Toyota has come up with what could be the build of the SEMA show. A GR86 decked out in classic WRC Celica livery and fitted with the entire engine and all-wheel drive transmission setup from a GR Corolla hot hatch, it pushes more buttons than a 1940s switchboard operator. Good as this car looks on the surface, and we’ll get to that in a moment, the heart of the project is that powertrain swap. And it can’t have been an easy one because the GR86 is designed around a longitudinally mounted boxer four that drives the rear wheels only and the GR Corolla is a transverse-engined hot hatch that sends power to all four corners.
But Toyota’s build team managed to
shoehorn in the Corolla’s 1.6-liter turbocharged triple despite it being
considerably taller than the original Subaru motor. A special subframe was
required along with plenty of modifications to adapt the Corolla hubs necessary
to fit the front pair of driveshafts.
The engine is currently running a stock GR
Corolla tune which delivers 300 hp and 370 Nm. But Toyota
admits there’s scope to improve this with some simple tuning. And although it
makes no claims of additional power, it has prepped the 86 for that eventuality
by upgrading the inline three with a performance intercooler, an oil cooler and
a race ECU to control the spark, fuelling and boost. With an drivetrain setup
closer to that of an old Celica GT-Four than a current GR86, the concept was
crying out for a visual makeover inspired by Toyota’s 1980s and 1990s rally
exploits, and that’s exactly what it got. The Halo White paint is offset by
classic-looking red and green flourishes that sit nicely with the modern Toyota
Gazoo Racing logos. But it’s the details that really complete it, the red
mudflaps, Celica GT-Four-style rear spoiler and bank of hood-mounted lights.
Inside, the stripped interior features racing seats and six-point harnesses.
But it also looks like yet another big
hint from Toyota that the Celica is about to make a comeback.
