IMAGINED: Toyota GR 86 Convertible

The 2022 Toyota GR 86 has been imagined as a convertible in renders from photoshop guru Theo Throttle on Instagram and, boy, do we wish it was real.

We count ourselves lucky the Toyota 86 and Subaru BRZ exist – but, with the performance car world being what it is, fans continue to demand more variety from the 86 and its great accessible rear-drive formula.

Toyota was the original architect behind such hype after it built and showcased a convertible concept version of the first-generation coupe back in 2013. It looked good.

The white beauty called the FT-86 Open was shown at the Geneva Motor Show, prompting speculation that Toyota would follow up the successful coupe with a road-ready convertible version – and possibly a turbocharged variant.

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Above: The FT-86 Open

Of course, neither of those things transpired, so we don’t hold much hope for the new 86 or BRZ gearing up to take on the Mazda MX-5 for top-down sportscar glory.

However, in the slight chance someone within the product planning department makes a case for it, these renders (shared with permission) reveal how the new car could look.

There’s something to be said about the new 86 generation and its wide-body proportions that would fit so well under a cut-away roofline. That said, the folding roof mechanism would eat into boot space at the cost of retaining a four-seat arrangement.

And, if anyone remembers the Honda S2000, there’s something to be said for the new 2.4-litre engine pumping out 173kW and 250Nm to the rear wheels in something like this with a six-speed manual – that’s only 3kW shy of the great Honda roadster but with 42Nm more grunt.

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Of course, these sleek looks will penalise handling, given a roof is crucial to torsional rigidity.

However, if a convertible threatened to ruin the chances of the original 86 establishing itself as a world-class handler, the new-generation coupe has stiffened rigidity by 50 per cent, which would ensure a new convertible handles much sharper.

And how much would one cost? We speculate a convertible would increase the price because of its lower sales volumes and higher engineering requirements. But looking forward to a new 86 body style would be priceless.

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