It’s painfully obvious that Toyota isn’t interested in developing any high-performance vehicles, at least not by itself. This explains the more recent collaborations that spawned the GR Supra and 86 models. The latter, in particular, has been on the radar of tuning specialists since the beginning, as its playful chassis and less-than-sufficient power output (for some) are a good starting point for some epic builds. This time, however, Toyota isn’t about to let the tuners steal its lunch money and are giving us their vision of a serious performance proposition based on the Toyota GR86.

It seems Toyota’s Gazoo Racing division got tired of seeing GR86-based concepts from renowned Japanese tuners and decided to give them a “middle finger”, so to speak. If, to you, the standard GR86 looks a bit too innocent, then what we see here will probably change your mind.

It seems Gazoo Racing hasn’t left a single body panel untouched. This certainly doesn’t look like a mildly-mannered compact sports car anymore. After Gazoo Racing’s treatment, the GR6’s front fascia looks mutated (in a good way). The front mouth is bigger and more vicious, now integrating multiple air inlets that channel air to different sections of the front. That same frontal air dam is flanked by two air intakes with additional aero bits over them.

There, we see a bigger rear diffuser and, of course, a big rear wing mounted almost at roof height. We also notice that the small aerodynamic elements that normally sit at the back of the rear wheel arches are absent. In the standard car, they are meant to improve airflow, but with the Gazoo Racing body kit and that big rear wing, they are no longer needed.

That said, if the Gazoo Racing treatment seems a bit too radical for you, there is a second version of the GR86, which looks a lot more subtle in comparison. The tall rear wing is replaced by an integrated ducktail, while the body kit is a nice compromise between the more radical design and the standard car. There are also fewer vents, compared to the first design.

It’s not like Toyota hasn’t done sportier versions of the Toyota 86. There was the GT86 TS, as well as the GT86 Hakone edition, both of which were based on the first generation of the compact coupe. However, what we see here will most likely be optional packages, similar to the TRD body kit, offered on the Toyota 86. In any case, we still secretly hope Gazoo Racing will give us something along the lines of what we see here, in the form of a standalone model. We also expect some performance upgrades to accompany the radical body kit.