THESMILESyouseeinthesephotosaren’tputon,they’re
genuineemotion;Dylan’sbeingbangingonaboutwantingto
trya properdriftcarsinceI’vemethimandI’vehadrallying
inmybloodsinceI learnedhowtospellWRC.Butwhathave
wegleanedfromthisexercise,otherthanhavinga hellofa lot
offun?Firstly,noproductioncarcandelivertheexcitementof
a purpose-builtcompetitioncar.Eventhelikesofthe 911 GT3
RSorGT-RNismocan’tmatchthesenseofconnectionoffered
bya machinethat’ssolepurposeistohelpitsoperatorreach
thetopstepofthepodium.
Secondly,manufacturersstillseevalueinmotorsportif the
rightopportunitiesexist.AccordingtoToyotaAustralia’sSenior
Public Affairs Specialist, James Wang:“Toyota’s motorsport
philosophyis,‘Werace,welearn,youwin’.Atagloballevel
thisisreflectedthroughourWECandWRCparticipation;we
takewhatwelearnontheracetrackandultimatelyapplythis
toourproductioncars.InAustraliawehavemuchthesame
philosophy:theBatesfamilyandBeauYatesareatthetop of
theirgameintheirrespectivesports;conversely,theToyota 86
RacingSerieshasa strongerfocusongrassrootsracing.”
Toyotashouldbecongratulatedforitssupportofa variety of
categories.Itspendsmegabucksreachingeverydaymotorists
asthemajorsponsoroftheAFL,butclearlyrecognisesthat
if it’sgoing tobe taken seriously by enthusiasts, it has to
engagewiththem.It’spartofthereasonwewantedtodothis
story;ifmanufacturersreceivepublicityfortheirmotorsport
programs,more arelikely toappear.Factory-backedteams
bring theirown complications, butthere’s nodoubt most
seriesarehealthierwhencarmakersareinvolved.
Let us hope this renewed commitment to competition
transferstotheshowroom.The 86 wasa greatstart,a newSupra
anexcellentfollow-up,butit'sbeena longtimesinceToyota
offeredatrue performancevariantofaregularproduction
model.If Toyodahasthewill,Toyotawillfinda way.ABOVE
Nomatteryour
tasteinmotorsport
disciplines,oneof
thesetrioshouldhave
youcovered– canwe
haveallthree?➜
Threedifferentcarswithoneaim:towin
The Specs
TOYOTA 86 DRIFTCAR TOYOTA 86 RACINGSERIES TOYOTAYARISAP4
BODY2 door,2 seatcoupe 2 door,2 seatcoupe 3 door,2 seathatch
DRIVErearwheel rearwheel allwheel
ENGINE2997ccinline6, DOHC,24v,turbo 1998ccboxer4, DOHC,16v 1613ccinline4cyl,DOHC,16v,turbo
POWER537rwkW@8200rpm 169kW@7000rpm(approx) 224kW
TORQUE1000rwNm@3200rpm 236Nm@ 6400 6800rpm(estimate) 420Nm
POWER/WEIGHT471rwkW/tonne 132kW/tonne 182kW/tonne
TRANSMISSION6 speedsequentialmanual 6 speedmanual 6 speedsequentialmanual
WEIGHT1140kg 1285kg(includingdriver) 1230kg(dry)
SUSPENSIONcoiloverstrut(f);A arms,coiloverstrut(r);
note:noantirollbarscoiloverstrut,antirollbar(f);A arms,coilover
strut,antirollbar(r) struts,coilsprings,antirollbar(f/r)
STEERINGhydraulicallyassistedrackandpinion electricallyassistedrackandpinion hydraulicallyassistedrackandpinion
BRAKES355mmventilateddisc,6 pistoncaliper(f);
345mmventilateddisc,4 pistoncaliper(r)330mmventilateddiscs,4 pistoncalipers(f);
316mmventilateddiscs,2 pistoncalipers(r)300mmventilated/slotteddiscs,4 piston
calipers(f/r)
WHEELS18.0x 9.0inch(f);18.0x 11.0inch(r) 18.0x 8.0inch(f/r) 15.0x 7.0inch(f/r)
TYRES235/40R18(f);265/35R18(r);Achilles123S 225/40R18(f/r);DunlopDirezzaDZIII86 205/65R15(f/r);MRFrallytyres
PRICE$180,000plus $45,000(used,approx);$75,000(new) $250,000(approx)MANUFACTURERS STILL SEE VALUE IN
MOTORSPORT IF THE RIGHT OPPORTUNITIES EXIST
100 may 2019 whichcar.com.au/motor