One of the stars of the 2007 North American International (Detroit) Auto Show is undoubtedly the hybrid sports concept from Toyota, the FT-HS. Dramatic styling combined with an eco-friendly hybrid powertrain in the vein of the Prius (only much more powerful) is one vision for the Toyota sports car of the 21st century, a sports car with a conscience.

The 2+2 seat concept looks like a typical front-engine, rear-wheel drive car in the manner of the old Toyota Supra, which was sold in the UK in be-winged, turbocharged form and certainly did the environment no favours. Only for the 21st century there is a 3.5-litre V6 engine up front, combined with a "21st century" sports hybrid system, which in total should deliver around 400bhp. Couple this with the aerodynamic design and use of lightweight materials, and it's no surprise that the projected 0-62mph time of the FT-HS is in the order of just four seconds. And all with the efficiency (when not using all the performance) that we associate with the Toyota Prius.

The Toyota FT-HS concept is a joint project of CALTY (Toyota's North American Research and Design Centre) and Toyota's Advanced Product Strategy Group, both of which are based in California. The design team was tasked to create a mid-price sports car to answer the question "what is a suitable sports car for the 21st century?"

The answer, according to Toyota, is a car which is fun to drive, and while providing excellent performance, also brings eco-friendly benefits such as ultra-low emissions and fuel efficiency.

The design of the FT-HS expresses the core values of a two-pronged Toyota design strategy, called J-Factor and Vibrant Clarity. J-Factor relates to the Japanese-inspired design and cultural sensibilities, where Vibrant Clarity is the design language used to express the J-Factor within Toyota, the combination of perfect balance, freeform geometrics and integrated component architecture, apparently. The result of these three elements is a minimalist style that not only looks lightweight, but actually is lightweight.

Exterior design was led by CALTY designer Alex Shen. The carbon Kevlar roof panel has a distinctive scooped out design to reduce drag, yet also retracts and stows in the rear seat area leaving a two-seat open car. The FT-HS has a triangular profile, and full width aerospace inspired rear lighting. Also present are a speed activated wing for high speed stability and traction, along with a carbon fibre rear diffuser and even carbon fibre wheels.

The interior is the work of CALTY designer William Chergosky. A lean, skeletal look is achieved using hi-tech materials such as carbon fibre and titanium. There is a dedicated driver's cockpit along with a cross-car instrument panel and a delta-wing driver's pod that integrates those functions required only by the driver. A telescoping hubless steering wheel allows the instruments to be moved forward to shorten the driver's focus time between them and the road to further improve safety.

It's only a concept, but the clamour for this to be the basis of a latter-day Supra will surely be deafening.

Trevor Nicosia - 12 Jan 2007