The idea of owning a well-tuned European sports car is quite a romantic notion, one that every automotive enthusiast has entertained at one point or the other. However, affordability and practicality are also attractive propositions even though purists might consider them to be boring and a little too mainstream.
On many occasions, Toyota has been accused of pandering to the lowest common denominator and in a majority of cases, these claims were true. This approach is also the reason why Toyota is the world's largest car manufacturer which has allowed the Japanese car company to make some of the most exciting sports cars of our time. Here are some exciting facts about Toyota sports cars
10 Lexus LFA Was Built Twice
Lexus LFA is a rare supercar that claims to offer one of the most engaging driving experiences of all time. The reason behind LFA’s driving and technological prowess is the company’s uncompromised approach to its development. Lexus collaborated with Toyota’s Formula One racing team and exploited its racing technology to develop the LFA.
Initially, Lexus LFA was designed using an all-aluminum construction and the car was ready to go into production when the company decided to enhance the car’s power-to-weight ratio by employing a carbon-fiber tub.
9 A Lexus That Costs More Than A Rolls-Royce
The idea of a Toyota (even a Lexus) costing more than a Rolls-Royce is a far-fetched notion, to say the least, or at least it was until the company introduced the LFA back in 2009. Only 500 units of this high-performance supercar were manufactured and were sold exclusively to a few handpicked customers.
The client list of the LFA includes the likes of hotel-heiress Paris Hilton. When it was new, prices for this Japanese race-tuned machine started at $400,000, and even when its production culminated in 2012, LFA was still more expensive than a Rolls-Royce Wraith that was introduced in the following year.
8 Toyota Powered Lotus
“Simplify, then add lightness” is Lotus’ famous philosophy and with Evora, the British supercar maker simplified the process of assembling a powertrain. What many don’t know is that even having developed the Evija hypercar, the company continues to be swarmed with praise for Evora which is one of the best-handling cars of its time.
For a car as amazing as the Evora, Lotus enlisted Toyota’s intervention and used one of the Japanese carmaker’s most-trusted engines. Lotus used a 3.5-liter V6 engine which Toyota used to offer in its flagship Camry sedan at the time.
7 Toyota Served 007
Toyota is one of the few car manufacturers that had the privilege of serving the agent with a License To Kill. A Toyota 2000GT came to the aid of the greatest James Bond of all time- Sean Connery.
The car was initially designed to be a hardtop coupe but the onscreen vehicle had to be modified into a convertible because Sean Connery was unable to fit in the small Japanese sports car. The 2000GT was Toyota’s halo product and Bond’s rescue car was offered with the option of either a 2-liter 148 BHP engine or a 2.3-liter 138 BHP motor.
6 Toyota Was Sold As An Aston Martin
In one of the most unexpected collaborations of all time, Aston Martin joined forces with the world's largest car manufacturer to develop one of the most-coveted city cars of all time - the Aston Martin Cygnet.
The British premium car manufacturer used a Toyota/Scion iQ and rebadged the tiny hatchback with help of body panels that were designed as per Aston Martin styling language. Aston Martin Cygnet will probably be Bond’s more practical and environmentally-conscious ride of choice as the car featured a 1.3-liter motor that produced a peak power output of 96 BHP.
5 Features In The Toyota Supra Were Way Ahead Of Their Time
The original Supra is a sports car legend. The car was so popular amongst enthusiasts that Toyota even commissioned a 2020 reboot. One of the most popular JDM offerings of all time, Toyota Supra even got to grab a lot of screen time in different installments of The Fast and the Furious Franchise.
Toyota even offered a Turbo variant as part of the Supra lineup which has gone on to become a Japanese sports car icon. The Toyota Celica XX was one of the earliest variants of Supra and one of the first cars to get a navigation system.
4 Toyota MR2 - Sheep That Could Don Wolf’s Clothing
Toyota wasn’t always a parts bin for Lotus. There was a time late in the last century when Toyota decided to take on the British supercar manufacturer and introduced a mid-engine offering of its own - the MR2. Toyota’s supercar was an instant hit in America making it one of the most popular Japanese cars at the time.
Throughout its production run, Toyota offered several iterations of the MR2 including a T-bar open roof version and a fully convertible model. Toyota MR2 also caught a second wind in its later years as the favorite donor car of kit car builders around the world.
3 European Collaborations
Aston Martin is not the only European car brand that has collaborated with both Toyota and James Bond in the past. Most avid film buffs would remember that for a brief period during the Brosnan era, Agent 007 sought assistance from BMW.
With its 2020 Supra reboot, Toyota has finally caught up with the spy On Her Majesty's Secret Service. The outgoing model of Toyota Supra manages to capitalize on the 90s nostalgia quite well but the motor under the hood is a BMW unit that produces 335 horsepower.
2 World-Class Motorsport Pedigree
The uninitiated often mistake Toyota for a contemporary and practical car company but this trustworthy car brand has a wild and exciting motorsport history. Toyota has participated in some of the most prestigious motorsport championships around the world including Le Mans and Formula One.
The Japanese car manufacturer also developed the Toyota GT-One race car which was built for grand touring and to race in Le Mans. Only two road-going versions were developed as a result of homologation and were powered by a turbocharged, mid-mounted 3.6-liter V8 motor producing over 600 horsepower.
1 What Makes Toyota 86 So Great?
The general public struggles to understand the appeal of Toyota 86 as it is a simple two-door sports car from a mainstream Japanese car company and costs just under $27,000. Well, many reasons make Toyota 86 an amazing product but chief amongst them is the car’s handling characteristics.
The Toyota 86 draws power from a 2-liter boxer engine which is positioned low into the car. The power is sent to the rear wheels and that in addition to a low center of gravity means that Toyota 86 is a joy to drive on the winding back roads.