Toyota Celica, MR2 reboot likely: report

THE recent Tokyo motor show opened the door on Toyota’s new, as yet unnamed modular battery electric vehicle (BEV) platform that will reportedly underpin numerous new electric vehicles from the big T and premium offshoot Lexus – including a reimagined MR2 sportscar.

 

According to British publication Autocar, as well as the inevitable array of SUVs in various sizes, the new architecture also provides Toyota an opportunity to reboot iconic sporty car nameplates like MR2 – and possibly Celica – two-door sports models.

 

The furloughed nameplates are likely to be resurrected to replace the front (internal combustion) engine, rear-wheel drive Toyota GR86 and similarly configured GR Supra as Toyota’s sporty two-door offerings in its future electric line-up.

 

Both current cars were developed in conjunction with other manufacturers – Subaru and BMW respectively.

 

Given the flexible packaging advantages of the new dedicated electric platform, powertrain layouts can span the gamut of configurations and include a mid-engine as specified in the MR2’s nomenclature.

 

As reported in Autocar, the likelihood of an MR2 reboot gained credence after Toyota chair Akio Toyoda earlier expressed a desire for its (and others) return as BEVs after he was shown glimpses of 15 of the 30 BEVs Toyota aims to have on sale by 2030 as part of its plan to sell 3.5 million BEVs globally per year from then.

 

Autocar says a reborn Celica is being “debated” as part of a new era of electric sportscars from the Japanese manufacturer that, judging by the Tokyo stand, will include the return of the MR2.

 

The new BEV architecture provides Toyota with a level of flexibility never before seen in the industry, but Lexus will be the first to use it under a low-slung sedan due in 2026 that was previewed in the LF-ZC concept at the Tokyo show.

 

Joining the sexy Lexus at Tokyo were other concepts demonstrating the broad applications that can be achieved with the versatile new platform.

 

They included sleek 1220mm-high Toyota FT-Se sports concept complete with mid-engine (the new MR2), a large luxury flagship Lexus crossover concept called LF-ZL and the Toyota FT-3e large SUV, a more conventional design positioned size-wise above the current Toyota RAV4.

 

Autocar says the unveiling of so many new cars at once (at the Tokyo show) – part of an 11-digit investment in BEVs by Toyota – was in response to claims that the company had been slow off the mark in developing electric cars.

 

Toyota’s future 2030 BEV line-up includes everything from small cars to utes, and from coupés to large SUVs.

 

Replicating its efforts with modular ICE platforms from decades past, and still in use today, the new nameless architecture gives Toyota a free hand in creating different models in various configurations, shapes, and sizes.

 

It has been developed with three modular sections for the front, middle and rear that can be altered to suit a particular application while component size optimisation allows easy fitment of hardware such as e-axles and HVAC systems.

 

According to Autocar, the structure’s front and rear modules are mirrors of each other, with ‘gigacasting’ construction reducing 86 different steel component parts (that are welded together at the moment) down to one die-cast aluminium piece.

 

The effect of such a cost-reducing development will have a profound impact across the automotive manufacturing spectrum.

 

The three platform modules can be configured to house e-axles and suspension and can be scaled up or down based on a car’s size, says Autocar, while the battery is integrated into the centre module floor. How this fits with a mid-engine layout is unclear.

 

In addition to the new platform, Toyota has developed a new prismatic battery that doubles the potential range compared to a model like the current bZ4X with concurrent reductions in size and cost.

 

The battery is available in two sizes down to 100mm thick that facilitates fitment into lower (sports) models. The battery is reported to be scalable up and down for wide or longer wheelbase vehicles.

 

In a departure from current BEV “skateboard” technology, repair costs with Toyota’s platform are minimised as the three modules are bolted together and repairable crash structures attached.

 

Autocar quotes Lexus Electrified general manager Shinya Ito as saying: “Breaking the architecture into these three modules – rather than having one fixed platform with ancillary components – allows us to be more extreme with the vehicle types that can be created.

 

“It also unlocks manufacturing benefits including reduced complexity, greater efficiency, and enhanced productivity, ultimately shortening, and simplifying the process. Such is the commonality, in theory even the most radically different cars on this architecture could be built on the same production line,” he said.

 

“The starting point for any new model is the need to accommodate passengers and where they sit – for instance, low in a sports car or up high in an SUV – and the modules are sized and chosen around that.”

 

Toyota CTO Hiroki Nakajima said it was the low height of the battery pack that means electric sportscars can follow familiar ‘ICE-style’ proportions.

 

“Battery height is key for a low Lexus saloon and a Toyota GR sportscar,” he said.

 

“Then, how can we maximise the downsizing of each component? Battery development allows us to expand our output (of more types of cars), reduce their height and change the shape and size.

 

“Downsized technology can do shapes you have never seen. By minimising the e-axles and HVAC, you enhance the product.”

 

The new platform will be linked to Toyota’s Arene software that will allow customers to tailor certain aspects of their vehicle’s dynamics in performance packs while the manual transmission Toyota has developed for BEVs utilises a clutch to provide an ICE-like sportscar drive feel in conjunction with a steer by wire system.