The customized 10,000-RPM V8 in this Toyota Starlet is utterly outrageous.

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      The Toyota Starlet, a modest compact hatchback lacking in distinctive styling, may be among the most misleadingly named vehicles ever. However, it serves as an excellent base for a hill climb car, as demonstrated by the Finnish team at VHTRacing Engineering with their second-generation P60 Starlet.

      Mikko Kataja and his wife Kati have been racing this car in hill climbs across Europe for many years, even competing at Pikes Peak and Mt. Washington. Initially, it featured a modified Toyota 4A-GE engine—the 1.6-liter inline-four used in the AW11 MR2 and several generations of Corolla and Celica during the 1980s and 1990s—but in 2023, the Katajas transitioned to a custom 2.7-liter V8 built on a Suzuki Hayabusa motorcycle engine, crafted by Radical Precision Engineering.

      The V8 engine, first highlighted by Engine Swap Depot, keeps the 81-millimeter bore and 65-mm stroke of the inline-four found in the second-generation Hayabusa, but adds another cylinder bank and introduces a flat-plane crankshaft. The heads are also taken from Hayabusa engines, albeit with porting modifications. The pistons come from Cosworth, and the camshafts are designed by VHT to optimize power. While the modified 4A-GE engine had a redline of 11,000 rpm, the V8 revs to “only” 10,000 rpm. Nevertheless, while the four-cylinder produced about 260 horsepower, the V8 has been engineered for 150 hp per liter, totaling 405 hp (VHT maintains the exact power output as confidential).

      The Starlet equipped with the impressive engine has been out of commission until recently. After Mikko crashed it in 2024, he seized the chance to implement modifications. The hatchback received new carbon fiber bodywork from Finland's Haidea, and the suspension was altered to lower the ride height and widen the track. In its first outing after the rebuild, Mikko secured first in class and third overall at the Wolsfeld Hill Climb in Wolsfelder, Bergrennen, Germany. This is an outstanding result for a freshly rebuilt car with limited testing, and Mikko believes there is substantial potential once the vehicle is completely fine-tuned.

      Both car and driver appear striking in the in-car video showcased on the VHTRacing YouTube channel. Be sure to watch it with the volume up.

      This build illustrates what can be achieved with the early rear-wheel drive Starlets (Toyota transitioned to front-wheel drive with the third-generation P70 in 1984), even though these cars have historically had a somewhat lower profile in the U.S. compared to other Toyotas due to significantly lower sales figures. A few years ago, there were speculations about the Starlet name making a return on a hot hatch, but the GR Yaris effectively occupies that niche in the markets where the name would be recognized.

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