Known as the "God of War", the Nissan GT-R sports car enjoys a high reputation among fans around the world, and Toyota's MR-2 sports car has also left an immortal legend in the car world. In a new trend, local sources in Japan pointed out that the Toyota MR-2 sports car, which was discontinued in 2007, is about to be resurrected, and the Nissan GT-R (R35) is also about to usher in a new generation, both of which are legendary Japanese sports cars will usher in a new generation of models in 2026 (that is, two years later).
It is reported that the all-new Nissan GT-R (although it is the successor to the R35, but not necessarily called R36, after all, Volkswagen also has an R36) is a new generation of sports cars equipped with all-solid-state batteries, the new generation of GT-R is full of unprecedented new technologies, and with 1360 horsepower electric motor power, Nissan strives to make the new generation GT-R the world's fastest supercar.
Here to share the news of Toyota MR-2 sports car, Toyota MR-2 sports car has been out of the car industry for 17 years, MR-2 sports car name MR is the meaning of mid-rear drive, MR2 was originally interpreted as Mid engine, runabout, 2 seater"(meaning mid-engine, small car, two-seater), and later Toyota complied with the request of many car owners and changed the meaning of MR-2 to MR-2"mid engine，rear drive，2 seater''(mid-engine, rear-wheel drive, two-seater). The Toyota MR-2 series was Japan's first mid-engined and mass-produced high-performance sports car.
The discontinued MR-2 sports car used a 1998cc L4 inline-four DOHC engine with 180 horsepower, although this horsepower is far from a real high-horsepower supercar, but due to the light body, such horsepower figures have made it have excellent acceleration performance, plus the MR-2 adopts a mid-engine rear-wheel drive layout, low center of gravity, and a 40-to-rear weight ratio: 60, so it has sharp steering reflexes, and the handling performance was the best choice at the time (similar to today's Toyota GR86 sports car, although it is not very powerful, but the handling performance is first-class).
In the latest news disclosed in Japan, it is mentioned that the new Toyota MR-2 will be resurrected in 2026, and the core part of this news is that the Toyota Group plans to use the ready-made parts of GR Yaris Yaris and the new generation of MR-2 This mid-mounted sports car, and *** emphasized that it can be determined that the release time of the new generation of MR-2 is 2026, for which they also specially made CG renderings of the new generation of MR-2.
According to the local ** in Japan, the new generation of Toyota MR-2 sports car is powered by the three-cylinder 1 on the GR Yaris Yaris and GR Corolla CorollaThe 6-liter turbocharged engine can achieve a power output of more than 300 horsepower, and the source specifically emphasizes that the new generation of Toyota MR-2 sports car will not use a hybrid system, only a pure fuel model.
However, compared to the more reliable core information such as resurrection and power, the most uncertain thing is the name Toyota MR-2, local sources in Japan pointed out that it is not clear whether the MR-2 model name will be used again when the sports car is officially launched to the market, but it is certain that this new sports car is the de facto successor to the MR-2 sports car.
It should be pointed out that the current news believes that the positioning of the new generation Toyota MR-2 sports car is very similar to the Porsche 718 model, and it is a small two-seater sports car that emphasizes driving pleasure. While it's hard to predict Toyota's pricing range for the new MR-2 (the Toyota Group seems to be more confident in pricing its own non-family models than its family models), there's no doubt that its two-seater sports car with its emphasis on handling pleasure is positioned against the Porsche 718.
Why is Toyota Group willing to spend efforts to resurrect the MR-2 sports car, the market sales data may be used as a side confirmation, in 2023, in Mercedes-Benz AMG A45, BMW M2, Audi RS3, Golf GTI and other German steel cannon models, as well as French and Italian sports models - In the European market, the Toyota GR86 sports car sold 4,041 new cars, and in the nest of the European powers, which is the most fierce competition for sports models, a Japanese sports car has achieved an annual sales performance of more than 4,000 units, and the more expensive Toyota brand flagship sports car, the Toyota GR Supra, will also sell 939 units in Europe in 2023.
In addition, due to the introduction of new safety regulations in Europe, Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ will be "sentenced to death" in the European market, itself, in recent years, increasingly stringent emission regulations around the world have put forward strict restrictions on sports models, especially in the European market, the impact of this regulation is more direct, Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ and other sports cars were once regarded as models that escaped the catastrophe. However, due to the upcoming new safety regulations in the European Union, the Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ will also face production shutdown due to their inability to meet the requirements of the new regulations, and the regulation, known as General Safety Regulation 2 (GSR2), will put the final nail in the coffin of the Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ this year (2024).
To a certain extent, the GR86 sports car's impressive sales performance (4,041 units sold in Europe in 2023) and stricter regulations have made Toyota Group believe that it is necessary to launch a new generation of MR-2 sports cars in 2026 to meet the market demand for sports models - especially for models with outstanding play attributes such as small, two-seater mid-rear-wheel drive sports cars.
Do you think the new generation of Toyota MR-2 sports car will continue the legendary name of MR-2, and what are your thoughts and opinions on Toyota's new generation MR-2 sports car and the former MR-2 sports car? Please share it with us in the comments section.