Are Toyota and Suzuki partnering on mid-engined MX-5 rival?

Friday, 17 February 2023

A fresh rumour has linked Toyota, Suzuki and Daihatsu with a new version of the MR-S.

While rumours of Toyota rebooting the MR2 sports car have been rumbling for a while, this one is a bit more interesting as it claims Suzuki is in on the plot and is helping out with a 1.0-litre turbocharged three-cylinder hybrid powertrain.

This is according to Japanese publication Best Car, so take with a grain of salt, but apparently the powertrain would make around 90kW and 200Nm, roughly on par with the 1.5-litre Mazda MX-5 (currently not available in New Zealand). It’ll weigh around the 1000kg mark as well, like the MX-5.

Suzuki is, in a way, not a stranger to making bonkers roadsters. This is the Vision Gran Turismo, a digital two-seater with Hayabusa-plus-electric power.

Those figures put the new sports car closer to the MR-S rather than the MR2, which boasted 180kW/302Nm at its peak. The new car will also get a mild hybrid set-up to add temporary boost and improve fuel consumption.

Interestingly, it’ll be quite a bit bigger than both the MX-5 and MR-S, with other reports claiming the mid-engined car will measure 4200mm long, 1720mm wide and 1220mm tall, with a 2550mm wheelbase.

Toyota’s electric concept from 2021, which was previously linked with an MR2 reboot, might also still happen.

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As for suspension, all we know is that Toyota is looking to use the front suspension from the current Yaris. It’s unclear what the rear set-up will be, but most of the platform will be unique to accomodate the mid-mounted engine.

Styling will take from the Daihatsu Copen, another company Toyota owns part of, but the car will still wear the Toyota badge. The report didn’t say if Daihatsu would have any hand in the development of the car.

Finally, Toyota is targeting a 2.2 million yen base price, which translates to just over $26,000. That would put it well below the Mazda MX-5, which currently starts at $58,290 for the 2.0-litre Roadster GT. But, considering none of this information is official, we wouldn’t put much faith into that.

Of course, it would be brilliant if it happens, but that’s an extremely low price for a brand new sports car running a bespoke platform, even if it does sell across the Toyota, Suzuki and Daihatsu brands, similar to the GR 86 and Subaru BRZ approach.

If this rumour does indeed quietly dissolve into the static of the internet, Toyota is also working on a fully electric small sports car. This one is arguably closer to reality, as Toyota showed a concept version back in 2021 along with a bunch of other future EVs.

That one was also linked to the return of the MR2, with large corner intakes, short overhangs, lots of carbon fibre and an aerodynamic body with a targa roof. Expect it to form part of the GR stable – if it comes to fruition. The Best Car report cited a Toyota official familiar with GR as saying: “It is not decided what to do with that sports EV specifically.'

Hopefully we learn more soon, because considering how well GR is doing with its Yaris, Corolla and Supra, a smaller two-seater should be a properly capable sportscar.