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Toyota GT86 convertible could debut in March

The dates are lining up, now we wait to see how the badges align. Just before the Toyota GT 86/Scion FR-S/Subaru BRZ line-up was introduced at the Tokyo Motor Show last year, there was a report that Subaru was considering a convertible while Toyota wouldn't even comment on it. That got swapped around when earlier this year the chief engineer on Toyota's side said a convertible was coming, and then a Scion FR-S droptop was confirmed for early 2014.
Autocar now reports that the Toyota GT 86 convertible will make its first appearance at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show in March. In a car whose specs like weight, packaging, horsepower and center of gravity were all tightly controlled to get the most from the least, the changes necessitated by chopping the roof could make this a very different car. It's said to employ a fabric roof to keep a "small" weight gain check, and the suspension will be softened to work more harmoniously with the decreased body stiffness. And somewhere in all that the back seat and trunk space will need to take a hit.
In other news, Autocar says the hi-po GT 86 with some kind of capacitor system instead of batteries is being worked on for 2015.

Toyota fires bullets into hydrogen fuel tanks, shoots down EV supporters

Many gearheads will remember that the 1970s-era Dodge Dart's claim to fame was that its motor was so durable (though not necessarily powerful) that one could shoot bullets into the engine block. Decades later, Toyota has taken a page out of that testing process. "Personally, I don't care what Elon [Musk] says about fuel cells." With some industry members and analysts questioning both the viability and durability of hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles, Toyota executive Bob Carter, speaking at the Automotive News World Congress this week, says the Japanese automaker went all Clint Eastwood on the fuel tanks of a fuel-cell prototype. Carter says that bullets from a small-caliber gun bounced off the carbon-fiber tanks, and that .50-caliber bullets barely made dents. The shoot-out motif kept going when Carter name-checked executives from Tesla, Nissan and Volkswagen in saying that he didn't care if other automakers question the future of fuel-cell vehicles. As you can see in the prepared text of Carter's speech below, he said, "Personally, I don't care what Elon [Musk], Carlos [Ghosn] or Jonathan [Browning] say about fuel cells. If they want to 'plug in and tune out' other technologies, that's fine." After debuting it in Tokyo late last year, Toyota showed off its FCV fuel-cell concept vehicle at the Detroit Auto Show this week as it get ready to start sales "around 2015." The car has a 300-mile range and should be priced somewhere between $50,000 and $100,000. Autoblog drove Toyota's fuel-cell prototypes last year, and you can read our impressions here. 2014 Automotive News World Congress- Bob Carter January 14, 2014 As prepared for: Automotive News World Congress Tuesday, January 14, 2014 Bob Carter, Senior Vice President, Automotive Operations, Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. _________________ Thanks, Keith and good afternoon everyone. You know, I've been in the car business for more than 30 years, but I'm more excited about it now than EVER before Why? Because for the first time in Toyota's history, we did something here we've NEVER done before. We shocked people by unveiling two great looking, fun-to-drive cars that blow a hole in the theory that Toyota only builds "appliances". Just yesterday, we unveiled Toyota's newest concept, the FT-1 sports car. I'm already getting people asking me when they can get their hands on one. The FT-1 represents the latest in our heritage of sports cars like the 2000GT, Celica, Supra and most recently, the FR-S.

Two new RWD Toyota sports cars to join FR-S?

Toyota as we know it could become a thing of the past. According to Australian site Car Advice, the Japanese brand known for bland cruisers like the Camry and Corolla is preparing to bring two new rear-drive cars to market that would slot above and below the Scion-badged FR-S. This is very, very good news.
Car Advice spoke to the GT86/FR-S' chief engineer, Tatsuya Tada, who claimed, "Akio Toyoda always says to me, Toyota sports car [family] should be three sports car brothers. 86 is in the middle." The oldest "brother" would be the spiritual successor to the Supra, even if it doesn't wear that name. Tada is in charge of that project, while a sub-GT86 project is being headed-up elsewhere.
Tada refused to comment on names (CA specifically mentions MR2 and Celica) for the new small car, but did say that, "Yes it is rear-wheel drive and that's Toyota's strong position - Toyota sports car must be rear-wheel drive." Perhaps the juiciest bit of information obtained from Tada's interview with Car Advice was his hinting that both new sports cars would be joint ventures, like the GT86/FR-S/Subaru BRZ triplets. Tada wouldn't say who Toyota was in bed with on the smaller model, but did mention that the Supra would be a product of the world's largest automaker's partnership with BMW.