Rumors have been swirling about a Toyota Celica revival for about a year, but it seems that it’s finally been confirmed—or at least as close to confirmed as we’re going to get, before seeing any actual pictures of the car. While speaking on stage at the WRC Rally Japan, Toyota Vice President Yuki Nakajima told a crowd of attendees that an eighth-generation Celica is in the works.
“To be honest, there is no sign of it right now,” the executive reportedly said, per Japanese outlet Best Car, translated into English. “However, there are many people within the company who are eagerly awaiting the Celica. So … I’m not sure if it’s okay to say this in a public forum, but we’re doing the Celica!”
The translation isn’t exact, of course, but Best Car is reporting this as proof that a new Celica is on the way. This news comes only a couple of weeks after the Celica’s revival was teased in a Toyota anime web series, in which a whiteboard showing future plans had “Celica Mk8” written on it. And while there have also been previous rumors of an electric Toyota sports car, with both the Celica and MR2 names thrown around, it seems Toyota is sticking with internal combustion for this one.
When asked about the next-generation GR86, and what sort of engine it would have, Nakajima suggested that Toyota will be building one instead of borrowing another brand’s. The inspiration reportedly came from asking Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda what his favorite engines were. According to Nakajima, the answers were Subaru’s boxer engine and Mazda’s rotary engine. The lack of a Toyota engine in Toyoda’s response was said to have lit a fire in the bellies of the brand’s engineers.
“This inspired all of Toyota’s engine developers. We will create an engine that Morizo will [not] want to leave behind. It’s not a matter of whether we can release it or not, or whether we will leave it behind or not, but we are going to release it!”
If Toyota is developing a new engine for the GR86, it could be the same engine used in the upcoming Celica, since it would likely be unwise to develop two new engines. That could also hint that the Celica will return to its rear-wheel drive roots, as it would make more sense for both cars to use one powertrain, instead of the same engine in both transverse and longitudinal layouts.
This news also comes just weeks after Toyota re-registered the “Celica” nameplate, in a patent filing found by Australia’s Drive. Car companies often trademark names to future-proof them in case the brand decides to explore production one day. However, the timing is ironic. Toyota’s execs didn’t provide any other info about the Celica’s future, such as whether it will be front- or rear-wheel drive. What’s more, a representative from presumably the company’s North American arm told Car and Driver in a story published today that it “does not comment on future products.”
Details are indeed slim, but for now, just having the strongest of indications yet that the Celica is coming back will have to suffice.
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