Toyota's MR2 Based GRMN SPORTS HYBRID Concept II

Visitors at this week's 2011 Tokyo Motor Show will have the chance to see Toyota's MR2 roadster-based GRMN SPORTS HYBRID Concept II in the flesh.

Developed by Toyota and its motorsports partner Gazoo Racing, the prototype made its debut at this year’s 24-hour endurance race at the Nürburgring in Germany.
For those of you wondering, "GRMN" is an acronym for “Gazoo Racing tuned by the Meister of the Nürburgring,” the latter being a nickname for Toyota’s late test driver Hiromu Naruse who died in an accident last summer while driving a prototype of the Lexus LFA Nurburgring Edition.
The GRMN SPORTS HYBRID Concept II is a development of last year's racing prototype that was based on production MR-2. The second iteration of Toyota's hybrid sports car features a brand new body while also improving upon the first concept on the powertrain front.
Placed behind the two seats is a 3.5-liter V6 gasoline engine rated at 249-horses that works in tandem with a single electric motor to drive the rear wheels. The total system output is 299-horsepower while the roadster model weighs less than 1,500kg (3,300 pounds).

PHOTO GALLERY

Read More

Subaru BRZ Joins its Toyota Sibling at the Tokyo Motor Show

Danny de Vito and body builder-turned actor-turned California governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, were probably the only twins that were completely different to one another. On the other hand, that was a comedy film in which artistic freedom allows the producers to do anything they please.

In the real world, human twins may indeed differ, mostly in character – though not as much as Arnie and Danny by any stretch of the imagination. In the automotive world, however, when two manufacturers jointly develop a vehicle, 99.9% of the times it ends up being identical to its sibling.
Even Subaru and Toyota are not pretending that their BRZ and 86/GT86 are anything but the same car. They clearly admit it in their press releases and even inscribe it on the engine cover. It’s badge engineering, pure and simple.
Therefore, all the hoopla about the extremely low center of gravity, the compact dimensions, the fun to drive RWD configuration et al is repeated in the BRZ which also made its premiere today at the 42nd edition of the Tokyo Motor Show.
In fact, the only noticeable difference, apart from the badging, is in the front fascia design. The BRZ looks a bit more restrained and less “Tokyo Drift”, but that’s just our take and you can decide on your own which is the better looking of the two.
And oh, Subaru is being more honest than its partner calling the BRZ a 2+2 and not “the world’s most compact four-seater sports car”.
 
Everything else is the same: the 2.0-liter four-cylinder boxer, the six-speed manual or auto transmissions, the front strut and rear double wishbone suspension, the small steering wheel – heck, even the interior is identical.
Nevertheless, if Toyota and Subaru deliver what they promise, the BRZ/86 should be a very entertaining car – which we certainly hope so.
In Subaru's case, you know what would be even more entertaining? The BRZ STi concept shown in LA, complete with carbonfiber roof, front spliter and rear wing and a more aggressive body kit. As is customary with Subaru Tecnica International models, a little bit more oomph from the boxer engine wouldn’t hurt either…
Scroll down to check out our gallery with live pictures from the show as well new video footage showing the BRZ in action.

SUBARU BRZ GT300 RACER

PHOTO GALLERY

VIDEO

Read More