We got our first glimpse of the 2017 Toyota 86 at the New York Auto Show today, and we were wrong. When Toyota first released images of the facelifted neo-hachiroku, we implied that the “86” badges, once displayed prominently on the fender inserts, was gone. In fact, there are more than ever.
Toyota definitely wants to remind you that the car is now called the Toyota 86, especially now that the Scion brand — and the FR-S name along with it — is dead. That is, of course, the proper name for the car, barring the miraculous return of the Celica badge.
Now there are 86es in each headlight. Not etched into the projector housing like Nissan’s 4DSC on the Maxima, mind you, but on the lens itself.
There are 86es on the steering wheel horn pad.
There are 86ses on the dashboard.
And yes, there are even 86es on the fender, but in a small new badge affixed to the sheetmetal. Notably, in every instance the boxer piston motif is gone, and the 86 appears alone.
We are happy to report that revisions to the nose and rear look better in person than they did in the initial batch of official photos. The “vents” on either side of the front give off an vaguely Lexus LFA-esque vibe.
The snout is not quite as pronounced as it looked in Toyota’s official photos. The chin, on the other hand, is a lot more prominent. We’re sure Toyota has tested all the approach angles, but it looks like a curb catcher in the making.
The power has been given a bump, too. It’s not the turbocharged version fans were looking for, but it has nevertheless been increased to 205 horsepower and 156 lb-ft of torque.
Toyota says that bringing the 86 over to the Toyota marque will allow for more variants, because it is no longer beholden to Scion’s no-haggle pricing. In the meantime, it guarantees that the chassis will soldier on for another few years at least before a replacement shows up.
I got to agree with you Ben, it looks better than the official photos would lead you to believe.
The hood and fenders are nowhere near as bulgy as the press photos made them look.
Still, the laundry list of stylistic faux pas is only one item shorter than it was.
I think I still prefer the old look more. The simplicity was nicer. But it is good it finally has the right badging.
i’m pleasantly surprised.
I prefer this Toyota version. The 86 never had to be a Scion
I prefer the BRZ STI Performance concept.
I prefer the cleaner front and rear lines design on the 2016; the appeal of th 86 is in its purity & simplicity, and the newly revised 2017 body trim is to my taste a bit too “busy”.