Toyota’s new FT-86 rear-drive coupe looks set to get a name change before it goes on sale in early 2012.

In the US it’ll be sold under Toyota’s Scion sub-brand so there’s no single global identity, leaving the door open for the Celica name to make a reappearance in European and Japanese markets. A Toyota insider says 86 is likely to be retained in its name somewhere, however, as the car has been conceived as a tribute to Toyota’s classic AE86 Corolla.

The rear-drive coupe is a joint project between Toyota and Subaru, and it’ll use a version of the latter firm’s flat-four ‘boxer’ engine in a bid to keep weight as low as possible. Toyota also hoped this layout would allow it to retain the FT-86’s super-low nose, but the design team is said to have been struggling to get the early styling to pass pedestrian impact regulations.

The final production version of the FT-86 is expected to make its public debut at the Tokyo motor show at the end of this year. UK sales will start in the first half of 2012.
Meanwhile, the pictures of a heavily winged variant of the FT-86 testing at the Nurburgring are not a more extreme version. Instead, Toyota is expected to offer some aerodynamic modifications, including the wing, as options.

Subaru will display the production version of the long-awaited sporty car it is co-developing with Toyota at the Tokyo Motor Show in December.

The rear-wheel-drive car, which has a Subaru-designed drivetrain and Toyota-styled body, goes on sale next year. Toyota will sell its version as a Scion in the United States.

Subaru expects a longer-than-average life cycle for the car and is looking at variant packages, including a possible STI version, to keep the offering fresh, says Toshio Masuda, a Subaru senior general manager of product planning.

Subaru's STI tuner package typically offers turbocharging, lower profile tires, more powerful brakes and sport-tuned suspension. But going turbo is doubtful: Subaru officials say the vehicle's original concept calls for keeping the engine naturally aspirated.

The car will be built on a new line at Subaru's plant in Gumma, Japan. Styling will draw from Toyota FT-86 concepts that have made the auto show rounds since 2009.

Power is expected to come from a new generation 2.0-liter, four-cylinder boxer engine that will be used in the redesigned Subaru Impreza arriving this fall. But the engine will be positioned nearly 5 inches lower than in the Impreza to bring down the car's center of gravity and improve handling.

The car also will have Toyota's D-4S fuel injection system. And unlike the new Impreza, which gets an option for a continuously variable transmission, the sporty car will get a manual or automatic.

Subaru hasn't officially commented on the price. But Japan's Nikkan Kogyo business daily said the company plans to price the car in the $20,000 range.