People are so excited about the 2014 Detroit Motor Show in America, most of them forgot that the year’s first major motoring event is being held on the other side of the Pacific, in Japan. We’re talking about the Tokyo Auto Salon, Japan’s answer to the SEMA show.
At it, Toyota revealed a number of highly customized versions of their most popular models. The one relevant not only to the Japanese market but the whole world is this one, the Toyota GRMN 86 Concept. It is the latest creation of Toyota’s racing partners at Gazoo, and they describe it as “stripped-down special inspired by the Nurburgring.”
The GRMN 86 Concept is what a track-focused version of the GT86 sports car would be like. It has carbon fibre roof, bonnet and tailgate and polycarbonate window; the rear seats have been taken out; and the front ones front pair replaced with sports seats with carbon fibre backs. The car is lighter and has an even lower center of gravity than the road-going GT86.
The powertrain in the Toyota GRMN 86 Concept is apparently the standard GT86 unit, a 2.0 liter horizontally-opposed four-cylinder with 197bhp. It is not a brilliant engine to be honest, but since the GRMN 86 is a lot lighter than the normal car, it should deliver livelier performance here.
