Based on the three-door production model, the Yaris Hybrid-R features a 1.6-litre four-cylinder direct-injection petrol engine developed by Toyota Motorsport and two powerful electric motors that give the car intelligent electric all-wheel drive. The two electric motors work as electric generators when the car is braking, and supplement the petrol engine’s performance under acceleration, giving a total power of up to 414bhp.

The concept also features a supercapacitor to harvest and store energy, as seen on Toyota’s TS030 Hybrid Le Mans car. The carmaker says that compared to the standard nickel metal-hydride battery used in Yaris Hybrid, the supercapacitor has a higher power density and a fast power charge/discharge speed, giving brief, immediate bursts of power.

In “road” mode, the supercapacitor releases energy for a maximum 10 seconds per charge, and the total power of the two electric motors is reduced to 40bhp. In “track” mode, the motors reach a combined maximum of 119bhp for up to five seconds per charge, reflecting the more frequent braking and acceleration in circuit driving.

A third 60bhp motor is located between the engine and six-speed sequential transmissions and operates as a generator, both during deceleration to feed power to the supercapacitor, and during acceleration to power the rear electric motors.

In addition, the rear electric motors can alter the torque distribution between the left and right rear wheels.

Each motor can be used independently as a generator or a motor to achieve the same effect as an intelligent torque vectoring differential.