Interview with Tetsuya Tada - Chief Engineer of the FT-86

[Kiteless]

Can't wait to get my hands on this car. Been modding my little Yaris to make the wait for this car more tolerable. A friend of mine in the car biz says NEVER to get the first year of a car, but I am going for it anyway. Thats what the warranty is for. ALso plan on rebadging it to Toyota first chance I get.

I do hope they keep the "gull-wing" roof line and interesting rear window that goes with it from the MK3. I also agree with most that the MK1 was the best looking of the 3.

Also, REALLY dumb question, but was this a 2+1 seating or just a 2 seater?

[Marrk]

Originally Posted by speed-wiz

This is one of the most significant comments in the interview. Very impressive. I think for the cg to be that low, the overall weight has to be pretty low as well, since a heavy body, seats, and so forth would raise the cg.

x 2.

Every car company should have such goals, ambitions and aspirations. There is nothing wishy-washy or "consensus-driven" about a superlative. If Toyota achieves this, it will be a defining characteristic and will change the game overall.

Very exciting.

[keiri]

Originally Posted by Kiteless

Can't wait to get my hands on this car. Been modding my little Yaris to make the wait for this car more tolerable. A friend of mine in the car biz says NEVER to get the first year of a car, but I am going for it anyway. Thats what the warranty is for. ALso plan on rebadging it to Toyota first chance I get.

I do hope they keep the "gull-wing" roof line and interesting rear window that goes with it from the MK3. I also agree with most that the MK1 was the best looking of the 3.

Also, REALLY dumb question, but was this a 2+1 seating or just a 2 seater?

It's a 2+2 seater.

PS: Have seen you around Yarisworld Forums; the fiancee and I are looking into getting a 2011 S/2012 SE 5-door.

[Traum]

Interesting to hear that the production model is gonna be closer to the MkI concept instead of the MkII. But the test mules all seem to resemble the MkII car more.

Hmm...

[Want.FR-S]

Originally Posted by Traum

Interesting to hear that the production model is gonna be closer to the MkI concept instead of the MkII. But the test mules all seem to resemble the MkII car more.

Hmm...

Maybe Tada-san was playing the trick on us. When he say "Not close at all" actually means "This is what it is!".

[JohnnyR]

Kind of unfortunate that they thought about using the Evo as a benchmark but scraped it. I wish they went the distance here and gave essentially two different models, the entry level FR we're getting, and a successor to the GT-Four/All-Trac.

Weight, power, interior, and especially price are going to determine the success of this thing. If it's really as stripped out as they claim of tech, it better be very close to that 2500lb mark, and it better be very affordable. If this thing comes out in the mid to upper 20k mark, more people are going to look at the other car options out there and go that way, while the very few may go the "purist" route.

[OldSkoolToys]

Originally Posted by MatadorRacing_F1

My man parts are tingling again.

^

Eyes watered up from reading that.

[RRnold]

hallelujah



"Second, most of the FT-86 is still a secret. Doors and hatches of the car on display are locked tight. So were the lips of its Chief Engineer.




Thanks for posting but what happened to the original link?!? Did they pull the article?

[TeckniX]

Some good stuff - Glad to hear they're finally making a car for the tuner scene and with the same mounting points as current subaru engines.
This will make for an easier swap, so long as the 6-speed transmission can bolt up to the block and handle 600Hp

[xantonin]

Anyone notice the page is no longer available that this was taken from?

[Kiteless]

Originally Posted by keiri

It's a 2+2 seater.

PS: Have seen you around Yarisworld Forums; the fiancee and I are looking into getting a 2011 S/2012 SE 5-door.

Ahh thank ya. Good to know that I can CRAM a couple people that I don't like very much in the back if I need to. This *IS* my next car as long as it does not totally fail and is not too expensive. If I has all the money in the world to buy a sports car I would never buy something like a GT-R. It is suuuuper sexy and really fast, but it has more computing power than my gaming laptop in it!

My Yaris is not sports car, not even close. Not after the suspension upgrade, exhaust, alloys, and spoiler. Its a little egg with a tiny engine. But its fun to drive (for me) because there is nothing to it. A simple & sharp, electricly assisted power steering that shuts off after 30MPG, a little engine and a 5 speed transmission, but its still a Yaris. This is what I want in a sports car, but with some more guts and RWD.

Keiri - Its a great little reliable inexpensive car But wait for the 2012. Whole new body style, a hair bigger and a more traditional interior. Of course, if you don't mind the older body it will be cheaper. If you have any questions at all please PM me here or over on the Yarisworld forums.

[Geard]

Makes me even more pumped that I pre-ordered mine already!

[WingsofWar]

Originally Posted by TeckniX

Some good stuff - Glad to hear they're finally making a car for the tuner scene and with the same mounting points as current subaru engines.
This will make for an easier swap, so long as the 6-speed transmission can bolt up to the block and handle 600Hp

I am unaware of any 6spd RWD transmission that will bolt up to a Subaru engine. Can you name any? Not a direct bolt on.

The illusion is, the car is not MORE tuner friendly than the next tuner car. But less complicated to modify.

If you plan on using a gearbox from a STI, supra, rx7, or whatever gearbox you can find, your still going to have to find an acceptable transmission case and bellhousing. Just like any other car you would do a similar mod to.

[tranzformer]

Originally Posted by Geard

Makes me even more pumped that I pre-ordered mine already!

You Pre-ordered a car that hasn't been released yet, no specs released, no pricing announcement? Maybe you put a deposit down as there is no car to Pre-order yet in either Toyota's or Subaru's system.