Subaru has released this teaser image of its "Rear-Wheel Drive Sports Car Technology", currently under joint development with Toyota.
It shows a platform - and shape - very similar to that of Toyota's FT-86 II concept, due to be shown in public for the first time at the Geneva auto show at the beginning of March, albeit with a more rounded front treatment, stronger wheel arches and deeper body sides
And, of course, the ghosted image highlights Subaru's signature flat-four, boxer engine, without a transfer case in this application and driving the rear wheels directly.
Details are scarce, but when the coupé, nicknamed the Toyobaru, reaches production in late 2011, it's expected to be based on a revised Legacy platform with Impreza rear suspension. It'll have a steel chassis with aluminium body panels - which will be identical on both versions - but Subaru-badged derivatives will get unique plastic parts (grille, front and rear bumpers) and special rims.
The Toyota-badged model is expected to have a 149kW, naturally aspirated two-litre engine, while the Subaru will boast a 194kW supercharged mill, each driving the rear wheels through a six-speed manual 'box.
President of Fuji Heavy Industries (Subaru's parent company) Mori Ikuo recently said in an interview testing was almost complete and the design team was doing final chassis tweaks. The joint project, he said, was "very comfortable and fuel-efficient" with a low centre of gravity that would instil driver confidence.
Sounds like fun - but it won't be cheap; when the car is released in the United States late in 2012 as a 2013 model it's expected to retail from $25 000 (R180 000). The South African price - if it ever gets here - is likely to be double that.