Although many hoped otherwise, 2020 remains an odd year – and even completely different when it comes to classic automotive shows. Adaptation is key to survival, so even though physical presence is currently out of the question in many venues, our digital life has become the new way of moving forward. And Toyota is happily joining the roster for the newly minted – and totally virtual – SEMA360 event.
The Japanese automaker has prepared four vehicles for the unusual way of celebrating the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show, revealing a trio of high-performance Supra coupes along with an overlanding project based on the top-selling Tacoma.
By the way, this is just the first wave of SEMA-related debuts from Toyota, as the models revealed in connection with the SEMA360 (November 2nd to 6th) will be followed by even more prototypes – again ready to take on everything, both on and off the tarmac. If you’re just as curious as we are, check out the couple of teaser videos embedded below, one for the upcoming GR Supra Sport and the other for a TRD Sport of some kind.
Back to the four vehicles on virtual display for Toyota’s own “SEMA360 Showcase,” we need to start with the wild “4WD Toyota Owner Magazine Overland-Ready Tacoma.” As hinted by the name itself, this build was created with help from the 4WD Toyota Owner Magazine editors starting from a Tacoma TRD Off-Road pickup.
The outdoor adventurer comes packing a Magnuson Superchargers Roots-type blower and all the kit one would ever need when ready to carry bikes, kayaks, and the gear needed for camping or hiking. Equally wild, although from a different perspective, the Ornamental Conifer GR Supra is the project that stemmed from a collaboration with British artist Nicolai Sclater, the art director of Los Angeles-based Race Service.
He used a 2021 GR Supra 3.0 Premium in Turbulence Gray as a “canvas,” meticulously hand-painting with enamel paint and brushes every single expression and graphic, a tribute both to the glorious past of the model as well as to the “lost art of sign painting.”
Meanwhile, the final two Supras on display are a little more prosaic – the GReddy Performance Formula D GR Supra along with the Papadakis Racing Rockstar Energy Drink GR Supra have just one thing in mind. It’s all about racing, of course, and more specifically about the 2020 Formula Drift Pro championship.
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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