Yahoo Autos Toyota testing GR86 prototype with turbocharged three-cylinder engine
Toyota has finally built the long-rumored turbocharged GR86 enthusiasts have spent years begging for. Don't jump for joy quite yet: the hot-rodded coupe is still at the prototype stage and it was developed primarily to help the Japanese company's engineers test synthetic fuels.
Australian website CarSales wrote that Toyota's Gazoo Racing division has built "a small batch" of GR86-based prototypes powered by a turbocharged three-cylinder engine. While that might sound odd considering the series-produced coupe uses a flat-four, the engine in question is related to the 1.6-liter unit that powers the recently-unveiled GR Corolla and the rally-bred GR Yaris sold in overseas markets.
Horsepower, torque and acceleration haven't been published — there's also no word on precisely what Toyota hopes to gain by turbocharging the GR86 and feeding it synthetic fuel. We're also curious to find out how the nimble coupe handles with a straight-three instead of a flat-four between its fenders; the former likely weighs less, it's down a cylinder, but the latter has a lower center of gravity.
