Thankfully, the Toyota Celica Will Be Nothing Like the Honda Prelude

Toyota’s Worst-Kept Secret

Even before Toyota officially announced it was bringing back the Celica about two years ago, it was probably the worst-kept secret around. There were easter eggs in Toyota’s anime, and Akio Toyoda kept saying he wants to revive ‘the three brothers.’ That’s the Supra, Celica, and MR2, by the way.

At some point, Toyota tapped into the expertise of four-time World Rally Champion Juha Kankkunen. He’s relevant to this story because he won the title in 1993. The company wasn’t even trying to hide it anymore.

With no need to keep things secret, Toyota is going all out to hype it up. Recently, the company released photos of a rally coupe being shaken down. While its name wasn’t mentioned, we all know what it is by this point.

An Interesting Update

Of course, the brand isn’t sharing any details just yet, but an interesting report from Autocar has piqued our interest. According to the British publication, Toyota is seriously considering putting its newly developed 2.0-liter turbo engine in it. Not only that, a spokesperson from Toyota even confirmed that it will have all-wheel drive.

The engine being referred to here is likely the G20E. It’s been in development for quite some time already, and it’s undergoing durability trials in Japan’s Super Taikyu racing series. At the moment, it’s mounted in a modified GR Yaris, in the middle. With that in mind, does this mean the Celica could become a mid-engined coupe? Well, Toyota isn’t exactly confirming or denying that possibility.

Mikio Hayashi, the marketing manager for Gazoo Racing, told Autocar that hybridization is possible but not yet set in stone. “Nothing has been decided yet about whether it will be a standard hybrid or a plug-in hybrid,” said the executive. Either way, the revived Celica won’t be anything like the Honda Prelude, which followed the classic model’s more laid-back, somewhat sporty nature. Of course, the Celica can lean more toward the sportier side, as it has an actual motorsports heritage.

So, When Is It Coming?

Given how strong the hype is right now, Toyota doesn’t want to rush its development. After all, the engine most likely to be installed in the Celica is still in development. “We are continuing to develop that. We have high expectations. We cannot point to a timeline but can say we are making steady progress,” said Hayashi.

It’s possible to narrow down the possible launch date, though. The rally coupe is being built for the 2027 World Rally Championship season, and could succeed the GR Yaris in rallying. We could see it be revealed alongside the motorsport model, although it’s also possible that the rally car will be shown first, with the road car to follow later in the year or by 2028.