Toyota Celica revival to be powered by 2.0-litre turbo hybrid – report

Late last month a prototype rally coupe, widely believed to preview a revival of the Toyota Celica, was spied undergoing testing in Portugal.

At the time we knew little else about the car, except that it was likely being prepared to be ready for the 2027 WRC season.

Now Autocar says it has learnt more details about the vehicle, which it claims will be known as Celica Sport, and will be fitted with all-wheel drive.

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The magazine also asked Mikio Hayashi, marketing manager for Gazoo Racing, about the new Celica’s drivetrain. Hayashi-san revealed the 1.6-litre turbocharged three-cylinder employed in the GR Yaris and GR Corolla “cannot meet emission regulations”, meaning the company has “to consider the possibility of a 2.0-litre”.

He also noted it hasn’t been decided if the engine will be fitted with a hybrid or plug-in hybrid system. He wouldn’t reveal when the engine will be ready for launch, saying he “cannot point to a timeline but can say we are making steady progress”.

It’s possible then that the new Celica, expected launch by 2027, could initially be offered with the existing 1.6-litre turbo. If that’s the case, availability of the new Celica will be limited in the EU due to the bloc’s strict fleet-wide CO2 limits.

Whenever the new 2.0-litre turbo hybrid drivetrain is launched, it’s likely it will be used in other GR models, like the GR Yaris and GR Corolla, for emissions reasons and to boost economies of scale.

At the beginning of 2025, Toyota revealed the mid-engine GR Yaris M-Concept (above), which was powered by a new 2.0-litre turbo engine codenamed ‘G20E’.

No details about the engine were released at the time, but a later report from Auto Motor und Sport claimed the M-Concept’s engine was tuned to make around 335kW, and that a larger turbocharger could unlock power outputs beyond 450kW.

Should these reports be on the money, it would see the Celica return to its performance heritage where GT-Four models through three generations blended rally roots, all-wheel drive and turbocharged power.

We don’t know if Toyota intends to introduce more affordable front-wheel drive variants to accompany the rumoured turbo all-wheel drive Celica.

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