Filed under: Aftermarket, Concept Cars, SEMA, Tuners, Toyota
SEMA 2007: Five Axis Yaris Club
click above image to view more high-res pics of the Yaris Club
Is it possible to get excited about a Yaris? In short, no. But throw Five Axis into the game – one of the country's premier customizers – and you'll come away with a new found respect for the pensioner's penalty box. The crew at Five Axis decided to take Toyota's staid means of moribund transport and convert it into a track day tramp, which Toyota claims plays homage to its participation in the Group 7 Can-Am series of the '60s.
The Yaris Club loses its roof and any other means of civilian transport, only making due with a stripped out interior, a racing bucket, a few gauges and chopped windshield. Five Axis fabbed up the hard top tonneau conversion, added JDM front and rear Vitz bumpers, taillights, foglamps and then finished it all in Ivory White Paint.
Under the hood – where it counts – the stock 1.5-liter inline four takes deep breaths through a TRD/TTE Supercharger and cold air intake, bringing output up from 106 hp to 166 HP. A DC sports header takes care of spent exhaust gases and a Greddy TIC exhaust expels it out the back. 17-inch wheels are fitted fore and aft, wrapped in custom Five Axis Yokoyamas sized 255/45R17. The suspension has been retrofitted with Tein Super Street Dampers and a TRD strut brace, while slowing the flyweight are Greddy six-piston brakes sized 282mm all around.
You can glean all the deets after the jump and check out our gallery of images below.
Gallery: Toyota Yaris Club
click to enlarge
PRESS RELEASE
Five Axis Design Yaris Club
10/30/2007
The Yaris Club project pays tribute to Toyota's racing heritage harkening back to the late '60s when Toyota challenged for the Group 7 category of Can-Am racing with the Toyota 7.
The Yaris Club is a stripped-down, no-nonsense car with no extras – only what is needed to perform. The roof has been removed and the windshield lowered. With the interior removed, a tonneau was fabricated, turning the Yaris into a single seater with a fairing that doubles as a driver headrest.
A supercharger, exhaust headers and a free-flowing exhaust were added for performance to back up the good looks. The suspension was lowered by two inches with front and rear coil-over shocks and larger brakes added.
The Yaris Club was developed by Five Axis in Huntington Beach, Calif.
FIVE AXIS DESIGN YARIS CLUB SPECIFICATIONS
01 EXTERIOR
• Five Axis Design Hard Top Tonneau Conversion
• Toyota JDM Front and Rear Vitz RS Bumpers
• Toyota JDM Vitz Rear taillight and Fog Light
• TRD JDM Vitz RS Front Bumper Cover
• Vintage Ivory White Paint with Asymmetrical Graphic Racing Stripe
• Graphic Outputs by Sticky Fingers Design
02 ENGINE
• TRD/TTE Supercharger with Cold Air Intake
Estimated (+60hp) 166hp Total
• DC Sports Tuned Header
• TRD Radiator and Oil Cap
• Hose Techniques Silicon Hoses and Clamps
03 EXHAUST
• GReddy TIC Exhaust
04 WHEELS
• FIVE:AD S6:F Wheels
F: 17x7.5, +45
R: 17x7.5, +45
Satin Gunmetal Finish
05 TIRES
• Yokohama / Five Axis Design Custom Tread
F: 225/45R17
R: 225/45R17
06 SUSPENSION
• Tein Super Street Damper
• TRD Strut Brace
07 BRAKES
• GReddy Mini 6 Piston Brakes
F: 282mm x 22mm
R: 282mm x 22mm
08 INTERIOR
• Five Axis Design Custom Roll Cage
• Custom TRD JDM Gauge Pod
• TRD JDM Engine Starts Button
• Sparco 345 Steering Wheel
• Sparco Race Red Shift Knob
• Sparco Reflex Racing Pedals
• Upholstery by Salt Turin Upholstery
09 SEATS
• Sparco Sprint 5 Racing Seat
• Sparco 6PT Racing Harness
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Shipey 2:03PM (10/30/2007)
Hmmm... I'm gonna have to side with the Solstice in the SEMA monoposto category.
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Vivek 2:08PM (10/30/2007)
Would that even be a contest? The Solistice in a landslide.
Shipey 2:27PM (10/30/2007)
No, not really. This thing looks like a bathtub with a racing stripe. Just imagine it with claw feet!
psarhjinian 2:56PM (10/30/2007)
To be fair, the Yaris is very lightweight--possibly the lightest production car you can buy, outside of track specials like the Elise and Atom.
Stripping out the passenger accouterments and increasing power by ~60% on a car that weighs less than 2500lbs to start is a good thing. Toyota might do well to release a stripper Yaris--perhaps as a Scion--to fill the Honda CRX void before Honda does so.
naggs 4:12PM (10/30/2007)
lol, bathtub with a racing stripe
SAAj 2:46PM (10/30/2007)
Well...it's not the mid-engined RWD Yaris XX I had in mind...but 166 hp out of a 1.5L doesn't sound half bad.
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Richard Warren 2:49PM (10/30/2007)
I can't stop laughing!
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John Metcalf 2:50PM (10/30/2007)
While I agree that the Solstice is much better looking, this has it's charm as a low hp go-cart. Would love to get this out on a track. Probably loads of fun.
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john riley 3:10PM (10/30/2007)
The proportions on this are wrong. This thing needs to be sectioned.
I thought the new Matrix was going to be at SEMA. Where is that?
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Andrew 4:03PM (10/30/2007)
The teaser image said Halloween so probably tomorrow.
Luis 4:16PM (10/30/2007)
I completely agree with John. This car does need to be sectioned; into little pieces that would fit in an industrial shredder!
ScionSouth 3:39PM (10/30/2007)
I sell Toyotas and Scions. I am a fan of Toyotas and Scions. I am a fan of Five Axis.
This makes me very sad.
Toyota has no soul when it comes to sporty, race inspired vehicles. Is this it?
Do we have quick Cars and Trucks?
Yes.
Are they fun to drive?
No.
This makes me very sad.
Wake up Toyota/Oldsmobile. Please before it's to late.
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Allen 3:48PM (10/30/2007)
This maybe the ugliest thing I've ever seen.
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Mike 5:57PM (10/30/2007)
Looks like that Yaris tried to drive under a bridge that was too low...
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Rick 6:45PM (10/30/2007)
Ah....
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goat 10:17PM (10/30/2007)
And now finally we have a car that looks like a hamster.
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LX builder 12:11AM (10/31/2007)
Wow!... but not in a good way.
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Waltzon 1:17AM (10/31/2007)
Umm... I've never heard of Five Axis before, and frankly this is not a good first impression. It's not that this looks like shoddy work, but my big question is _why_?
When I was about 17 my dad got all offended when he offered to arrange for the donation of a project car and I didn't want it. He didn't seem to understand that, with the car he had in mind, that after hours and hours of requisite work and the required money, when I was done I would still have an '83 diesel Rabbit. I was unwilling to put the time and effort into a car that I deemed to be unworthy.
Good work guys-- well done, but you still have an '83 diesel Rabbit.
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calebe 8:08AM (10/31/2007)
Thats Sweet!
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EMC 9:57PM (10/31/2007)
Let me see now...
Reduce chassis structural stiffness by a large amount of an entry-model car designed to be as cheap as possible to begin with...
Then add 60% to its engine output...
[sarcasm]
Yeaaahhh.... great idea!
Sounds like *exactly* the best way to make a "Club Racer"
[/sarcasm]
Not to mention... Looking at the parts list... what did "Five Axis" actually do?
They cut off the roof (very unfinished if you ask me, looks like they just used a chainsaw), and then built a roll cage.
Everything else is aftermarket parts by other well-know companies...
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