What is Toyota's WRC 2027 prototype really hiding?

For the past few days, the images have been circulating on social media. While the prototype WRC 2027 developed by Toyota A new version of the vehicle, which had already been widely leaked since the beginning of the year, was seen undergoing testing earlier this week, alongside the pre-launch tests. Rally Toyota Gazoo Racing has set up shop in Portugal. The Japanese team initially established itself in Spain before moving to Matosinhos, Portugal, where the sixth round of the 2026 World Rally Championship will take place next week. But this time, a vehicle with a completely different appearance has been spotted, still clad in its camouflage livery, which has also undergone slight modifications. With a more sculpted rear, a more elegant wing, and a slightly more refined front end, what does this new version of the Toyota prototype really conceal?

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A car that has not yet revealed its secrets

The first thing to understand about this situation is that even at Toyota, the only true automaker to have put a prototype on its wheels that meets these future regulations, things are not yet set in stone. The technical specifications for the next regulatory era took a long time to finalize, which led to premature decisions that may no longer be in vogue. The fact that this prototype now has two versions and two different chassis indicates that things are still being tested within the Japanese team and that decisions have not yet been definitively made. While mechanically this prototype is not expected to use anything other than the 3-cylinder engine from the GR Yaris Rally2, the question remains as to what will actually be under the hood at the next Monte Carlo Rally. The videos from this week's tests leave no room for doubt on this point, as it is, for the moment, clearly a 3-cylinder engine.

What bodywork will this WRC 2027 prototype have?

Even more intriguing is the car's bodywork. Because here again, the reason it's not finalized is that the base model for this car, if indeed there is one, simply hasn't been defined yet. And this situation logically leads to the question: if a model from Toyota's commercial catalog serves as the basis for this car, which one is it? Will it even be a Toyota at all? Indeed, it's worth remembering that the Toyota group includes several brands, and ultimately, no one can say for sure whether Toyota still wants to exist as a standalone brand in rallying. A few concrete clues help fuel this debate: at the beginning of the year, the group announced an overhaul of its Motorsport division, specifying that by 2027, the rally arm would be called Gazoo Racing, while the other branch Endurance It will be called, and in fact already bears this name in 2026, Toyota Racing. The disappearance of the Toyota name from rallying raises questions, especially since, in parallel, Lexus, according to the manufacturer, could withdraw from GT3 at the end of 2026 in favor of… Toyota, which is currently developing a new car that meets these regulations, the GR GT3.

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The trend is towards "Tuners".

After all, one only has to look at how things are currently developing regarding the 2027 WRC. To date, three projects exist. There is, of course, the one mentioned here, but also Project Rally One and, now, WRT Rally1 Spain. In both cases, it will be a tubular chassis similar to that of a Rally2, a Rally2 engine, and Rally2 components adorned with bodywork that will certainly not be derived from a production model. This is at least what sources close to the WRT Rally1 Spain project confirmed to AUTOhebdo in the Canary Islands, indicating that the car, whose appearance "should be revealed very soon", will be an original creation from RMC Motorsport, the car's preparer. The FIA, which a few months ago authorized "Tuners," meaning preparers, to build a car, have it homologated and develop it in the WRC from 2027, had prepared the ground for this kind of scenario.

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What about Toyota's real future in the WRC?

What if Toyota were simply preparing to do the same? While test sessions are piling up, no official communication has been released by the Japanese manufacturer regarding its investment in the WRC beyond 2026. Toyota, which is currently investing a huge amount of money in the WRC "as a gamble," has never officially mentioned its commitment to the next regulatory era of the WRC. The possibility of seeing the automotive giant eventually evolve through a "tuner" role in the WRC, a format that may become the standard for the top category, via its Gazoo Racing division, cannot therefore be ruled out at this time, given all these facts. Consequently, if this scenario were to unfold, we can imagine numerous possibilities: a car badged GR, its "new" sports brand, a Lexus-badged car, a Subaru-badged car, who knows, but perhaps not necessarily a Toyota-badged car…