So, a camouflaged Toyota coupe was spotted speeding through Portugal’s Algarve, and it’s got everyone buzzing about a possible Toyota Celica WRC comeback.
This prototype, snapped during test runs before the Rally de Portugal, looks nothing like the Yaris-based car they’re using now – and that’s kinda the whole idea.
Starting in 2027, the World Rally Championship is switching to new rules where teams have to construct cars around a standard safety frame, using more standardized parts for the suspension and engine.
The cool part is that car makers won’t have to base their rally cars on everyday models anymore. Instead, they can wrap the chassis in bodywork that looks like any road car or something totally unique.
Budgets will also be limited to about half of what they are today.
Toyota’s test car is a coupe with wide wheel arches and a low stance, not a hatchback. That seems like a conscious decision.
Toyota keeps suggesting they might bring back the Celica and MR2, and the Supra is getting a bit old. A new, exciting performance car would make perfect sense, especially one with rally history.
The Celica name is a big deal in the WRC. The turbo, four-wheel-drive GT-Four won two manufacturers’ titles in the ’90s and became a favorite among rally fans back in the PlayStation days.
With over 1,000 miles of testing already done, Toyota’s 2027 car seems to be coming along nicely.
The big question for fans isn’t just what cars we’ll see at rally events next season, but if a road-legal GR Celica might appear in 2027.
