The Greatest Toyotas Never Built

The world’s number one automaker has created some amazing concept cars over the years. From 233 mph racing cars in street kit, to a Nascar-powered Cruiser with 725 hp, to a futuristic car with a body made of display screens, and linked to your smartphone, you can display your favorite videos to, well, anyone who wants to watch.

Most of these cars will never make it to a production line. Instead, they were created to show off new and future technology, new design languages and styles, and test customer feedback.

The concept vehicles in this list have not made the cut. But they probably should. Especially the GR Super Sport, and the Bruiser. And… well, all of them really.

Toyota has literally created hundreds of cool and amazing concept cars. In this list we focus on some of the company’s greatest ones, and vehicles we believe will definitely have customers lining up for a piece of the action.

10

Toyota FT-Me

Year: 2025

The FT-Me is a compact, all-electric city runabout with two seats. Measuring just 8.2 feet, one of the MT-Me’s party tricks is its maneuverability in town, and it literally only takes up half a parking spot. But even more cool is the fact that the EV can be driven solely by hand commands on its steering wheel. This also means that wheelchair users can drive the MT-Me without any aftermarket modifications.

Made predominantly from recycled materials, Toyota says the FT-Me’s efficient EV drivetrain consumes three times less energy than a typical high-capacity battery electric car. It also has leading-edge solar panel roof technology that can charge the main battery, adding up to 19 miles of range.

Will this FT-Me make it to the production line? Probably not. But it certainly looks like a great mobility option for the future.

9

Toyota Aygo Crazy

Year: 2008

Ah, the utterly efficient, reliable and economical front-wheel-drive Toyota Aygo hatch. A solid option as a city runabout. So when Toyota decided to create an Aygo that is, well, more special, they really went all in, and created the Crazy. Notably, this Aygo is based on a chopped Toyota MR2 chassis, with a mid-mounted 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine. So in the Crazy, the engine now lives behind the front seats, driving the rear wheels. For good measure, Toyota added a turbocharger, which hikes the power up to 200 hp.

The Crazy does not have any nanny driving aids, and it is aimed at maximum driving pleasure, the suspension straight from a Toyota MR2 Roadster. The bespoke bodywork is topped off with a carbon fiber rear wing, taken directly off a Champ Car racing car. The Aygo Crazy weighs just 2,300 lbs. It can reach a top speed of nearly 130 mph. Yep, Toyota really should have made it.

8

Toyota iReal

Year: 2007

Want to feel the wind rustling your hair while you smell the roses and hear all the noises on the way to work? Then Toyota’s iReal may be just the set of wheels for you. According to Toyota, the open front end allows people using iReal vehicles to interact as people, and not a stranger cocooned in a closed car cabin.

In low-speed ‘walking mode’, the three-wheeled electric chair adjusts by automatically retracting the wheels and shortening the wheelbase, bringing your seated posture in line with the pedestrians’ eyesight. You can even drive into a shop and ‘walk’ with other patrons.

In ‘Cruising mode’, with the wheelbase at its longest and most stable setting, the iReal can reach 20 mph. Another cool feature is an LCD screen on the back of the iReal. This screen can communicate with pedestrians and even other iReals. Yep, for real.

In 2007, Toyota was adamant that the iReal would go on sale by 2010. It never did.

7

Toyota Tacoma X-Runner

Year: 2023

In 2023, Toyota showed its Tacoma X-Runner at the SEMA Show. The concept harks back to the days when powerful 2WD sports trucks were all the craze, featuring lowered suspensions, fancy body parts, a tuned engine and a fair turn of speed.

Besides the visual upgrades and lower suspension (a custom Tundra air suspension setup and Bilstein dampers), the i-Force 3.4-liter twin-turbocharged V6 engine is modified and delivers 421 hp. It has a Tundra solid rear axle and an electronic locking differential that optimally splits the torque to the rear wheels. A custom exhaust, providing suitable sound effects, exits just below the rocker panel.

The truck’s overall track width was increased by around three inches, and the cool bodykit is topped off with Tacoma XB LED projector headlights and a functional hood scoop. Should Toyota build this one? Heck yes!

6

Toyota Compact Cruiser EV

Year: 2021

The Compact Cruiser EV concept is Toyota’s take on a compact EV off-roader… and it ticks a lot of cool boxes. In 2022, it won the prestigious international Car Design Award for concept cars, a competition run by Auto&Design magazine for more than three decades.

Created by Toyota’s creative team based in Nice, the Compact Cruiser is the design team’s interpretation of the next level of EV, where customers want more than just an efficient, electrically-driven vehicle… they also want a vehicle that speaks to their lifestyle.

Enter the Compact Cruiser, which supposedly has some real off-roading credentials. An EV model, and some internal combustion versions, will really set the cat among the pigeons in the cool-little-4WD class, currently the domain of the Suzuki Jimny.

5

Toyota Kikai

Year: 2015

The Toyota Kikai is the Meyers Manx dune buggy your better half has always dreamed about. Instead of being based on an ancient VW Beetle chassis like the Manx, the Kikai is based on modern underpinnings, and even has a closed cabin. According to Toyota, the Kikai puts vehicle parts that are normally hidden under the skin on display for all to see. As one wants.

It has a central driver’s seat which gives the driver, according to Toyota, ‘a more instinctive sensory connection’ with the vehicle. It is powered by a hybrid drivetrain and a 1.5-liter engine, seemingly straight out of the Prius. Most conveniently, the front suspension upper control arms are visible through small windows by the driver’s feet, offering a unique and mesmerizing view of tire and suspension movement.

Like the Prius, the Kikai can run solely in electric mode for a limited time. Pity this one didn’t make it. Was really looking forward to that front suspension action.

4

Toyota i-Tril

Year: 2017

In 2017, Toyota revealed the i-Tril, a fun-to-drive electric car aimed at a very specific demographic group… single females aged between 30 and 50 years, with two children (but not three), with a vibrant lifestyle. Oh, and she lives in a small to medium-sized town.

The i-Tril weighs just 1,300 lb, and is powered by an electric motor driving the rear wheels, and can reach about 125 miles between charges. The narrow and tall i-Tril uses Active Lean Technology, and has a hinge between the rear axle and the cabin, which allows the body to lean going around corners, which the two (but not three) kids will surely cherish.

In a terrible blow to women’s liberation, the i-Tril never made it to production.

3

Toyota Fun-Vii

Year: 2011

The Fun-Vii is Toyota’s 2011 vision of future transportation, where augmented reality plays an integral role. It has the ability to alter the content displayed on the exterior and the interior, the body essentially consisting of one large screen. All you need is to download the Fun-Vii app on your smartphone, hook it up to the car, and then you can display any imagery or video of your liking on the car, and inside the vehicle.

With all the connectivity, the Fun-Vii can be linked to other vehicles, share information, pictures and so on. The car’s navigation system has a ‘concierge’ function, which provides guidance via a vocal interface while you watch your favorite video inside the cabin. No details were made available about the drivetrain. Maybe not surprisingly, the Fun-Vii never made it to production. But it is super cool.

2

Toyota FJ45 Bruiser

Year: 2023

Is this the ultimate Land Cruiser? It’s the FJ45 Bruiser, and it was specially created for the 2023 SEMA show. The project started as a mission to create an unstoppable FJ, but things soon turned a corner… when Toyota Racing Development delivered a modified version of Toyota’s Nascar V8 Cup Car engine, delivering 725 hp.

After that, there was no holding back. It has a MagnaFlow exhaust, a three-speed automatic racing gearbox, high-end Currie solid differentials, and a specialized Advanced Adapter Atlas transfer case. This allows the Cruiser to crawl at crawling speeds, and also reach up to 165 mph. A unique party trick is a tank-like track that lives in the place of the center skid plate, for those really, really tough obstacles. A full trailing arm suspension with Fox shocks and Eibach springs, and 42-inch BF Goodrich Krawler tires ensure bucket loads of 4WD grip.

Can Toyota just make this one already?

1

Toyota GR Super Sport

Year: 2018

Toyota’s TS050 Hybrid, competing in the World Endurance Championship (WEC), dominated the competition on the racetrack. In 2018, at the peak of the TS050’s success, Toyota Gazoo Racing created the Super Sport concept… essentially a spectacular road-going version of the TS050.

The Super Sport is powered by the same hybrid drivetrain used in the TS050. The 2.4-liter twin-turbocharged V6 engine and Toyota Hybrid System Racing (THS-R) powertrain deliver a spicy 985 hp.

Let’s hold thumbs that Toyota still have plans to produce a Super Sport hyper car of sorts in the future.

Sources: Toyota, Toyota Gazoo Racing