Details on the joint-venture between both BMW and Toyota, for their upcoming sports cars, have been tight so far. But thanks to recent trademark applications in Europe and the US for the Supra name, the joint project makes the news again.
BMW and Toyota announced their joint venture all the way back in 2011, touting about a collaboration on hydrogen fuel cells, shared battery tech and a new sportscar platform. One of them is the Supra, while the other sportscar is the next-generation Z4. Both cars will take advantage of the shared technology; the Supra will be bigger than the next Z4 and feature an extended version of the joint venture platform. The Supra will sit above GT86 model in the Toyota line-up.
The design of the two cars can’t be any different, but under the skin, both cars will be powered by a common running gear, including a BMW petrol engine driving the rear wheels and Toyota hybrid electric motors at the front. Electric power will come from regenerative braking, and will be stored in a lithium ion battery. At least a plug-in hybrid model will be offered by the two brands.
With the help of BMW’s lightweight construction processes, the Toyota Supra is targeting a kerbweight of less than 1,400kg.
Both cars are scheduled to arrive in 2017.
[Source: AutoExpress]
