New global Toyota boss says GR performance cars here to stay

Performance enthusiasts can breathe a sign of relief. The new boss of Toyota says he plans to continue where former CEO – rev-head Akio Toyoda – left off, with no plans to axe hot hatches and sports-cars.

The Toyota Gazoo Racing (GR) performance-car division is here to stay – and primed for expansion – under new management, says recently-appointed Toyota CEO Koji Sato.

The driving force behind the development of the Toyota GR range was former president and CEO Akio Toyoda – a rev-head who is credited with breathing new life into exciting cars for the Japanese brand.

However, following the appointment of Koji Sato to the top job last month amid the recent messaging about electric cars, performance fans have been wondering what the arrival of a new boss means to Toyota’s newly-minted GR Performance division.

The GR Yaris and GR Corolla hot hatches were passion projects of Mr Toyoda, who is referred to as the ‘Master Driver’ within the company, and is a regarded as a car fanatic.

There were concerns the GR Performance range would take a back seat as Toyota ramped-up its electric-car roll-out plans, however new CEO of the Japanese car giant Koji Sato – previously the boss of Gazoo Racing and the Lexus luxury division – has instead hinted at an expansion of the brand.

“The Gazoo brand will be acknowledged for the future – and maybe we can even speed it up,” Mr Sato told UK media, reported by Autocar magazine over the weekend.

“Our Master Driver was also president of the company at the same time as he had a steering wheel in his hand for Gazoo.

“Now he is only chairman, maybe he will have a lot more time to develop cars for them?”

MORE: Hybrid or electric Toyota GR performance cars are coming, but when?

The chief engineer of the GR86 has previously indicated to Drive the Gazoo Racing range is complete with the GR86 and GR Supra sports cars, and GR Yaris and GR Corolla hot hatchbacks.

However, reports out of Japan claim Toyota is developing a successor to the current GR Supra – which may use a revised version of the current BMW-sourced 3.0-litre turbo inline six-cylinder engine, or adopt electric propulsion.

There have also been reports claiming development is underway on the next-generation GR86, with turbocharged GR Yaris power aided by hybrid technology. Both reports have yet to be verified.

Mr Toyoda said earlier this year Mr Sato was selected as Toyota’s new president and CEO in part because of “his youth” and that “he loved cars”.

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