Toyota is slowly emerging from a deep sports car coma, and its vital signs are looking promising. The world's largest car manufacturer has for a long time neglected its sports car fans, but has in recent years started to oblige with creations such as the Toyota GR 86. Now that the Toyota GR Supra and the bonkers GR Yaris are on the scene, it would seem that Toyota is entering a golden age of sports cars. Not to be left out of the mix, Toyota's pickup trucks are also getting some special attention, and one special truck, the Toyota Hilux GR Sport, a sort of scaled-down version of the Toyota Tacoma, is now getting a power increase to compete with its closest global competitor: the Ford Ranger Raptor.

Ford is getting ready to reveal the next-generation Ranger and Ranger Raptor in 2022, but Toyota is not planning on revealing a new Hilux any time soon. The Ranger and Hilux do battle across the globe in the compact pickup class (or midsize outside of the US). The updated 2022 Toyota Hilux GR Sport was recently revealed in South Africa wearing some new Gazoo Racing styling bits, but more importantly, it has received a healthy power upgrade. Under the hood of the Hilux GR Sport lies a 2.8-liter turbodiesel engine which has received a ten percent power increase for a total of 221 horsepower and 404 lb-ft of torque.

That's slightly more power than the 2.0-liter turbo diesel Ford Ranger Raptor produces, but it might be too little, too late. Ford is planning on introducing the Raptor with a turbocharged EcoBoost V6 gas engine soon, which will eclipse the Hilux's power output.

The updated Hilux will go on sale in South Africa in May, and it is not yet clear if this sporty model will be going on sale elsewhere. It is believed that the Hilux will merge with the Tacoma on a single global platform in the near future, but only time will tell if the new Hilux will spawn a GRMN version capable of matching Ford's impressive range of Raptor products, including the king of the hill, the F-150 Raptor.