Nismo Hunter: Toyota Engineer Wants a Brawnier C-HR

Why should Nissan have all the stealthy sport crossover fun?

That’s the view of Toyota C-HR chief engineer Hiroyuki Koba, who is seeking approval for a hotter version of the upcoming crossover, Autocar reports.

First teased as a Scion concept, the 2017 C-HR bowed earlier this year at the Geneva Motor Show, adopting a new brand name after Toyota took its youth-oriented division behind the barn for a date with death.

European C-HRs get a turbocharged 1.2-liter four-cylinder or a 1.8-liter hybrid setup, but the North American market will likely see a 2.0-liter four. That mill (likely paired with a continuously variable transmission) sounds fine for regular trim levels, but it sure won’t cause palpitations.

Koba doesn’t want the Nissan Juke Nismo to steal the C-HR’s lunch money, so he’s on a mission to take his baby to the gym.

“I am pushing to make such a car,” he told Autocar. “I need to get approval.”

Toyota executives said they learned a lesson about building edgy vehicles from their lengthy Scion venture, so are they biting?

Toyota senior manager Rembert Serrus isn’t ruling it out, telling the publication, “The car lends itself to it.”

“It would be possible, but it depends on how much we have to change,” he added. “A sports version could be a minor change or it could be a new project. A sports version would make a lot of sense.”

The automaker is readying a racing version of the C-HR, powered by a 178-horsepower 1.5-liter turbo four, and that engine could be tapped for a performance model.

Still, the engine would be 10 horses shy of the base Juke Nismo, and wouldn’t generate a bead of sweat on the 215-horsepower Juke Nismo RS. For this reason, Koba wants a version of the C-HR that’s hotter than the racing model.

If Toyota’s Nimso fighter gets the green light, it won’t be in time to join the vanilla C-HR when it goes on sale later this year.

[Image: Toyota Motor Corporation]