TAS 2019: Toyota 86 MF Ghost – real-world manga car

This is the Toyota 86 MF Ghost Concept, and if you’re a fan of the MF Ghost manga, you can commence drooling. For those that are not in the know, here’s some backstory before we get to the car itself.

MF Ghost is the creation of Shuichi Shigeno, the same person responsible for Initial D series that we all know and love. Shigeno-san’s latest work references Initial D and its characters, but is set in the 2020s, where traditional combustion engine-based cars have been almost completely replaced by electric self-driving cars.

In this time of transition, the mysterious Ryo Takahashi created a racing series known as MFG, which aimed to preserve the use of internal combustion engine cars by way of competitive racing. The series’ participants primarily use foreign makes and models that are either all-wheel drive or are technologically advanced, with only a small number of Japanese cars present.

The main story is focused around Kanata Rivington, a 19-year-old of Japanese and British parentage that graduated from the Royal Donington Park Racing School, who returns to Japan to find his missing father, Ken Katagiri.

In his quest to find his father, Kanata decides to go race in the MFG under his father’s surname. He also uses an “old” Toyota 86 belonging to an acquaintance and quickly rises up the ranks in the series. You’ll have to read the manga for a better insight into the story, which mentions a certain tofu delivery person.

Synopsis aside, the show car you see here is result of the manga’s publisher working together with Toyota to recreate the 86 from the manga. There are a good number of performance-related modifications here too, including an oil cooler and an Ogura N1 clutch, although the engine remains stock.

Most of the work is aimed at improving the car’s handling, so there’s EXM Exmotion Athlete Orange suspension and the rear axle gains a two-way LSD from TRD. A set of 17-inch TWS Motorsport T66-F forged alloy wheels is also present, wrapped with Brigestone Potenza RE-71R tyres.

Behind the front wheels, you’ll find Project Mu four-pot calipers, while they are two-pot units at the rear – slotted rotors are used on all four corners.

Aesthetic enhancements include a red paint finish with plenty of decals and graphics applied to it, with the rather sizeable GT Sard LSR rear spoiler being one of the more prominent additions.

Inside, the driver’s stock seat has been replaced with a Bride Low Max Xero CS racing seat, while a set of Defi ZD gauges help indicate important information such as engine speed, water temperature, oil temperature and others.

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Learn more: 2019 Tokyo Auto Salon