Toyota’s vice chairman has confirmed the Japanese model is readying the following Celica, 18 years after manufacturing of the sports activities automobile ended.
Dialogue on reviving the mannequin identify has been rife for years and Autocar was advised final 12 months {that a} reborn Celica was being thought of as a part of a new-era of electrical Toyota sports activities vehicles – though no executives would go on report to verify it.
Nonetheless, speaking at this weekend’s Rally Japan, Yuki Nakajima stated unambiguously: “We’re making the Celica!”
He added: “To be sincere, there isn’t any signal of it proper now. Nonetheless, there are a lot of individuals inside the firm who’re eagerly awaiting the Celica. So… I’m wondering if it is okay to say this in a public discussion board, however we’re doing the Celica!”
His announcement follows additional hypothesis in the course of the previous few weeks, with Toyota dropping hints that it was getting ready to revive the MR2 and Celica nameplates, whereas additionally renewing the GR86 and GR Supra.
It additionally comes after a latest episode of the corporate’s self-published cartoon, referred to as Grip, briefly confirmed a whiteboard containing a listing of recent fashions: a Supra Mk6, Celica Mk8, MR2 Mk4, GR86 Mk3 and GR GT3.
Notably, the whiteboard options alongside character Grasp Rugu, who guides the present’s protagonists of their battle in opposition to autonomous race vehicles.
The brand new sports activities vehicles have but to be formally confirmed for manufacturing by Toyota, however the teaser follows months of reviews that the Gazoo Racing line-up is because of be drastically expanded.
Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda, who was the driving pressure behind the creation of GR, has beforehand spoken of his ambition to revive what he calls the “three brothers”: the Celica, MR2 and Supra.
As beforehand reported by Autocar, Toyota has been debating whether or not to press a new Celica into manufacturing on a brand new electrical automobile platform that opens up “a number of completely different prospects”.
Key to this structure is a low seat top, enabling a extra conventional sports activities vehicles expertise. The FT-Se idea revealed finally 12 months’s Tokyo motor present sits 75mm decrease than the Porsche 718 Cayman. Its design is cut up into three modules, with single-piece entrance and rear ends.
This “permits us to be extra excessive”, Shinya Ito, common supervisor of Lexus Electrified, advised Autocar final 12 months.
