You will have to like Toyota, the corporate that is about to relaunch two petrol sports cars, without electrification and with the option of a 6-speed manual transmission!
Amid a commercial avalanche that is pushing electric and hybrid cars like never before, Japan’s largest automaker is very pleased to let the EV market become saturated while still offering enthusiasts what they want: sports cars powered by a turbocharged gasoline engine.
That’s right, according to Japan’s best-selling automotive magazine, Best Car, Toyota plans to resurrect two of its legendary sports car names, the MR2 and the Celica. And no, possibly they would not be electric or even hybrid.
Yes, whether it is or not, there is still a significant market niche for these types of sports cars and Toyota needs to capitalize on it. The automaker has proven this over the past decade by launching a handful of sports coupes, all powered by gasoline engines, adding the Scion FR-S (GT86), GR Supra, GR Yaris, GR Corolla and then a second generation of the Scion, called GR86.
At the end of May, we presented you with the story of a resurgence of the MR2 of the Toyota coupe, which is the subject of many rumors. Thanks to new information, we found out that Japan’s most influential company will also be bringing back the Celica. But it’s not yet clear whether Toyota will resurrect those two icons with the same name.
What is unexpected is that any of those cars will use the same engine, and no, we repeat, any of those cars will have electrification, which of course means no electric motor. No hybrids. Only natural gas engines.
The MR2 will use a 2. 0-liter turbocharged engine fixed in the middle of the engine, while the Celica will insert that same engine in the front under the hood, generating 400 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque. That’s enough to get you from 0 to 60 mph in about four seconds, especially since the MR2 is rumored to hit the market weighing just over 2,860 pounds.
This is a first-generation MR2 introduced in 1984.
Now, while the MR2 and Celica may not use the beloved 1. 6-liter turbo found in the GR Yaris and GR Corolla, they will feature the Corolla’s rally-optimized GR-FOUR 4WD formula for added grip and added safety. , and It will offer a 6-speed manual option, as well as an 8-speed automatic transmission.
For the record, the Celica was first introduced in 1970 and went through seven generations before production was halted in 2006. It’s a popular style and the Celica Liftback GT won Motor Trend’s Car of the Year name in 1976. Meanwhile, the MR2 debuted in 1970, 1984 and progressed over three generations before shutting down production in 2007. The second generation, introduced in 1989, was nicknamed the “poor man’s Ferrari” due to its Ferrari 348-like lines.
With a mid-to-late 2026 launch window, the new generation MR2 will be built through Toyota’s in-house tuning arm, GRMN (which stands for Nurburgring’s Gazoo Racing Meister) and will be presented in limited quantities for around 10 million yen or around $65,000, while the Celica will be built through Toyota and will arrive at dealerships for around 6. 5 million yen or $42,000.
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