BMW-Toyota partnership may yield hybrid Z4, new Supra

The BMW-Toyota sports-car lash-up has been reported on for a couple of years now, but new information from a report in the U.K.'s Autocar sheds more light on the future of the BMW Z4 and what this year's Toyota FT-1 concept will ultimately herald.

Like the current Z4, its predecessor and the Z3 before it, as well as every generation of Supra, the new platform will feature a front-mounted gasoline engine. From there, things look to be diverging wildly as technology marches forward. The resultant sports cars will be all-wheel drive, utilizing a hybrid powertrain.

Both Toyota City and Munich have been playing with the potential of supercapacitors for years and they'll finally be deployed in a production state in the new vehicles. Toyota's monstrous 420-hp Yaris Hybrid R concept utilized the system, pairing a 300-hp gasoline engine with a troika of electric motors.

The new sports cars will follow a similar tack, using a small-displacement BMW engine and BMW-built, Toyota spec'd electric motors. Thankfully, we'll be spared a CVT; an SMG is slated for transmission duty.

BMW's taking the lead on body/chassis development; details are few, but expect a hybrid construction of aluminum, high-strength steel and carbon fiber. Do not expect a badge-engineering job like the Scion/Subaru FR-S/BRZ twins. Though the platform will be shared, each company will adorn the car with its own aesthetic signature.

According to the report, after getting their feet wet with this project, the companies don't view this collaboration as a one-off, suggesting that in the future we'll see more BMW chocolate in our Toyota peanut butter.

By Davey G. Johnson