Japanese automotive powerhouse Toyota (TM) has long been associated with the proliferation of hybrid-electric vehicles into the mainstream.
In the early 2000s, the venerable Prius became a cultural symbol for many people who were not typical car enthusiasts. Its quirky design and ability to sip fuel garnered the attention of the environmentally conscious as well as politically minded detractors who saw it and a wave of other hybrid vehicles as virtue-signaling fashion accessories.
Since then, Toyota has kept improving its hybrid technology to become increasingly efficient and has incorporated it into more everyday, mainstream models like the Camry sedan.
As emissions regulations around the world get tougher and tighter, Toyota is not limiting itself to only making run-of-the-mill vehicles; rather, its own motorsports division is helping the brand inject hybrid tech into its more high-octane offerings.
The Toyota Prius. Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Hiroyuki Yamada confirmed to Autocar that future Toyota sports cars will feature hybrid technology.
Toyota Motor Corp.
Toyota needs hybrid engines for racing, says Toyota engineer
In the same vein as BMW’s M division, Nissan’s NISMO, or Hyundai’s N division, Toyota’s Gazoo Racing operates as a motorsports division that also sells high-performance versions of Toyota cars.
This special team competes in some of the most prestigious racing events and has claimed multiple victories in the FIA World Rally Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Currently, they are partnered with the MoneyGram Haas F1 Team to provide engineering support for Formula 1 cars.
However, in a new report from Autocar, Gazoo Racing engineer Hiroyuki Yamada noted that he and his colleagues have been hard at work developing a new, high-performance engine that will incorporate hybrid technology.
“We can use hybrid for future cars [which use this engine]. We will use it in our motorsport activities in the future, because of emissions,” he told the British publication. “This technology we create will we apply to both motorsport and passenger [car] engines. In the future, we want a more fuel-efficient engine [for GR cars].”
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The engine itself is a turbocharged 2-liter, 4-cylinder designed to accommodate both traditional and plug-in hybrid settings. Yamada told Autocar that the engine is modified to be smaller and lighter, which allows for the hybrid system of batteries and electric motor to take up as little weight as possible.
The new engine first appeared earlier this year in a mid-engined prototype vehicle called the GR Yaris M, which was meant to preview the team’s future developments.
Yamada, his fellow engineers, and Toyota have not disclosed any other technical details, but Autocar reports that the new engine could make close to 400 horsepower when used in a road car.
Toyota has previously teased the possibility of a revival of some of its older sports car nameplates. In November 2024, Toyota fans dissected a promotional video that may have subliminally hinted at revived versions of the MR2 and Celica sports cars, as well as new iterations of the Supra and GR86.
Autoblog reported in December that Yuki Nakajima, Toyota’s Executive Vice President of Products confirmed that a new Celica is in the works.
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From sports cars to everyday cars
Hybrid technology in sports cars is not an entirely foreign idea. The engines powering this year’s Formula 1 cars, as well as some of the most desirable cars from Ferrari, Lamborghini, and McLaren are all hybrids.
However, Toyota aims to use this kind of technology in more “mundane” models, say a Camry, RAV4, or Corolla. In an interview with Car Magazine, Toyota Gazoo Racing head Bart Eelen says that this ‘trickle-down effect’ is the result of a unique way to stress-test its newest innovations.
“It goes back to Toyota’s idea of using motorsport as a test bed and as a way to develop new things,” he said. “I think that’s something that Akio [Toyoda, the current Toyota chairman] introduced into the company. Toyota hadn’t thought that way before.”
The Toyota Motor Corporation is traded on the New York Stock Exchange as TM.
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