Toyota 86 redefining the sports car concept?

Toyota 86

The Toyota 86 is an interesting vehicle, using a Subaru two liter boxer engine and having a Subaru clone as well (something like the Ford Fiesta and Mazda2 “twins” here in Thailand). To add to the mix, the Toyota 86 and the Subaru BRZ are both built in a Subaru plant in Japan, again like the Auto Alliance plant here.

I have had contact with Ross Wilson in Japan, whose company Turboworld has been tasked with preparing the Toyota 86 for competition events in Japan. Ross has definitely given the Toyota 86 a great rap.

According to Toyota, the 86 marks a return to Toyota’s sporting roots with the front-mounted, “boxer” petrol engine and rear-wheel drive. This powertrain format, combined with a compact design, light weight and a low center of gravity, produces the best possible power-to-weight ratio. These attributes, says Toyota, will reward 86 owners with maximum driving pleasure - lively, accessible performance and highly engaging dynamic abilities with minimal electronic intrusion.

The 86 is the result of a joint development between Toyota and Subaru, bringing together the best of each company’s technical know-how and their mutual passion for sports cars.

The stylish four-seater draws on Toyota’s sports-car heritage - including the Supra, MR2, Celica GT-Four and the legendary 2000GT - to create a strong emotional connection between driver and car.

Subaru BRZ

Toyota is offering the 86 in two versions - GT and GTS - both powered by the newly developed 2.0 liter flat four engine that revs freely to 7,450 rpm and with a high compression ratio of 12.5:1. Toyota’s D-4S direct-injection technology increases throttle response, power and torque over a wide range of engine speeds without sacrificing fuel efficiency and environmental performance. Maximum power of 147 kW - equivalent to 100 bhp per liter - and peak torque of 205 Nm ensure brisk performance. The flat-four engine combines with the lowest driver hip-point of any Toyota production vehicle, 400 mm, to give the 86 an ultra-low center of gravity of just 460 mm - in the league of cars such as the Porsche Cayman. Both the powertrain and driving position have been set as low and as far back as possible to optimize balance, giving the car a near-perfect 53:47 weight distribution. Fuel economy is remarkable for a sports car - 7.8 liters/100 km for manual variants - and even better for automatic versions at just 7.1 liters/100 km.

Comprehensive weight-saving measures, resulting in a kerb weight of just 1,222 kg, have contributed to handling and economy as well as a power-to-weight ratio of 120 kW/tonne.

The Toyota-designed six-speed manual gearbox offers quick, precise shifting through closely stacked ratios and a short-throw lever. A new Lexus IS-F-inspired six-speed automatic transmission, with shift paddles mounted on the steering wheel, combines direct response with an extremely fast shifting speed of only 0.2 seconds.

Power is distributed to the rear wheels via a Torsen limited-slip differential (except in auto GT), optimizing traction and grip under all driving conditions.

Standard equipment includes seven airbags, a five-mode stability control system, traction control, anti-skid brakes, 16-inch alloy wheels, cruise control, air-conditioning, CD sound system, daytime running lamps (DRLs) and a multi-information display.

The 86 GTS has 17 inch alloy wheels, a 6.1 inch display screen, satellite navigation with live traffic updates, auto-leveling HID headlamps, leather-accented front seats, dual-zone climate-control air-conditioning, aluminium pedals and LED DRLs.

No pricing yet for Thailand, but the Australian model 86 is in the showrooms down-under at just under $A30,000, making it a true bargain.

Autotrivia Quiz

Last week I wrote of an American visionary who built a road-going sports car which was very advanced for its day. Like Colin Chapman’s Lotus cars you could buy his sports car as a kit, or as a turnkey for a few dollars more. The designer won at Indianapolis four times, and the proud boast was that it was quicker than the Jaguar XK 120. I asked who was that man? It was Frank Kurtis who made the Kurtis-Kraft vehicles.

So to this week. Which father took his daughter’s name to sell the cars he was racing in the early 1900’s?

For the Automania free beer this week, be the first correct answer to email [email protected]

What did we learn from the Canadian GP?

Well, we learned there is a new motor racing category. In this category you drive as slowly as you can (without being embarrassingly slow like HRT, Marussia and others) and the driver with the best tyres at the end is called the winner. Additional hurdles for all drivers will include track temperatures, whilst clumsy pit stops will be used to set the running order on the track. This new category is going to be called Formula 1. I’m sorry Bernie, but this tyre dominated category is not motor racing. Cars driving in close formation may be exciting for the great unwashed, but it is turning off the enthusiasts, who make up your power base.

So where were we? Oh yes, Lewis Hamilton’s team (McLaren) got the strategy right and he cruised home for the win with his tyres intact. After the race, Hamilton reported, “I looked after my tyres really well today, and I used them knowing we were going to two-stop.” His team mate did not and finished nowhere, saying “I didn’t find the speed today, and I couldn’t seem to look after the tyres.”

Second place was an unexpected result, with Romain Grosjean in the “Lotus” amazingly avoiding crashing on the first corner, and came home to the second step of the podium. “It wasn’t easy to manage the second set of tyres for so long, but it worked so I’ll happily do that again for another result like today.” You have been warned. The driver of the other “Lotus”, the returning Finn Kimi Raikkonen showed some rare moments of insight, saying, “If you start further forward it’s easier to finish higher up the order.” Now I’ll bet that never occurred to you before!

Third placed (Mexican) Sergio Perez in the Sauber has become a tyre specialist, “I saw that for me the tyre degradation wasn’t so bad and this allowed me to manage my pace quite well.” However, despite his diploma in tyre management, the same cannot be said for his geography. “Also it is particularly sweet to have been at the podium ceremony here in Montreal because we are not too far from my home country and there are many Mexicans here.” Not too far? Well, I suppose there is only the United States in between, but many of the “many” Mexicans are reputedly illegals.

Fourth place was the best that Sebastian (the Finger) Vettel could do, despite being blisteringly fast in Qualifying to easily secure pole position. However, in the race it was a different story, requiring fresh tyres around 10 laps from the end. “Before the stop we were three four seconds behind Fernando, but we ended up six seconds ahead of him.” This is “racing”? His team mate Mark Webber had an uninspiring day’s outing in Canada, admitting, “It’s hard to get it right here - if you push to try and pass you kill the tyres.” (That’s just in case you think the tyres are not the dominant factor of 2012.)

Alonso (Ferrari) also gambled on tyres, and got it wrong. Leading at one stage and finishing fifth. His team mate Massa continued to be less than impressive. Time for the one way plane ticket to Brazil.

And if you think I am exaggerating regarding the influence Pirelli has on the results, Rosberg (Mercedes) was told via the pit to car radio to do a better job in looking after his tyres and he was using too much fuel! This was on lap six of seventy. This is motor racing?

Don’t put Pirelli’s on your road car, you’ll need a new set before you get to the end of Beach Road.

Roy Salvadori and Carroll Shelby meet up for another Le Mans?

The winning Aston Martin Le Mans 1959.

Racing drivers Roy Salvadori (UK) and Carroll Shelby (USA), co-drivers in 1959 to win the Le Mans 24 hour race in an Aston Martin, have died within three weeks of each other.

Roy Salvadori participated in 50 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 12 July 1952, and achieved two podiums, scoring a total of 19 Championship points. After retiring from driving on 1962 he returned to running his car dealership, but returned to F1 to manage the Cooper racing team in 1966 and 1967.

Carroll Shelby, the American automotive designer, racing driver and entrepreneur, was best known for making the AC Cobras and later Mustang-based performance cars for Ford Motor Company known as Mustang Cobras. He was also involved in the Dodge Viper, and up till the time of his death had returned to produce Cobra versions of Ford’s new Mustangs. He competed in F1 from 1958 to 1959, participating in a total of eight World Championship races and several non-championship races.

Two famous names from yesteryear, but both remembered with affection.

After sixty-seven years, a Mercedes goes home

Mercedes-Benz 500K Spezial Roadster.

A Mercedes-Benz 500K taken by US troops at the end of WW II may be returned to the family of the original owner, according to a court in Germany.

The car belonged to a German industrialist, Hans Friedrich Prym, whose estate was commandeered by US troops towards the end of the war. In that estate was his 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500K Spezial Roadster, and after the cease-fire, the car was taken to the US. Hans Prym, at that stage was in prison, and it was not possible for him to do anything about the theft at that time.

The car has chassis Number 105380 and it is known that it was built in 1935 at the Sindelfingen works and was the centerpiece of the Mercedes-Benz display at the Berlin Motor Show. It was then purchased by Hans Friedrich Prym of Stolberg.

After the war, it was spirited away to the USA and did not surface again until it ended up in the collection of Russell Strauch in the 1970s. It was then acquired by Don Dickson in 1976, and remained in his collection until 1988 when it was sold to Richie Clyne for the Imperial Palace Collection which commissioned a cosmetic restoration in 1991. It was later purchased by the Lyon Family Collection.

Last year, the car was offered for sale by RM Auctions and it was then sold to a Dutch collector for almost US$4 million, who displayed the car at a show in Germany.

The car was recognized, and the heirs of Hans Prym have lodged a claim for return of the property to the Hans Prym estate. A Hamburg court has now ruled that the car was taken unlawfully and that the family has a valid claim to ownership.

“The court has recognized our claim is valid and we will prepare the next stage and file suit for the car’s return. The court decision was an important step toward restitution,” said Alexander Martius, the lawyer representing the heirs. It was also found that the statute of limitations had not yet expired on the theft.

The Dutch collector has a fight on his hands!