Toyota GR GT: Everything Reported So Far

Summary

• Toyota is developing a new flagship sports car that may be badged as either a Lexus or a Toyota, depending on the market.
• The high-performance model will likely be based on the 2022 GR GT3 Concept and offer a V-8 engine with electric assistance.
• Toyota is developing the GR GT without outside input, making it an all-Japanese, high-performance model. The transmission options for the car are still unknown, with the possibility of a new dual-clutch automatic or an “all-new” manual transmission for EVs.

In recent years, Toyota once again, became synonymous with excitement and performance. The same people that make the Corolla, currently, offer a versatile lineup of performance-oriented Toyota GR models. For a while, we have known that Toyota has been working on a new, flagship sports car and successor to the iconic Lexus LF-A.

It was, initially, believed that the new, high-performance model would be badged as a Lexus, and while this is still happening, the EUPIO website shows filings, confirming a new GR GT logo trademarked by Toyota. These new developments are surrounded by a lot of internet chatter. The Japanese carmaker doesn’t hide the fact it is developing a new flagship sports car as we have seen it in action on numerous occasions, but here’s what we know so far.

In order to give you the most up-to-date and accurate information possible, the data used to compile this article was sourced from the EUPIO filings, and other reliable sources like MotorSport.com, Top Gear, and Best Car Web.

The New Flagship Toyota Sports Car Scores Familiar Design

Highlights Of Toyota’s Upcoming High-Performance Flagship

• Flagship sports car based on the 2022 GR GT3 Concept
• A road-going, homologation special for the GT3 race car
• V-8 engine with electric assistance as the most likely powertrain
• Possible, all-new automatic and “manual” transmissions

At the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon, Toyota presented the GR GT3 Concept. Although that one previewed a track-only racing variant, images of a road-going variant without the big wing emerged on the European Union Intellectual Property Office website, confirming the production of a road-going variant of the LF-A successor. This coincides with Toyota’s trademark of a new, GR GT logo.

“Everybody knows we are developing a car, and this car will come to race in Europe in 2026”. – Toyota WEC team director, Rob Leuben

Toyota’s WEC team director, Rob Leuben confirmed in an interview with Motorsport.com that Toyota will be entering the GR GT3 in the World Endurance Championship series in 2026. Moreover, reports from Japan indicate that the GR GT is being developed as a “catalog model”, meaning it will not be a limited-production model like the LF-A.

Subsequently, this along with leaked patent footage, confirms Mazda’s own flagship sports car. Toyota and Mazda have already partnered up in order to save costs. This partnership will deepen come 2026, and we already know Mazda’s flagship sports car will share a platform with Toyota’s GR GT.

What Does All This Mean For The Future Lexus LF-A Successor?

Everybody expected Toyota’s new flagship sports car to wear a Lexus badge, but the trademark filings for the GR GT logo may suggest otherwise. In any case, we are talking about the same car, but it is likely that on some markets, the flagship model could be sold as a Toyota, while on others, it would be badged as Lexus.

To avoid confusion, we will note that Lexus With that said, Lexus already confirmed a production version of the Lexus Electrified Sports concept will arrive in the coming years. The most exciting of the 16 concept models, Toyota showcased in 2022, will be based on the company’s TNGA GA-L platform and is going to feature a carbon-fiber body over a lightweight aluminum chassis.

Does this mean two different versions based on the same architecture? Perhaps Lexus’ version of the car, dubbed the LFR, will be a more upscale model with more performance on tap, while Toyota’s GR GT3 could be a replacement for the RC-F GT3 racer. In any case, Toyota has confirmed that the LFR’s road-going version will hit the showroom floors in 2026, the same as the Toyota GR GT.

An Exciting New Engine For Toyota’s Upcoming High-Performance Flagship

It goes without saying that the Lexus LF-A’s biggest treat was the Yamaha-developed V-10 engine. While the high-revving powerplant is an engineering masterpiece that will go down in history as one of the best engines ever made, the LF-A successor will be motivated by a much different engine.

Back in 2023, we reported on spy footage from Fuji Speedway, in Japan, which showed the Lexus LFR doing laps around the iconic circuit. Not only that, but we managed to hear its engine note, confirming rumors of a twin-turbocharged V-8 engine. According to the latest reports from the Japanese publication, Best Car Web, speak of a newly-developed, 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8, paired with an electric motor, as part of a plug-in hybrid setup.

Where The All-New V-8 Engine Fits In

Toyota would not go out of its way to develop an all-new, twin-turbo V-8 without contingencies. The company has already made significant progress in hydrogen combustion engines and, given the Lexus GT3 racers rely on V-8 power, logic dictates that the 2026 GR GT could feature a similar, V-8 hybrid setup to the Lexus LFR.

Although downsized, this new V-8 may still share some of its architecture with the existing, 5.0-liter V-8. The new engine, alone, could produce 710 horsepower (530 kilowatts) and 600 pound-feet (813 Nm). With the electric motor on board, the new Lexus flagship sports car will produce 890 horsepower (662 kilowatts).

At the same time, the LFA successor will also pioneer Toyota’s solid-state battery technology. Other impressive numbers the manufacturer quotes are the targeted range of 435 miles (700 km) and the 0 to 60 mph (97 km/h) acceleration time of around 2.0 seconds, as stated by Toyota Motor Corporation’s president Koji Sato. This means that Lexus’ flagship model will, at least on paper, rival the performance of Ferrari’s SF90, which is a 1,000-horsepower hybrid supercar.

Completely Developed By Toyota

It is no secret that Toyota has been partnering up with various other car companies to make some of its performance models. The most obvious examples are the Toyota 86 and Subaru BRZ twins or more recently, the BMW Z4-based GR Supra. Toyota is still co-developing some of its more exciting models with other companies, as testified by the upcoming MR-2, which is being co-developed with Suzuki and Daihatsu.

Toyota and Lexus flagship models though, are a different story, and the GR GT is being developed without outside input. This means that in 2026, we will see, not one, but two all-Japanese, high-performance models from Toyota and Lexus.

The Transmission Options Is Where It Gets Interesting

The Toyota GR GT is expected to feature a new transmission, unlike anything we have seen in current Toyota and Lexus models. The spy footage of the Lexus LFR, running at Fuji Speedway, suggests quick gear changes akin to a performance-tuned, dual-clutch automatic.

To this day, Toyota has never made a vehicle with a DCT, suggesting an all-new transmission might be introduced for the GR GT. At the same time, we know Toyota is working on a “manual” transmission for EVs, but we don’t have confirmation whether we are going to see it on the LF-A successor. We’ll have to wait until late 2025 to find out. Until then, we will update continue to update you, as new bits of information spill out from Japan.