Our friends at Petrolicious have produced a beautiful film about the Yotahachi, Toyota’s first sports car. Weighing in at only 1,280 pounds thanks to prodigious use of aluminum, it needed only a 45hp two-cylinder boxer to make it a barrel of monkeys. Owner Scott Sylvester talks about what it’s like to own one. Watch the video below.
This is very cool. Left hand drive, though? What’s the story on that?
LHD? They drive on the other side of the road in the US. Neko.
Yes! It’s nice to see something on these little Toyotas! Love the video love the car. Watching this video gives me an even greater appreciation for these little machines. I may like these more than S800…maybe. These lines are beautiful and that interior is so cool. We need more recognition on these little Toyotas
I love the Honda S cars too. The Toyota Sports 800 was a unique and clever solution that allowed them to successfully compete in the long Fuji endurance races and GT-1 too. The secret was the selection of their flat twin engine that allowed Mr Hasegawa to create a very slippery body. The use of the Datsun wind tunnel allowed the designers to come up with a body that needed less engine performance than Honda. The 2 other cars he designed were the original Corolla and the first gen Celica!
I have never heard of this car. Beautiful. I love the focus on lightweight it has a specific look (early race car) that is rarely copied. Great wheels, appears to be Magnesium that add to the overall lightweight theme of the car. I wish modern car companies could make something with the same lightweight race car theme today.
I thought the Porsche Speedster that was made a few years ago and did not sell well was a great idea. However, in typical Porsche fashion they charged more to give you less like a bimini top and no arm rest. In forty years it will be highly prized I am sure. Anyhow great car.
Love that style of wheels, have a set of the early 1st gen rx-7 waffle wheels on my fb with craptastic sumitomos keeping it off the ground for now…
I know where one of these is sitting in Iwate-Ken!