The Toyota AE86 coupe - technically a Corolla, but with little enough shared with front-drive Corolla saloons and hatchbacks sold alongside it - is inarguably a motoring icon, embedded in car culture and revered by petrolheads the world over. Will they still feel the same about it when it has been given an electric and hydrogen makeover?
Manga series star
To some, the AE86 is a star of Manga comic books and movies in the classic Japanese 'Initial D' series, which celebrates all things racing and drifting (with a bit of adventure and some occasional crime-solving thrown in). To others, it's emblematic of a certain type of boy racer - the ones who gave Irish rallying a bit of an image problem in the nineties and early 2000s.
But a poster child for zero-emissions motoring? Hardly - the AE86 was famed for its rev-happy (and unburstably reliable) '4A-GE' four-cylinder petrol engine.
Well, up until now, it has. Toyota is thinking a little differently, and it has presented what are technically two concept cars based on classic AE86 models and both are zero-emissions vehicles.
Electric and hydrogen power
The one with the fixed headlights is rigged for silent running - its engine has been binned, and it's now powered by the electric motor from a hybrid Toyota Tundra pickup (which has a mere 48hp) and the 13.4kWh battery from a plug-in Prius. Don't expect to be going too far, too quickly, in one of those, but intriguingly, the car retains its manual gearbox, and the electric motor drives through it to get to the rear wheels. It's part of Toyota's plans to remind us that electric cars don't have to be boring and that we don't have to sacrifice all of the tactile interaction we're used to.
The hydrogen-powered AE86, the one with the pop-up headlights in the pictures, is even more interesting (and not because of the headlights. Alright, partially because of the headlights...). It's not a fuel-cell hydrogen car but has been re-jigged to allow the 4A-GE engine to run on hydrogen instead of petrol.
Toyota says that, aside from using the high-pressure hydrogen tanks from the Mirai and the necessary changes to the plumbing and fuel injection system, "modifications have been kept to a minimum, preserving the look and character of the AE86." Both restomod concepts also reference circularity of by reusing seats, seatbelts and seatbelt pads made from recycled materials.
As many options as possible
Toyota isn't quoting a power output for the hydrogen car, but it should still be pretty zippy as hydrogen has the potential to unleash more power. There is even the possibility of an aftermarket kit at some point in the future to allow such petrol-engined classics to be converted to hydrogen power, but retain a proper exhaust note and simple refuelling.
"Toyota will respond to any situation or need by offering multiple options. Which option to choose is not up to us but up to our customers," said outgoing Toyota chief executive Akio Toyoda. "There aren't many industrial products that people talk about affectionately, but in Japan people actually call their cars 'aisha', which means 'beloved.' This is a sign of an emotional connection. That's why Toyota plans to offer as many options as possible to our customers worldwide. Toyota is aiming to provide customers with more choices as the auto industry moves towards carbon neutrality. Recognising that it will take time before all vehicles are carbon neutral, Toyota believes that simultaneously promoting the carbon neutralisation of vehicles currently in customer use is essential."
"As we look to a carbon-neutral future, I think we all feel anxious about leaving behind the car that we've become so used to", said Takashi Watanabe, general manager of the Lexus Electrified Development division, which took the lead on the AE86 programme. "I believe, though, with this project, we can redevelop the old car while keeping its values, and turn it into something new for the future ahead."