CAR GARAGE | Toyota GT 86 | Toyota has a 50 year history of creating exciting, driver-focused, front-engined rear-wheel drive sports cars That have proved as popular with the public as They have been Successful in competition. Shunning a heavy, large displacement power-train for its performance, the GT 86 returns to Toyota's sporting roots with the world's only combination of a compact, front-mounted, free-revving, horizontally opposed 'boxer' petrol engine and rear-wheel drive.
Toyota's eagerly awaited, compact 2 +2 sports car, the GT 86, makes its European debut at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show. Conceived to focus specifically on the purity of the classic sports car experience, designed by a passionate team of engineers, honed through competition and fine-tuned to satisfy the most discerning enthusiast, the GT 86 inherits the spirit of former Toyota sports cars to reward drivers with pure driving involvement. The new GT 86 Captures the best elements of three key models from rich sporting heritage That: the Toyota Sports 800, the Toyota 2000GT and the AE86.
Though the GT 86 launches as the world's only front-mounted horizontally opposed engine and rear-wheel drive package, it can not claim to be the first. That honor goes to Toyota's two-cylinder boxer engined Sports 800, the which the company began developing in 1962. The low center of gravity of the boxer engine and front-engine, rear-drive power-train Considered format was ideal for driving a car Providing maximum entertainment. For this reason, the GT 86 has adopted this classic layout for the first time since the Toyota Sports 800.
During the development of the GT 86, a 2000GT was put next to the clay model of the new sports car being developed by the designers. As a result, Their work infused the Toyota GT 86 with the spirit of the 2000GT without imitating it. The AE86 was not an extreme sports car. It was moderately priced, with a mass-produced engine and a compact, front engine, rear-wheel drive body. The Corolla Levin AE86's front engined, rear-wheel drive power-train, compact dimensions, light weight, impeccable balance and superior power-to-weight ratio made it the must-have choice for rallying and circuit driving throughout its 1983-1987 production life.
