The Toyota GT86 is dead…for now

That’s it, folks. Toyota has sold its last GT86 in the UK. With almost 7,500 sales to its name, the Top Gear award-winning rear-wheel drive, skinny-tyred coupe has finally bitten the big one after nine years on the market.

And that is very sad news indeed because the GT86, and the virtually identical Subaru BRZ, is brilliant fun. A two-plus-two with a modest 2.0-litre, naturally-aspirated engine, it was conceived way back in 2005 as a back-to-basics driver’s car. With the exception of the Mazda MX-5, there wasn’t anything quite like it when it was launched, and there still isn’t today.

But don’t worry, because it’ll be back in the not-too-distant future. Possibly with a new name – nowadays Toyota’s performance cars wear the ‘GR’ badge, so ‘GR86’ (or similar) is a definite possibility.

And because the new car is also being developed together with Subaru, odds are it’ll look quite a lot like the latest BRZ, which was revealed last November and goes on sale in the US in the autumn. You can read all about it, and get an idea of what to expect from the Toyota, by clicking on these blue words.