Toyota has reportedly decided the fate of its GR GT3 prototype racer unveiled last January. According to Toyota WEC team leader Rob Leupen, the track toy will participate in its first race in three years. At the same time, the company hopes to release its road-legal counterpart – likely under Lexus branding.
Per Motorsport, Toyota had originally planned to introduce its new GT3 racecar in 2025. However, when the company came to the conclusion that releasing a racer along with a road-legal supercar would be better, it pushed back the launch date.
While not official, it is likely that Toyota plans to phase out one of its current racecars with the new GR GT3. It is unclear what market positioning the street-legal version will have. In theory, it could either replace the Lexus RC or become the long-anticipated successor to the LFA. Earlier on, the company announced intentions to produce an electric sports car based on the Electrified Sport Concept shown earlier. The latter was clearly inspired by the LFA, so this theory sounds plausible.
Toyota did bring a vehicle named GR GT3 to the last year’s auto show in Tokyo, but it was little more than a life-size mockup lacking a functional chassis or engine. It was demonstrated exclusively to give us an idea about the corporation’s design direction moving forward.
