The Toyota 86 is one of the most hyped up car for 2012, and it sure did not disappoint the auto community. Hailed as the spiritual successor of the classic AE86, the new 86 successfully recaptures the fun and nimbleness of the 80’s drifting icon, partly due to the low mounted Boxer engine. But ironically, the engine is also the source of frustration for some as the 2.0-liter power plant is not able to pack up the punch needed to really keep the 86 going. While strapping it up with a turbocharger or a supercharger might be the most possible solution for this issue, word is coming out from Toyota that there is also a possibility for this new sports coupe to be fitted with the KERS regenerative braking hybrid system.
The KERS, or Kinetic Energy Reserve System for the time being is seen mostly on race cars like in F1 and Le Mans, gathering kinetic energy generated from braking and stores it as a boost reserve for the driver to utilize. And with such potential, chief engineer Tetsuya Tada explained that this hybrid braking system might be a brilliant solution in giving the 86 an extra grunt for it to gallop with.
“I think 300-horsepower with a turbo and 200g/km of CO2 would be tasteless in this day and age. And a turbo would mean the loss of the 86’s uniqueness. We are looking at a next-generation hybrid, more like the TS030 Le Mans Prototype. We are looking into that possibility,” said Tada during a recent interview with Top Gear.
“Toyota wants to make things accessible. The capacitor is an appropriate technology, but it is not as lightweight as you might think, and it is expensive”. Even with the doubt shown by Tada himself in seeing the technology being implemented into cars like the 86, he was pretty sure that the KERS will soon catch up and sort itself into the affordable level as “the rate of improvement in the electronics industry is very fast compared with the car industry”.
He also admitted that Toyota already has a KERS-fitted 86 prototype running; but like he explained earlier, the current technology still limits the KERS from being in the current marketplace as it is deemed heavy and expensive.
