Subaru Kicks Off Series Production of BRZ and Toyota 86 in Japan

Subaru held a special ceremony today at its Gunma factory in Ota-city, Japan, to mark the series production start of the Subaru BRZ and Toyota 86 (named GT 86 in Europe) rear-wheel drive coupes. The presidents of both companies attended the event.

The factory, which will produce both models as well as the Impreza by March 2013, underwent several changes to cope with the extra capacity.

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Toyota 86's Chief Engineer Says Roadster Version is in the Works

Even though convertibles hold a much smaller slice of the sports car market than coupes, Toyota doesn't seem willing to leave Mazda and its MX-5 roadster to dominate the entire segment.

And why should it after the presentation of its (GT) 86 and Scion FR-S rear-wheel drive coupes, both which are sister models to the Subaru BRZ.

Speaking with German car magazine Autobild, the 86's chief engineer, Tetsuya Tada said that the company is working on the development of an open top model. "The GT 86 was designed from the outset to be built as a convertible," Tada told the publication.

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