Toyota is dominating the JDM sports car market with its GR86 and Supra models. It plans to take the fight to the Porsche Boxster EV with its own electric sports car, the brand-new Celica, which will be revived around 2026.
CarVibz was among the first publications to report on the Toyota Celica‘s revival. Now, fresh details are emerging out of Japan that show the direction of the 2026 Celica EV. A local magazine called Response-JP has the inside track and believes Toyota is focusing mainly on driver enjoyment, but also range.
Fast EVs are very common. As Doug DeMuro put it, they’ve brought performance to the masses. You can go 0 to 60 in 2.5 seconds in a Tesla or beat virtually every Ferrari you’ve dreamed of in a Hyundai crossover, the Ioniq 5 N. But fun and driver engagement is still missing, which is specifically why Toyota is making another Celica.
Toyota is currently working on a virtual manual transmission on a Lexus UX 300e electric prototype at the Shimoyama test course. Using the software, engineers can replicate the feeling of changing gears using a classic metal shifter, of engaging a clutch and even bouncing off a 7000rpm rev limiter. We hear you can even stall the car, but the settings are all configurable. Of course, you can also turn it off and drive it like a normal gearless EV.
Toyota has already made a preview concept of the Celica called the FT-Se. It looks like a mid-engined sports car, so people think it’s an MR2. However, we know the next-gen MR2 will be a mid-engined coupe that was originally designed like a classic hot hatch (Renault 5, Clio V6). That car will get the GR Yaris 1.6-liter 3-cylinder motor, so it’s not an EV.
Speaking of engines, Response-JP claims the 2026 Celica will only have 250 to 300 horsepower from one motor at the back of the car. That’s surprisingly low, though it might still be enough for 60 mph in 5 seconds. At the moment, there are no true electric sports cars that are relatively affordable. But the MG Cyberstar is coming and Porsche is developing its Boxster/Cayman replacement as an EV with around 400+ hp.
Our source also makes another bold claim: the Celica will have a massive range, 1000 kilometers which is about 620 miles. We personally don’t think the Celica doesn’t need that much range because it’s not gonna be comfortable for long trips. Toyota might really have a battery pack that size ready, but for the Celica, they want the whole pack to be only 10cm or 4 inches tall. That’s what they showed at the recent Tokyo Motor Show.
