Enthusiasts they were hesitant to adopt electric vehicles in the past and who could blame them? Only you cannot be played the thrill of a naturally aspirated engine or the whine of a turbocharged one eager to breathe oxygen. Toyota seems to feel the same way.
I’m talking to Australia Car expert magazine, Toyota Gazoo Racing president Tomoya Takahashi says there are plans to produce cars for gasoline enthusiasts for as long as possible. He says they even invested in fresh engines.
“We want to utilize internal combustion engines as much as possible,” Takahashi-san told Australian media last week.
“Maybe in the future there will come a time when engines will be banned, but internal combustion engines are not bad, the enemy is coal.
“We are investing in the engines of the future.” Thinking that coal was the enemy, Takahashi seemed to suggest that there was room for hybrid engines and carbon-neutral fuels for the vehicles of the future. However, he would not comment on future products.
If you’re wondering when we might see performance EVs with the GR badge, don’t get your hopes up. Takahashi told Car Expert there are no plans for a GR EV. For a brief moment, it seemed like it was something Toyotas AND Lexus we considered. Both automakers have toyed with “manual” gearboxes in electric vehicles, but according to Car Expert, the idea appears to have been shelved for now.
As for other electric vehicles, Takahashi basically stated that everything is up in the air and that electric vehicles are not the only way forward. “We are not sure about electrification and when it will happen. There are discussions around the world that not all cars will be electric. Nobody sees the future in 10 years. Our direction is multi-track, not just electric,” he said.
