Toyota Gazoo Racing has announced that it will offer new 4A-GE engine blocks and heads for the iconic AE86 Corolla through its GR Heritage Parts program. These will be the biggest and most sophisticated parts Toyota has offered to date, joining the wiring harnesses, bearings, and light fixtures already available.
The 4A-GE was one of Toyota’s hottest engines of the 1980s. It powered not only the AE86 Corolla GT-S and its Japanese versions that “Initial D” made famous, but also the FX16 hatchback and the AW11 MR2. It was a 1.6-liter dual overhead cam inline-4 that made anywhere from 112 to 160 horsepower depending on the version. That doesn’t sound like much today, but it was a lot for its time, especially in such small, lightweight cars. It’s also unique in that it was designed for front and rear-wheel drive applications, as well as transverse and longitudinal mounting. That’s what made it so easy to take the 4A-GE from the front of a sporty Corolla and plunk it in the back of an MR2.
Better, stronger, faster
Gazoo Racing isn’t just making reproductions of the old parts, it has applied modern techniques to make them compatible with original parts while being improved in a number of ways. For example:
The cylinder head sub-assembly features combustion chambers with additional machining that lessens the untouched cast surface area, reducing differences among individual engines that arise from slight variances in compression ratios. The intake ports undergo a coating process to reduce pre-polishing surface irregularities. Cam cap knock pins, which were originally only partially used, have been added throughout for improved assembly workability.
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Responding to customer requests received during various events, certain intake and exhaust ports of the cylinder head sub-assembly have been given thicker walls.
Meanwhile, for the engine block:
The cylinder block sub-assembly features cylinder bores that undergo a modern honing process to improve bore machining precision. Durability has been improved through the use of higher-rigidity cast iron and simulation-based modification of the crank-cap structure.
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The cylinder block sub-assembly also now includes bosses and ribs for transverse mounting, enabling its installation not only in the AE86 but also in front-wheel-drive vehicles.
Toyota does not mention the AW11 MR2 anywhere in the press release, though the block improvements for transverse mounting make me wonder if it could be put to use in one.
The sales launch is scheduled for May 2026, but the fine print says “Total orders not reaching a certain volume could result in sales postponement.” As with many special order projects, there seems to be an unspecified minimum number of orders required to make production financially feasible, and it won’t begin until that number is met. Watch the GR Heritage Parts website for updates on availability.
