It is not often that a manufacturer facelifts a concept, but that is what Toyota has done with the FT-86, the long-awaited sports car that is being created with Subaru.
The latest version has moved the looks on slightly, but Toyota says that the final production version of the car will be shown at the Tokyo motor show in December.
Gallery: Geneva Motor Show 2011
Styling has been tweaked and the bonnet raised in line with more stringent pedestrian impact regulations, but the FT-86 is almost there.
Production will begin next year and the car is expected to go on sale in the first half of 2012. There is no word on what the name of the production car will be, but a Toyota spokesman told Autoblog that “Celica would be the obvious one.”
Such an iconic name would set the bar immediately high for the Toyota, but the company does say that the long, low bonnet and rear-set cabin are intended to pay homage to classic Toyota sports cars.
The FT-86 is a front-engined, rear-wheel-drive car with a boxer engine providing the power – there are no further details on the engine itself or what performance figures we might be able to expect from the FT-86, so it looks like we might have to wait until the Tokyo show.
Despite a long gestation, it seems things are beginning to look up for Toyota sports car enthusiasts.
Gallery: Geneva Motor Show 2011
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