Toyota wants to make the next-generation 86 better than the Supra

The Supra is positioned above the 86 in the Toyota hierarchy, and it’s correspondingly more expensive, so fans expect it to be a better all-around car. It is, by most accounts, but the man in charge of developing both wants to shift the balance when the 86 returns for a second generation.

“We have to make a new 86 that surpasses the Supra. This is what the customer expects,” revealed chief engineer Tetsuya Tada in an interview with Australian website Motor. He didn’t reveal how, or why. He added Toyota has already formed “a new 86 team,” though local officials warned that’s not a guarantee the 86 will return for a second generation.

The 86’s future is not assured, at least not officially, but the fact that a team is already working on the car is encouraging. Unverified rumors claim it will make its debut as a close-to-production concept during the 2019 edition of the biennial Tokyo auto show opening its doors in late October. The coupe will again developed jointly with Subaru, and Japanese magazine Best Car has reported that power will come from an evolution of the 2.4-liter flat-four engine developed for the jumbo-sized Ascent.

The four-cylinder makes 260 horsepower in the Ascent, where it’s fitted with a turbo. Toyota has made it clear it hates the idea of giving the 86 forced induction, so the coupe might receive a naturally-aspirated variant of the people-mover’s engine with less power on tap. Engineers will again keep weight in check, and this recipe might indicate how they plan to make the 86 better than the Supra. It will arrive as a nimbler, smaller, and better-balanced car, partly because the flat-four is lighter than the BMW-built straight-six, and it sits lower in the engine bay.

If the rumors are accurate, the next-generation Toyota 86 is a few weeks away from making its debut as a concept in the Japanese capital. Engineers are already working on the production model, and Best Car added the coupe will reach showrooms in early 2021, so possibly as a 2022 model in the United States. Subaru’s next-generation BRZ will land at about the same time.