It can be a bummer if Toyota did not put its potent three-cylinder engine in additional vehicles aside from the GR Yaris and GR Corolla. It seems as if the third mannequin to get the 1.6-liter turbo may need a Lexus badge. Unveiled as an idea in January on the Tokyo Auto Salon, the LBX Morizo RR has a excessive likelihood of reaching manufacturing.

The small Lexus crossover with the tiny however mighty G16E-GTS is all however confirmed to go on sale in choose markets. Drive journal spoke with Lexus Australia CEO John Pappas who mentioned the LBX Morizo RR is “highly likely” going into manufacturing. However, he did add the potent by-product of the Yaris Cross-based LBX has not obtained the inexperienced gentle simply but.

While the Yaris Cross has spawned a GR Sport by-product, it is all present with none further go. The hotter LBX proven in the beginning of the yr in Japan had the 300-horsepower engine from the GR Corolla, full with the 295 pound-feet of torque discovered within the GR Corolla Morizo Edition. As against the recent hatch we get right here within the United States solely with a six-speed handbook gearbox, the spicy LBX has a newly developed eight-speed, torque converter computerized transmission borrowed from the 2024 GR Yaris.

Australian journal Drive factors out Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda has already been heard saying the LBX Morizo RR will go on sale later in 2024. Fun reality—the corporate’s former President and CEO is understood by his “Morizo” nickname when he is sitting behind the wheel. If authorised, the beefy by-product would have greater than twice the ability of the common LBX, which makes do with 134 hp from its hybrid 1.5-liter engine.

We do not get the LBX in North America the place the UX is the smallest mannequin Lexus sells. However, placing the punchy engine into the crossover may be an indication that Toyota and Lexus are wanting to develop extra enjoyable vehicles. Ideally, a few of them will get a US visa. The new R&D heart in Japan with its interior designed to mimic the Nürburgring pit lane is the place future GR (and Lexus) fashions are being developed. That provides us hope for extra Gazoo Racing-branded vehicles.

The exact same Akio Toyoda hinted on the finish of final yr about reviving the Celica. Earlier in 2023, Toyota President Koji Sato additionally advised he’d prefer to see an eighth-generation mannequin. Meanwhile, the FT-Se idea is a window into the way forward for an MR2-esque electric sports car.