Is there another new Toyota sports car coming soon? 2022 Toyota GR GT Concept turns into future Porsche 3, BMW M911 and Mercedes-AMG GT competitor disguised as a racing car

The GR GT3 concept may be bigger than expected.

Move over, Supra, there's a new sports hero car hitting Toyota showrooms, and it's targeting the biggest names in performance, including Porsche, Ferrari, and Aston Martin.

Unveiled at the recent Tokyo Motor Show, the Toyota GR GT3 concept is, as the name suggests, a concept… but only for now. While its striking appearance drew attention in initial reports, it doesn't take much digging to figure out what it really is and why it represents such a big deal for Toyota and its Gazoo Racing brand.

While Toyota hasn't revealed any details, the GR GT3 concept is clearly not just a Supra with a body kit, with noticeably different proportions and unique styling. This suggests that Toyota is preparing an all-new sports car that will stand above the GR Supra to compete with the biggest names in the business. 

Toyota even hinted at this in its official release of the car, linking the GR Yaris project, which saw the company create a special three-door widebody model for its World Rally Championship program.

“As with the GR Yaris, by commercializing motorsport vehicles rather than simply adapting production vehicles for motorsport use,” Toyota said in a statement, “TGR intends to leverage feedback and technology enhanced through participation in various motorsport events, for the development of both GT3 and series production cars, and to help create even better cars for motorsport.”

For those who don't know, GT3 is not just the name of a Porsche 911 model, but a category of international motor racing featuring sports cars such as the 911, Ferrari 488, Mercedes-AMG GT, Audi R8 and Honda NSX. This is the category used for the top class of the annual Bathurst 12 Hours, but will become the standard global GT race from 2024, including the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans.

It's important to note that the category is based on production cars, not concepts or prototypes, so if Toyota wants to compete, it will need to offer the public a road-going version of its racing GT3.

That's why Toyota would have to build a new sports car and couldn't introduce a bespoke racing car like the GR GT3. At this stage, it is still unclear whether Toyota will seek a partner for such a project, as it did for the GR Supra and GR 86, or will go it alone to further demonstrate the strength of Gazoo Racing's business.

The creation of Gazoo Racing has been a major undertaking by Toyota in the last decade. This is largely due to the fact that Gazoo Racing is a personal project of Akio Toyoda, the global president of Toyota. He believes that racing will improve not only the brand's image, but also the handling of his cars.

During his tenure, Gazoo Racing replaced Toyota Racing Development (TRD) as the company's global arm and oversees all Toyota and Lexus motorsport activities. 

The brand has also expanded its vehicle range with the introduction of the GR Supra and GR Yaris, with the GR 86 coming later in 2022. But this is expected to be just the beginning with the GR Corolla, GR HiLux and even the revived MR2 (with electric power) all forecast in the next few years.

Toyota will have to introduce a production version of the GR GT3 Concept by 2024 in order to compete in blue ribbon races like Le Mans and Bathurst. Based on the concept, it seems likely that it will be a front-wheel-drive, rear-wheel-drive GT coupe, possibly powered by the turbocharged V8 engine the company has been rumored to have been working on in recent years.

Something like this would certainly meet the requirements of a potential rival for cars like the 911, the AMG GT, the Aston Martin Vantage and the like. And if it could compete with these types of cars, even if it didn't outsell them but just match potential competitors, that would be a major boost to Toyota and Gazoo Racing's image.

And if you think Toyota's sports car competing with Porsche (which will probably cost north of $150) sounds far-fetched, what would you say five years ago if someone told you that Toyota would sell the Yaris for 50 XNUMX dollars…