Toyota FT-86 Sports Car Concept

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• Looks like: A stubby sports car with big-boy aspirations
• Defining characteristics: Low-hung hood
• Ridiculous features: Audio controls embedded in dash fabric
• Chance of being mass-produced: Very likely

What you see here is the marriage of Toyota design and Subaru engine technology. This is the joint Toyota/Subaru compact sports car we’ve heard so much about for the past year. Still in concept form here, the production version might be further along than you think. Toyota hopes this is the dose of fun its car lineup needs, and from the looks of it, it might be.

The poorly named FT-86 — feel free to submit your own name ideas below — is only 163 inches long, nearly a foot shorter than the Scion tC and a few inches longer than a Hyundai Accent. The engine is a Subaru 2.0-liter boxer four-cylinder, which allows for a low placement in the engine bay; that’s why the profile looks a little funky. It’s also rear-wheel drive. This could be one nimble little car that also promises to be lightweight.

The overall design is aggressive, but we wonder what the price will be for such a performance-oriented small car. If it encroaches on the new Genesis coupe’s $20,000-plus price tag, it might be a hard sell for American shoppers. Otherwise, we give a thumbs up to anything that would liven up the Toyota brand. More photos below.