{"id":508235,"date":"2026-02-27T20:31:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T20:31:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/508235\/"},"modified":"2026-02-27T20:31:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T20:31:12","slug":"2027-toyota-celica-previewed-as-a-rally-car","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/508235\/","title":{"rendered":"2027 Toyota Celica previewed as a rally car"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2027 Toyota Celica has been photographed for the first time ahead of its official reveal as a showroom model, and its competition debut in the World Rally Championship (WRC) in 2027.<\/p>\n

Toyota is yet to officially announce the return of the Celica nameplate \u2013 a Honda Prelude rival last sold here in 2005 \u2013 despite previous comments from a Toyota North America executive letting slip the company was looking to bring the name back.<\/p>\n

Yet world-leading motorsport website DirtFish<\/a> has published images of a new two-door coupe rally car being tested by Toyota, with the automaker set to ditch the GR Yaris<\/a> as its WRC contender from 2027.<\/p>\n

New regulations for that year allow a \u2018road car body\u2019 to be draped over a spaceframe using the current GR Yaris Rally2 car\u2019s mechanical package, suggesting the coupe carving up dusty roads in the Algarve is destined for showrooms.<\/p>\n

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The important wording is \u2018road car\u2019, meaning a production model body, although the 2027 rally cars do not have to strictly be road models.<\/p>\n

Toyota Australia wouldn\u2019t comment when approached by CarExpert on whether a Celica is set for production, or if it would be sold here.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt this point in time we are already running our prototype test car,\u201d Toyota technical director Tom Fowler told DirtFish.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe design team are concentrating on all of the feedback that\u2019s coming from that car and working around issues and improvements.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe original target was to start running the car in 2026. We met that target. The car has been running for a few tests already and it\u2019s definitely done more than 2000 kilometers. I can\u2019t tell you the exact figure.\u201d<\/p>\n

The report included video footage with the same familiar engine note as the current Yaris rally car, but with a body design echoing that of the Toyota FT-Se concept car <\/a>shown at the 2024 Tokyo motor show.<\/p>\n

While it was described as tapping the spirit of Gazoo Racing (GR) \u2014 the brand\u2019s performance and racing division, which is now one of Toyota\u2019s five pillars \u2014 it was revealed with an electric powertrain, clearly not used in the car running in Portugal.<\/p>\n

The Celica is one of several new sports cars anticipated as part of Toyota\u2019s stronger emphasis on performance models, with the return of another name \u2014 the MR2 \u2014 also speculated.<\/p>\n

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This follows tests of a Yaris with a mid-mounted powertrain \u2013 the previous MR2 name reflecting its mid-mounted 2.0-litre petrol engine \u2013 and the registration of the GR MR2 and GR MR-S (MR-S being the third-generation MR2\u2019s name in Japan) trademarks in Australia.<\/p>\n

Gazoo Racing also pulled the covers off the GR GT in December 2025 alongside a GT3 racing version, positioning it as its halo sports car \u2014 the fastest and most powerful showroom model to wear a Toyota badge.<\/p>\n

Toyota Australia has expressed interest in the GR GT for local showrooms<\/a> following its expected 2027 release in Japan.<\/p>\n

Production of the GR Supra<\/a>, a restyled twin of the BMW Z4<\/a>, ends in March 2026, with a V8-powered version making its debut in the Repco Supercars Championship in Australia and set to race in the iconic Bathurst 1000 endurance race this October.<\/p>\n

MORE:\u00a0Explore the Toyota showroom<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 2027 Toyota Celica has been photographed for the first time ahead of its official reveal as a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":508236,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[64,63,99],"class_list":{"0":"post-508235","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-business"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508235","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=508235"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508235\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/508236"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=508235"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=508235"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=508235"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}