After months, even years of rumours, Toyota has finally confirmed that a new Celica sports car is in the pipeline. The news was reported by Autocar, which quoted Toyota Executive VP Yuki Nakajima. Nakajima confirmed the news at last week's Japan Rally.
According to Nakajima, work on the car is underway, though it's still early days.
Rumours surrounding the model have been circulating for several years. In fact, there was much talk of the return of a trio of sports cars, the other two being the Supra and MR2. The former is back, the latter not yet, and not even confirmed. But now we know the Celica is going to be reborn.
Hopes are high for the coming Celica. Earlier this year, an episode of the Toyota cartoon (Grip) showed several potential new models, including a new Celica, as well as new Supras, MR2s, GR86s and GT3s. In the case of the latter, it has already been spotted in testing, both as a race car and as a road car that could potentially carry a Lexus logo.
A 20-year absence
The Celica bowed out after 2006, after seven model generations. But Toyota continued to register the name with patent authorities in order to retain exclusivity.
It’s not know at this stage whether the new Celica will be powered by a gasoline engine, or take in an all-electric or hybrid powertrain. Toyota has already mentioned plans for an electric sports car. Place your bets.