Hybrid Toyota sports car is a long way from dealerships but has already thrilled local designers.

Jan. 20, Daily Pilot (Newport Beach, Costa Mesa from LA Times)
(note: Our speaker at the OC Prius meeting yesterday- Tomio Yamazaki, Catly Designs, showed us this FT-HS concept car)

Innovation is key concept for Newport design firm
Hybrid Toyota sports car is a long way from dealerships but has already thrilled local designers.
By Amanda Pennington

Many people dream of the day they can zip along the road in a brand new sports car. But designers at Calty Design Research firm in Newport Beach dream of creating that sports car.

The dream was realized in December when Calty's designers announced Toyota's first hybrid sports car concept, the FT-HS.

"We started looking at our hybrid technology — Toyota being a leader in that area — and how we could optimize that. We also wanted what we would call an improved sports car driving experience that's not only eco-friendly but has enhanced performance as well," said Kevin Hunter, Calty vice president of design and studio operations. "We were trying to determine what a suitable sports car would be for the 21st century, and we really think that a hybrid is linked to that equation."

Calty Design Research was started in 1973 as a design studio for the Japanese carmaker — one of the first Southern California car design studios. Since then, the firm has contributed designs to almost 20 concept and production cars.

But the Newport Beach studio — Calty also has a studio in Ann Arbor, Mich. — mainly works on concept cars.

"We work for a company that really craves innovation, and I think this is again the reason that a lot of designers enter this field," Hunter said. "They have a passion for creativity and generating something new that hasn't been seen before. This is a great place to work in that respect."

The Toyota brand hasn't released a new sports car in almost 10 years, and with the success of its hybrid cars, making a sports car that appeals to young and old using the green technology is something they predict will be popular among car buyers.

"I think anything that's hybrid will sell well," said Mike Moran, Costa Mesa's South Coast Toyota sales manager, who has only briefly seen a drawing of the new concept car. "My experience is that people are totally frustrated with gas prices. I have people coming in with Suburbans trying to buy a Prius. People are just burned out with gas prices, and if Toyota had something that was as beneficial as far as fuel economy … anything would sell."

About 25 designers work at Calty and work closely with Toyota's Torrance-based advanced product strategy and product planning department.

The hybrid concept was a way to "elevate our brand," said Christopher Hostetter, president of strategy and planning. "This has really been a brand-building exercise."

Collaborating with engineers, planners and designers, as well as the parent company in Japan, Calty designers start by sketching and developing ideas using computer programs.

The process can take about five to seven months of designing and another five months to build the car, but it is worth the wait once designers see their creation either in a scale or full-size clay model.

But this project was especially fun for the firm, which called on just about every designer to pitch ideas for the FT-HS.

"I think it's one of the reasons a lot of car designers even got into the design business — because we love cars and a sports car really is the quintessential automobile for car lovers," Hunter said. "It's a very selfish product. It can travel at high speeds. It handles well, and because of the proportions, we can develop dramatic and exciting designs."

But not all the concept cars the design firm creates are as futuristic as the FT-HS. Recently Toyota launched its new Tundra, which came from Calty's FTX concept truck.

"When you think you created something from nothing and you work for this company that has these incredible resources to execute and follow through and see this creation sitting in an auto show it's really quite a rush," Hunter said. "You never get tired of seeing that."

At this point, Hunter does not know if the FT-HS will ever hit a showroom like South Coast Toyota on Harbor Boulevard just as it was designed, but he's confident that using the hybrid technology will continue to be the future of the company.