Toyota GT86 Initial D Concept
If the Toyota AE86 Corolla paved the way
for the GT86 we have today, Initial D contributed greatly in making the
original an icon. Now Toyota is celebrating those origins with this latest
concept car.
Initial D was a
manga comic by Suichi Shigeno. The cult classic followed the story of Takumi
Fujiwara, a teenager driving a modified AE86 for his father's tofu shop up a
mountain and honing his drifting skills in the process. The original comic
series lead to several animated television shows and a film adaptation.
Created not by the home office in Japan
but by Toyota UK, the GT86 Initial D concept borrows its livery directly from
Takumi's “panda” 86. It's done up in white and black and features RS Watanabe
alloys, a TRD suspension, Fujitsubo exhaust, Cusco strut brace, carbon-fiber
hood, yellow fog lights and silver-painted engine cover. It sports carbon door
handles and mirror covers, mud flaps, tinted taillights, but no rear spoiler.
It even wears the name of the Fujiwara Tofu Shop on the door.
The result is a fitting tribute to an
icon of the street racing scene and is set to appear at “motoring events around
Britain throughout the summer.”
