We regret that a recently unveiled concept automobile based on the Toyota 86 chassis was never produced. Designed at Toyota’s Calty studio in Southern California in 2012, the Toyota X86D concept was kept under wraps for more than ten years.
When the Scion FR-S was first introduced in 2012, it created a lot of hype. The agile and reasonably priced rear-wheel-drive coupe was a welcome addition to a market where the sports car segment had not seen much action. Toyota considered how it would be able to use that chassis for different body types, such as a “four-door shooting brake.” That does sound a lot like a regular wagon, but we understand; that wagons aren’t cool, according to the (vastly incorrect) common opinion.
Still, a tiny wagon the size of a FR-S sounds awesome. According to Toyota, the X86D was originally intended to have an all-wheel-drive system. Whether it had AWD or not, the 86’s low-profile flat-four engine and well-balanced front-engine, rear-drive bias would have been advantageous.
Not insignificantly, the concept advanced to the full-size model stage. This indicates that it made it through the 1:4 scale model and 2D paper or digital artwork stages. With a sharply curved rear window on the hatch, the appearance differs greatly from the FR-S.
Toyota established Calty in 1973 to design the X86D. These days, almost all of the big automakers have a studio in Southern California, but Toyota was the first; it was established to research the driving behaviors of people in the center of American—and, by extension, world—auto culture. The gorgeous Lexus SC, the 2024 Tacoma, and the 1979 Celica are just a few of the production vehicles that Calty has produced.
After the Scion brand was discontinued, the Scion FR-S was renamed the 86. For the current generation, it was dubbed the GR86. Even if the X86D’s various curves would have probably been softened for manufacturing, it’s still a fantastic concept. We would have been lined up for a compact sportwagon even if designers had simply grafted the hatch onto the FR-S while retaining the majority of its lines. Unfortunately, we never got the chance.
