A prototype rally coupe was unveiled late last month, widely believed to prefigure a revival of the model Toyota Celicawas spied during testing in Portugal.
At this point we knew little else about the car other than that it was likely being prepared for the 2027 WRC season.
Now Autocar says it has learned more details about the vehicle, which will reportedly be called the Celica Sport and feature all-wheel drive.
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The magazine also asked Gazoo Racing marketing manager Mikio Hayashi about the new Celica’s powertrain. Hayashi-san revealed that the 1.6-liter turbocharged three-cylinder used in the GR Yaris and GR Corolla “cannot meet emissions regulations,” meaning the company “needs to consider the possibility of a 2.0-liter engine.”
He also pointed out that it has not yet been decided whether the engine will be equipped with a hybrid or plug-in hybrid system. He didn’t want to reveal when the engine would be ready to start because he “can’t give a timetable, but can say that we are making steady progress.”
It is then possible that the new Celica, whose market launch is planned for 2027, will initially be offered with the existing 1.6-liter turbo. In this case, the availability of the new Celica in the EU will be limited due to the Union’s strict fleet-wide CO2 limits.
Whenever the new 2.0-liter turbo-hybrid powertrain comes to market, it will likely be used in other GR models such as the GR Yaris and GR Corolla for emissions reasons and to increase economies of scale.
In early 2025, Toyota introduced the mid-engine GR Yaris M-Concept (above), powered by a new 2.0-liter turbocharged engine codenamed “G20E.”
No details about the engine were released at the time, but a later report from Car Motor and Sport claimed that the M-Concept’s engine was designed to produce around 335 kW and that a larger turbocharger could enable outputs in excess of 450 kW.
If these reports are anything to go by, the Celica would return to its performance heritage, where GT Four models combined rally roots, all-wheel drive and turbo performance across three generations.
We don’t know if Toyota plans to introduce cheaper front-wheel drive variants alongside the rumored turbo all-wheel drive Celica.
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