Gazoo Racing and Toyota Create Funky, MR2-Based Sports Hybrid Concept II, Debut it at the ‘Ring

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Toyota and its motorsports partner Gazoo Racing have announced that they will debut the GRMN Sports Hybrid Concept II at this year's 24-hour endurance race at the Nürburgring in Germany. "GRMN" is an acronym for “Gazoo Racing tuned by the Meister of the Nürburgring,” the latter a nickname for Toyota's late chief test driver, Hiromu Naruse, who died last June in an accident while testing the Lexus LFA. The "II" in the car's title denotes that this is the second iteration of a sports hybrid concept the partners showed off at the 2010 Tokyo auto show. That original car was a crudely rebodied Toyota MR2 Spyder (which bowed out of the U.S. market in 2005) that had been retrofitted with a 3.3-liter V-6 and electric motors added to the front and rear axles for hybridized all-wheel drive. The new Sports Hybrid Concept II is, well, still what appears to be an old MR2, as evidenced by the carry-over interior bits and exterior dimensions identical to those of the first concept. However, Gazoo completely re-skinned the car so that the MR2 roots are more difficult to discern, and updated the car’s hybrid components.

The re-skinned mid-engine Concept II looks like the result of a one-night stand between a Lotus Evora and a TVR, with funky air scoops and aggressive-looking, blacked-out lighting clusters punctuating smooth expanses of sheetmetal. The 19-inch wheels indeed look pulled straight off of an Evora, while the headlights almost look like a Tesla roadster's taillight units. The Concept II improves upon the Concept I in the powertrain department, boasting a 245-hp, 3.5-liter V-6 engine that powers the rear wheels paired with a single electric motor that powers the front. Gazoo Racing claims that the total system output is 295 hp, and its weight for the Hybrid Concept II—despite its rather small footprint and featherweight MR2 underpinnings—is "less than 3300 pounds." The GRMN Sports Hybrid Concept  II will be on display at the Nürburgring this weekend during the 24-hour race.

Alexander Stoklosa 24 Jun, 2011

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Source: http://blog.caranddriver.com/gazoo-racing-and-toyota-create-funky-mr2-based-sports-hybrid-concept-ii-debut-it-at-the-ring/
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