New Toyota sports car concept at Geneva

Toyota will give the clearest pointer yet to its forthcoming new sports car when it unveils the FT-86 II concept at the Geneva motor show in March.

This new car builds on the original FT-86 concept that was shown at Geneva last year, but were yet to see any more than this teaser photograph.

So far, the company has revealed little about the car, but the concept car is believed to preview a sports car that has been jointly developed by Toyota and Subaru.

Each company will sell their own version of the new rear-wheel-drive coup, but the pair will share many parts. Both models are expected to closely resemble the concept car, and while they wont look exactly the same, the differences are expected to be limited to bespoke front and rear ends.

According to earlier reports, Subaru (which is part-owned by Toyota) will build the car using one of its flat-four 'boxer' engines most likely the fuel-efficient 2.0-litre direct-injection turbo unit.

Toyota is likely to tweak it for better emissions, while Subaru is rumoured to be putting the emphasis on extra power. Toyota is also believed to be considering a petrol-electric hybrid version.

Assuming the new concept is the same size as the FT-86, it will be compact at a little over four metres long. Nevertheless, the production car will have seating for four, and the dashboard is expected to have a futuristic look, with the controls on pods grouped around the steering wheel.

Theres no word yet on when the new car will go on sale, but earlier reports suggested that we should see it in 2012.