Toyota has more important things to do than to introduce electrified performance vehicles. The company's sports vehicle and motorsport division, Gazoo Racing, thinks combustion engines will continue to be around for a long time. Future models beyond the GR86, GR Yaris, GR Corolla, and GR Supra will continue to receive investments in ICE technology.

Tomoya Takahashi, head of Toyota Gazoo Racing, stated in an interview with the Australian magazine Car Expert that no plans exist for a performance electric vehicle. "GR intends to use internal combustion engines as much as possible," he continued. Engines could be prohibited in the future, but internal combustion engines aren't inherently harmful; carbon is the real threat."

That may please purists, but we can't help but wonder whether the FT-Se's demise has already been decided. When the concept automobile made its debut at the Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo in October 2023, it gave off feelings of the MR2. It was an all-wheel drive sports vehicle with a rear-biased configuration, two seats, and two engines under the GR brand. The sleek EV with mid-engine looks was advertised as having a three-second 0 to 100 kph sprint time and a 250 kph top speed.

The project manager for the GR Design Group, Hideaki Iida, indicated in an interview with our sister site InsideEVs that the FT-Se may go into production after 2026. Though we're not given up hope just yet, it appears that Toyota is more focused on producing entertaining ICE vehicles. It would be beneficial to have both gas and electric GR versions available for purchase.

Although pure electric vehicles (EVs) are not going away anytime soon and gas engines are here to remain, Takahashi believes that "by using hybrid technology we can reduce carbon emissions." He didn't exclude out synthetic fuels however, and Toyota is still working on hydrogen-powered combustion engines, as is well known.

What is GR doing these days, in the meantime? It looks like a performance SUV is a must, and the GR Corolla with automatic transmission may possibly be included. The 1.6-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine from the hot hatch was used by Toyota's premium brand Lexus to power an LBZ concept car that will shortly go into production. The 400 Nm of torque and 300 horsepower are anticipated to be included in the tiny crossover.