Report: Toyota’s Next GR86 Will Be Turbocharged

If the following report is true, the Subaru BRZ and Toyota GR86 twins will not be identical for long. Based on a story from Japan’s Best Car, Forbes writes that the next GR86 will ditch the Subaru-developed flat-four for a four-cylinder of Toyota’s own design. And, answering the wishes held by many enthusiasts since the car’s debut in 2012, that engine will be turbocharged.

Even after Toyota and Subaru fixed the infamous dip in the torque curve for the second generation (2022MY to present), some who experienced the car’s capable chassis craved more than the 228 hp that came with it. Many went the DIY route, but the Subaru block wasn’t considered robust enough to handle the boost for long. Along came the GR Corolla to the U.S. market, packing the 1.6-liter turbocharged three-cylinder enthusiasts had been drooling over in the smaller GR Yaris, which Toyota sells only in Europe. GR86-loving gearheads had a lot of intrusive thoughts.

So did Toyota, evidently. Last week, we learned that Toyota is dropping the engine and the all-wheel-drive system from a GR Corolla into a GR86—just one, a factory-built hot rod to show off at the industry-only SEMA show in Las Vegas. But if the Best Car report proves true, Toyota’s SEMA build may be a product announcement hiding in plain sight.

The next-gen GR86 wouldn’t get exactly the same engine as the hatchback, writes Forbes: In the coupe, the turbo 1.6-liter three-pot would be assisted by some sort of electric battery and motor. Given Toyota’s vast experience with hybrids, not only in economobiles like the Prius but also in its scratch-build race cars, we have a lot of confidence in the arrangement. We’re guessing, though, that a curb weight under 3000 pounds is going to be difficult to achieve, as is a MSRP under $30,000.

We aren’t surprised that Toyota wants to go its own way with the GR86. Financially, a partnership was the most practical way for Subaru and Toyota to develop a sports car because they could split the development bill. However, right before the second-generation was introduced, the CEO of Toyota, the famously performance-obsessed Akio Toyoda, handed down a decree for the development engineers on the GR86: “Aim to differentiate performance from BRZ.” When we drove the cars on track, we did indeed notice that difference. Perhaps suspension tweaks weren’t enough for Toyota. In light of the GR Corolla, which is unlike anything else on the market today, why should Toyota hide its light under a Subaru-shaped basket?

Its current lineup reveals that Toyota knows its strengths, and is playing to them. (Check out the new 4Runner, our first drive of the new Tacoma, and our spin in the newly returned Land Cruiser.) The GR Corolla, in particular, proves that even this giant corporation is not so busy selling RAV4s and Priuses that it can’t find time for a passion project. A more powerful GR86 would be right at home in Toyota’s lineup, come 2028 or so: Though we’d expect a turbo version to cost $37K or so, like the GR Corolla, the cars are totally different propositions: All wheel drive, four-door hatchback vs. rear-wheel-drive 2+2 coupe. (Believe us when we say that none of your friends want to ride in the back of a GR86. A GR Corolla? They actually would. You could fit a car seat back there, too.)

As for the GR Supra? It probably won’t be around by the time this new GR86 debuts. In May, Automotive News reported that both the four- and six-cylinder variants will exit production in 2026, and just last week Toyota confirmed to Motor1 that the four-cylinder car is dead after the 2025 model year.

A turbocharged, hybridized version of the GR86 would be perfectly complemented by the other gas-powered, two-door coupe that Toyota is rumored to be developing in partnership with Daihatsu and Suzuki. The SF-R coupe is supposed to have a 150-hp version of Toyota’s 1.3-liter engine, presumably one without hybrid assistance. That’s closer to Mazda Miata power than to current GR86 power, suggesting that Toyota is already planning for the next GR86 to increase in both power and price. Better yet? It indicates that Toyota still believes in building a genuinely affordable sports car. And that is no easy thing to justify to the beancounters.

Will the next generation of GR86 be Toyota through and through? If so, that will be an exciting thing indeed.

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