Previewed by the FT-86 Open concept that debuted at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, the topless FR-S will be aimed squarely at the next generation of the Mazda MX-5 Miata that will bow at next year’s Chicago show. The convertible will feature a cloth top that will retract at the push of a button in under 20 seconds, and Toyota has ambitious promised the conversion from a coupe to a convertible will be weight-neutral.
The topless FR-S will likely use the coupe’s 2.0-liter flat-four engine rated at 200 horsepower and 151 lb-ft. of torque.
Called 734A internally, the yet-unnamed sedan will stretch approximately 187 inches long, 70 inches wide and 55 inches tall, dimensions that will make it roughly the same size all around as a Subaru Legacy. The sedan will likely feature frameless doors and a specific rear end treatment, but the coupe’s front end will be grafted to the sedan with only minor modifications.
The aforementioned 200-horsepower, 2.0-liter flat-four is not powerful enough to briskly move the extra weight added by sedan body style so engineers will fit the car with a turbocharger in order to raise its output to around 250 horsepower. All-wheel drive will be offered as an option, and a range-topping turbo-hybrid powerplant with in-wheel electric motors will round out the lineup.
Australian website Motoring believes the FR-S convertible will land in showrooms across Japan in October of this year, meaning it will likely be presented at the Paris Motor Show. The same source reports the sedan is not scheduled to arrive until 2016 at the earliest.
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