Automotive

Toyota goes virtual and actual with new FT-1 sports concepts

Toyota goes virtual and actual with new FT-1 sports concepts
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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Toyota debuted the new FT-1 in Monterey
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Toyota debuted the new FT-1 in Monterey
A huge wing and diffuser dominate the rear of the Vision GT
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A huge wing and diffuser dominate the rear of the Vision GT
The original FT-1 at the 2014 North American International Auto Show
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The original FT-1 at the 2014 North American International Auto Show
The FT-1 Vision GT will be available for download next month
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The FT-1 Vision GT will be available for download next month
A huge wing and diffuser dominate the rear of the Vision GT
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A huge wing and diffuser dominate the rear of the Vision GT
The original FT-1 at the 2014 North American International Auto Show
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The original FT-1 at the 2014 North American International Auto Show
The original FT-1 at the 2014 North American International Auto Show
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The original FT-1 at the 2014 North American International Auto Show
The original FT-1 at the 2014 North American International Auto Show
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The original FT-1 at the 2014 North American International Auto Show
The original FT-1 at the 2014 North American International Auto Show
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The original FT-1 at the 2014 North American International Auto Show
An extreme body kit transforms the FT-1 concept into a virtual race car
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An extreme body kit transforms the FT-1 concept into a virtual race car
Toyota prepared the FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo for the virtual racing world
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Toyota prepared the FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo for the virtual racing world
The sinister face of the FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
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The sinister face of the FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
Toyota unveils the FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
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Toyota unveils the FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
The FT-1 joins Vision GTs from Mercedes, Nissan, Aston Martin and others
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The FT-1 joins Vision GTs from Mercedes, Nissan, Aston Martin and others
Ready for Gran Turismo 6
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Ready for Gran Turismo 6
Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
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Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
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Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
The updated FT-1 concept wears a graphite paint job
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The updated FT-1 concept wears a graphite paint job
Rumors suggest the FT-1 concept might be an early look at a Supra successor
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Rumors suggest the FT-1 concept might be an early look at a Supra successor
Toyota FT-1 concept
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Toyota FT-1 concept
Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
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Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
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Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
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Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
All three FT-1 designs have been made a part of GT6
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All three FT-1 designs have been made a part of GT6
Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
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Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo
Toyota calls the FT-1 the "spiritual pace car for the new direction of Toyota Global Design"
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Toyota calls the FT-1 the "spiritual pace car for the new direction of Toyota Global Design"
The standard FT-1 concept has a large wing of its own
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The standard FT-1 concept has a large wing of its own
The FT-1 has a highly driver-centric interior
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The FT-1 has a highly driver-centric interior
The updated interior has saddle-colored leather
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The updated interior has saddle-colored leather
Toyota reveals the latest FT-1 concept
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Toyota reveals the latest FT-1 concept
Toyota reveals the latest FT-1 concept
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Toyota reveals the latest FT-1 concept
The FT-1 and FT-1 Vision GT were designed by Toyota's Calty Research Center
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The FT-1 and FT-1 Vision GT were designed by Toyota's Calty Research Center
The new FT-1 shares its sculpted intakes and outlets with the original red concept
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The new FT-1 shares its sculpted intakes and outlets with the original red concept
The Toyota FT-1
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The Toyota FT-1
The Toyota FT-1
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The Toyota FT-1
The Toyota FT-1
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The Toyota FT-1
Up close with the Toyota FT-1
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Up close with the Toyota FT-1
Up close with the Toyota FT-1
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Up close with the Toyota FT-1
Up close with the Toyota FT-1
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Up close with the Toyota FT-1
Up close with the Toyota FT-1
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Up close with the Toyota FT-1
Up close with the Toyota FT-1
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Up close with the Toyota FT-1
Up close with the Toyota FT-1
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Up close with the Toyota FT-1
Inside the new FT-1 interior
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Inside the new FT-1 interior
Toyota believes the saddle leather interior provides a premium look and feel
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Toyota believes the saddle leather interior provides a premium look and feel
Calty Design carefully selected leathers and patterning for just the right feel
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Calty Design carefully selected leathers and patterning for just the right feel
The original FT-1 at NAIAS 2014
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The original FT-1 at NAIAS 2014
Inside the original FT-1 concept
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Inside the original FT-1 concept
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
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The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
View gallery - 64 images

Toyota kicked off 2014 by revealing one of the most radical concept sports cars in recent memory: the FT-1. Now, the Japanese automaker has stirred our senses with a second FT-1 featuring an all-new graphite paint job and leather interior. The updated concept car helps Toyota celebrate the introduction of an even more extreme FT-1 that exists in virtual form only: the FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo.

Both the graphite FT-1 concept car and the FT-1 Vision GT will be available next month to race in Gran Turismo 6 on the PS3. The Vision GT is an ultra high performance race car that imagines what the FT-1 could do if it were purposed for all-out track warfare. Like previous Vision Gran Turismo cars from other auto marques, the FT-1 Vision GT also shows how much fun car design can be when restrictions like financial constraints and real-world practicality are completely lifted.

"The design brief for this car was very simple: Take the FT-1 concept car and turn it into the most kick-ass, bad-ass super race car you can imagine," says Kevin Hunter, president of Toyota's Calty Design Research.

An extreme body kit transforms the FT-1 concept into a virtual race car
An extreme body kit transforms the FT-1 concept into a virtual race car

The Calty team didn't have to move heaven and earth to conform to that brief – the FT-1 is already arguably the most bad-ass car design of the year. To turn it into a "super race car," they affixed an extreme aero kit that practically scrapes the track below. The kit includes a front splitter, big, blocky rear diffuser and near take off-ready rear wing. Those parts join the already generous aero package the base FT-1 offers in the form of its many carved out intakes and vents, features that have been broadened on the Vision GT.

Toyota's press materials are devoid of details as to how the Vision GT's virtual powertrain stacks up in comparison to competitors like the 800-hp Aston Martin DP-100 or 503-hp Volkswagen GTI Roadster. We still don't even know what Toyota envisions in the standard FT-1 concept, so gamers will have to feel out its performance for themselves, which is half the fun anyway.

As fun as the Vision Gran Turismos have been to ogle, it has been a bit frustrating to continually see such cool designs that exist only as pixels on a TV screen. Toyota sidesteps this problem by launching the graphite FT-1 concept as the FT-1 Vision GT's debut partner.

The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)
The new FT-1 in Pebble Beach (Photo: Angus MacKenzie/Gizmag)

The new FT-1 may be just a cosmetic makeover, but it gets us excited about the concept car all over again, creating a dilemma as to whether the car looks better in the graphite paint or original molten red. Too close to call for us, but you can compare both in our photo gallery and make up your own mind. The new FT-1 also gets a refaced interior, swapping the original black-red leather scheme for a saddle-colored leather design.

Toyota hasn't satisfied the inquisitive minds wondering if the FT-1 is a preview of the next Supra-level sports car, but it reiterates that the concept is a "spiritual pace car" for the future of its design, linking back to historically important models like the Supra, Celica, MR2 and 2000GT, as well as the current Scion FR-S. We'll have to wait to see if that relationship is one of official successor or not.

Toyota introduced the FT-1 Vision GT and graphite FT-1 at last week's Monterey Car Week festivities. The video below highlights the design process behind the FT-1 Vision GT.

Source: Toyota

Toyota FT-1: “Vision GT” Race Concept for Gran Turismo 6 | Toyota

View gallery - 64 images
3 comments
3 comments
Satweavers
The street version doesn't look like it could make it over a speed bump. Body damage repair from a 10mph fender bender would probably cost more than my Prius.
Wulfher
Another ICE vehicle...yawn
Insightfool
Wulfher- the article says there are no details of the power train so not nessarly ICE. I was thinking it might be clockwork given the big red key in the front bumper.