Toyota Gazoo Racing Will Not Go Hybrid Until 2030 At The Earliest

Oct. 18, 2022 3:51 PM ET by Sebastian Cenizo Engine / 1 Comment

No GR models are arriving with electrification before 2030.

Toyota has been capturing the attention of true motoring enthusiasts for some time now, thanks to the brilliance of Gazoo Racing products like the GR Supra, GR86, GR Yaris, and GR Corolla. These combustion-powered gems are all fantastic in their own way, and they're not too badly priced either, helping endear them to buyers who want an engaging experience for not too much money. Thus, it's reasonable to expect that Toyota would try to capitalize on the success of the GR brand with more of the same sorts of cars, but the Japanese automaker recently announced that it is done introducing new models under the Gazoo Racing banner.

Is that because Toyota is working on electric replacements? Thankfully, the answer is no.

Speaking with Drive, Toyota Australia's sales and marketing boss, Sean Hanley, said that GR EVs are not in the pipeline. "By 2030, every Toyota in our range, apart from GR performance cars, will have some form of electrification," said the executive. This includes "hybrid-electric vehicles, fuel-cell electric vehicles, and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles," but the main takeaway for us here is that the GR brand and Toyota as a whole will not jump head-first into the electrification craze.

Toyota has oft been criticized for its own pessimism, but its concerns seem to be warranted. Infrastructure is one big issue, and so is the fact that EVs are not necessarily suitable for all people in all markets.

So what does that mean for the future of the GR brand? Well, it seems likely that the existing GR models (along with some possible special editions) will soldier on until the end of the decade. In the meantime, Toyota is introducing battery electric vehicles, hydrogen EVs, and hybrids.

Not only is the automaker working to assess how viable these are in terms of efficiency and power, but Toyota is also endeavoring to ensure that the future will include an engine note that combustion lovers can still rally behind. And that may not be the result of fake noise - Toyota has already demonstrated that hydrogen cars can sound amazing.

Toyota Gazoo Racing Will Not Go Hybrid Until 2030 At The Earliest

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Toyota Gazoo Racing Will Not Go Hybrid Until 2030 At The Earliest

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