production of sports cars has ceased to be a conventional business.
After the financial crisis of 2009, Toyota realised that it could no longer sell cars to dealers to make money because "the car population (was) not going to increase in future".

"So this is a new business model. When customers buy a car, it creates a new bond between the manufacturer and the owner - we do not just profit from selling the car," he said.

Source;
http://www.asiaone.com/Motoring/News/Story/A1Story20121101-380919.html

Honda Cars : Motortrend: Toyota Supra Successor Back in the Pipeline | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

C'mon Honda, if Toyota can have a FT-86 and a Supra in their lineup (wouldn't it be nice to see a next gen MR2 as well), surely we can have a Accord Coupe, Civic Si, and a NEW PRELUDE!....

May 03, 2012

By Peter Lyon

Illustrator: Holiday Auto Magazine

As the Supra, Celica, and MR-S (MR2) progressively disappeared over the last decade, so too did the excitement from Toyota's lineup. But sports cars are back in the Japanese giant's product plan, led by the Lexus LFA and the new Scion FR-S, which is just about to hit showroom floors. And now it appears the green lamp is finally about to be lit on a long-awaited Supra successor.

Several years ago, Toyota's U.S.-based product planners pitched a new hybrid sports car with looks, power, and environmental credentials. Unveiled at the 2007 Detroit auto show as the FT-HS, the concept reportedly pointed the way toward a reinterpretation of the Supra.

 

The financial crisis of 2008 prevented the FT-HS from becoming anything more than an attractive concept. But the spirit of that coupe survived and is reportedly being channeled into the design of the on-again, off-again, on-again Supra project. The edges and sharp angles you see in the attached illustration at top are how one artist interprets the direction Toyota is believed to be heading with its new sports car.

The car's final body is expected to be dropped onto the chassis of the GRMN MRS prototype, which has already undergone testing at Fuji Speedway. GRMN stands for Gazoo Racing Meister of Nurburgring, and was named after Nurburgring expert Hiromu Naruse, Toyota's late godfather of sports car development.

Unlike the rear-drive FT-HS, the new sports coupe (it's unlikely to be called Supra) would employ an all-wheel-drive system and generate upwards of 400 horsepower. The car is rumored to feature a mid-engine-mounted, 3.5-liter V-6 hybrid setup mated to a CVT lifted from the new Lexus RX, but tuned for higher performance. The engine would drive the rear wheels, while in-wheel electric motors would power the fronts. GRMN's expertise would be utilized to help develop the car.

The million-dollar question is when we'll see it in production. It's no secret that company CEO Akio Toyoda -- weekend racer, sports car addict, and the driving force behind bringing the extravagantly priced LFA to market -- is enthusiastic about a Supra successor. Toyota bosses haven't officially approved the project, but if Toyoda has his way and the economy shows continued signs of recovery, the new coupe could be on showroom floors by late 2015 for less than $60,000.

Source;

http://www.motortrend.com/future/future_vehicles/1205_toyota_supra_successor_back_in_the_pipeline/

Honda Cars : 2015 Toyota Supra to be a hybrid with 400 hp - report | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Smaller coupe also under consideration
The rumor mill is back in action as a new report is indicating Toyota is developing a Supra successor.

According to Motor Trend, the car will likely be launched in 2015 and feature a hybridized 3.5-liter V6 engine with more than 400 hp (298 kW / 406 PS). Additional information is limited, but the model will reportedly be rear-wheel drive and have styling that recalls the 2007 FT-HS concept.

In related news, engineers are reportedly working on a coupe version of the GRMN hybrid concept II concept. It could be launched by late 2014 and use the same hybridized 3.5-liter V6 engine as the Lexus GS 450h.

Source: http://www.worldcarfans.com/111121338997/2015-toyota-supra-to-be-a-hybrid-with-400-hp---report#ixzz1gcHWanU6

Honda Cars : Next Gen Toyota Supra underway! | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Lexus plans super LFA Tokyo Edition, new Supra underway
By Tim Pollard

Lexus will launch an LFA Tokyo Motor Show Edition at this autumn's 2011 Japanese show, CAR has discovered - and we can expect a brace of additional new Toyota/Lexus performance cars in the coming years, including a likely Supra replacement.

The Lexus LFA Tokyo edition will bring an M3-esque exposed carbon roof and (still hydraulically adjustable) carbon rear spoiler. Presumably this just means the weave is exposed, as the LFA is already made from carbonfibre.

CAR understands the LFA Tokyo will cost about €40k more than a 'regular' Lexus LFA.
What else is planned for the Lexus LFA?

A spider roadster was planned and its carbonfibre construction meant the open-top LFA was nearly as rigid as the coupe. But our sources in Japan have confirmed the roadster LFA has been canned owing to the economic uncertainty in markets around the world.

And what's this about new performance cars from Toyota/Lexus?

Toyota is working on two other performance cars separate from the FT-86 and LFA projects.
Information is sketchy at this point, but CAR understands one is a front-wheel drive car (possibly a go-faster CT200h) and one is a potential successor to the Supra.

Officially, a Supra replacement is denied. But we hear a skunkworks, unofficial project is underway to replace the RWD coupe and some insiders predict a 2014 launch.

It also sounds like future fast Toyota/Lexus models will switch from high-revving naturally aspirated engines - as in the LFA, ISF and FT-86 - to smaller, turbocharged engines. Interesting times at Toyota, as it attempts to play catch-up after a decade away from the performance heartland.

Source;
http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/Secret-new-cars/Search-Results/Spyshots/Lexus-to-launch-super-LFA-Tokyo-Edition-plus-new-Supra-underway/

Honda Cars : You Asked For It, You Got It: Toyota Secures New Trademark on Supra Name | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Wow, Toyota's getting serious about this sportscar stuff....shame, no S2000, no Prelude, sure we are getting a new hybrid version of a CRX....
Toyota has applied to trademark the iconic Supra name, according to documents it filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on July 16. The company’s previous trademark on the model name expired in 2006, and for the past four years Toyota didn’t bother to renew it.

This may be more than just business as usual. Only four days earlier, Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda told journalists in Japan that he wants “to see the next Supra tested in the near future”, although he qualified that by adding “even if one president [Toyoda himself] says that we want to have a Supra again, the whole company is not going to be responding to that request.”

We spoke with Toyota’s vice president of external communications, Mike Michels, this afternoon for more info. Toyota, like many other carmakers, categorically won’t comment on future product plans except when, you know, they will. This was a case when they wouldn’t—Michels told us that Toyota likely just registered the name “provisionally” to “make sure we have a lot of latitude to use names in the future.” This is true, and it happens often. But the trademark system is really designed around use (or honest plans to use the trademark for a product), and, generally speaking, a company would have three years to use the name until it’s considered abandoned.

Of course, Toyota hasn’t revealed what it will be calling the on-again, off-again production version of the FT86 concept, which is a joint project with Subaru. Could it be called Supra? There’s also the possibility that the Supra name could be attached to a second, completely different model, leaving the FT86 to adopt the Celica badge. In any event, Toyota filing a trademark for the Supra name—especially when taken with Mr. Toyoda’s comments—is telling, but it’s still too early to bet the mortgage money on any one scenario. Until Toyota finally rolls out a new Supra and puts the speculation to rest—and gives enthusiasts a reason to look at the company again—you can at least enjoy a vintage one.

Source;
http://blog.caranddriver.com/you-asked-for-it-you-got-it-toyota-secures-new-trademark-on-supra-name/

Honda Cars : Toyota to launch two new hybrid sports cars: MR2 and Supra | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

According to the latest reports it appears that Toyota is ready to built two hybrid sports cars: a successor to the MR2 and a reborn Supra.

First of all, we have the MR2 which is set to receive a hybrid powertrain based on a 1.5-liter petrol engine, just like the Honda CR-Z, which uses a 1.5-liter engine capable to deliver 102 hp but also an electric motor which develops an extra 20 hp. Apparently, the MR2, which will make its debut in 2013, was set to receive a V6 petrol engine but due to the success of the Honda CR-Z, Toyota changed its mind. Regarding the Supra successor, it seems that this car will be inspired by the FT-HS Concept unveiled back in 2007 at the Detroit Auto Show and will receive a V6 hybrid powertrain. Set to make its debut in late 2013 or 2014, the car’s development is now running almost in parallel with that of the FT-86.


Source;
http://www.4wheelsnews.com/toyota-to-launch-to-new-hybrid-sports-cars-mr2-and-supra/#more-8958