Latest news with #Mk5
Motor 1
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Motor 1
The Toyota Supra Won't Stay Dead For Long
The current Toyota Supra is already on the way out with the Final Edition marking the end of the Mk5's six-year production run in the US. It was fun while it lasted. But don't expect the Supra name to be out of the Toyota lineup for long. In a recent interview with MotorTrend , Toyota has suggested that a new Supra will indeed happen. Better yet, this new one shouldn't take as long to hit the market as the Mk5 did. Hopefully . Photo by: Toyota "It would be logical that we would have a next-gen Supra. But when and how is still TBD," said senior vice president of Product Planning and Strategy for Toyota Motor North America, Cooper Ericksen. "Definitely there will be a gap. The question is how big will that gap be… It is our goal to have a gap that is significantly less [than the last one]." Lest you forget, the Mk4 Supra ended production in the US in 1998, which means it took 21 years for Toyota to revive the Supra name in the US. Thankfully, Toyota promises that we won't have to wait another two decades for the next one. Unfortunately, that doesn't necessarily mean we'll see a new Supra next year—or even the year after. Ericksen noted that Toyota still has its 'hands full' producing core products like the latest RAV4 and the ever-popular Camry, among others. It's also unclear if the next Supra will be a jointly developed project like the current one, which Toyota produced alongside BMW's Z4. "A product like Supra, it's made it to a point where now we have a Final Edition, and the reason is it's just not cost-effective with all the new regulations and investment we have to make," Erickson noted. "It needs to be a new house. When we can get the new house built is the question." We'll just have to wait and see. RIP To The Supra Somebody Paid Way Too Much For This Final Edition Supra America's Last Toyota Supra Doesn't Get More Power Source: MotorTrend Share this Story Facebook X LinkedIn Flipboard Reddit WhatsApp E-Mail Got a tip for us? Email: tips@ Join the conversation ( )
Yahoo
26-01-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Factory Five Begins Production of the Mk5
Factory Five Racing is rolling out a new version of its Cobra replica called the Mk5 Roadster. The Mk5 has room for larger drivers and an optional removable hardtop that includes the windshield. Prices start at $24,990 and the car is in production now—assembly not included. In an alternate reality, the original Shelby Cobra never died. It stayed in production and, over the decades, was refined and perfected while retaining its essential animalistic character. While we'd argue that Massachusetts doesn't exist in a parallel universe—not entirely—that timeline with more and better Cobras did take shape there, at Factory Five Racing in Wareham. Factory Five got started building Cobra replica kits in 1995, and now 30 years later they're rolling out the fifth generation of their kit, dubbed the Mk5 Roadster. It's still got two seats, a V-8 and DIY instructions, but the Mk5 is a long way from both the car that inspired it and its own immediate predecessor, the Mk4. In its biggest departure from tradition, the Mk5 uses a rectangular spaceframe instead of a round tube frame. The new frame weighs 55 pounds more than the Mk4 frame, but Factory Five says it delivers a 400 percent increase in rigidity. It's also designed with a more capacious cockpit, accommodating a driver who is 6'5", 330 pounds, and wears size 14 shoes. NFL offensive tackles who are handy with a wrench, step right up. The roll bar is two inches shorter than before and canted three degrees rearward, but because the floor is 2.5 inches lower, there's actually a half-inch more coverage relative to the driver. (A passenger's-side roll bar is optional.) The shorter roll bar enables the Mk5's most striking visual change: a one-piece removable carbon fiber hard top. Unlike hard tops that are designed to fit over a tall roll bar, this one doesn't have the profile of a freshly bought trucker cap. In fact, it doesn't even look like a convertible top, since it includes its own windshield. Yes, you'll need to remove the standard windshield to fit the hardtop, but that kind of project probably won't daunt a customer who built the whole car. The Mk5's composite body is delivered with a blue gel coat that doesn't look half bad on its own, with the goal of lowering prices for subsequent paint and bodywork. Factory Five says that one reason the Mk5 costs more than the Mk4 is that its body molds will be discarded more than twice as frequently, to keep panel gaps tight and minimize paint prep time. On the handling front, the lower front control arms are now forged aluminum, and at the rear both upper and lower control arms are forged aluminum. The frame has two sets of mounting holes, to adjust ride height between street and track setups. Between those front control arms, you can fit the usual assortment of Ford V-8s (or, heresy, a GM LS engine) along with a new option: Ford's 7.3-liter Godzilla crate engine. Derived from the heavy-duty truck powerplants, that monster has an iron block and will doubtlessly impact the car's 2250-pound baseline weight, but it'll fit for those looking for the 427 Cobra brand of overkill. Factory Five president Dave Smith acknowledges that it doesn't really make sense to develop an all-new car, but he wanted to keep the company's signature product moving forward, so that's what happened. Factory Five will keep building the less expensive Mk4 ($20,990) for traditionalists and more budget-conscious thrill seekers, but the Mk5 is the new flagship in a class of one. You Might Also Like Car and Driver's 10 Best Cars through the Decades How to Buy or Lease a New Car Lightning Lap Legends: Chevrolet Camaro vs. Ford Mustang!
