Rumor: Toyota's Would-Be Mazda Miata–Rivaling Convertible Sports Car Reborn?
Rumblings out of Japan suggest that Toyota's adorable compact sporty convertible got the green light. But we've been disappointed before.
Does the Mazda MX-5 Miata need a sporty, compact convertible rival? If Japan’s Best Car can be believed, Toyota thinks so, and it’s dusted off the circa 2015 Toyota S-FR concept for production with the help of Daihatsu and Suzuki—two small car specialists, the former of which is a Toyota subsidiary. Do we want to believe?
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Of course, we love the MX-5; we are enthusiasts who love sporty cars, and Toyota’s no stranger to the segment. The last car it built in this class was the MR-2 Spyder, a nominal Miata competitor that appealed to the quirkier and more hardcore enthusiasts. It had less curb appeal and more “budget Elise” mojo. But the S-FR (well, the concept, which is old) has one thing the MR2 Spyder doesn’t: undeniable cuteness. Rather than an amphibian shape made out of Duplos, the S-FR is funky and organic—more Kermit and less Kerbal.
Forbes’ Japan-based reporter put hands on the exclusive Best Car report, and from this we understand that the appeal of shared development costs and partner automakers is what makes the revival feasible. Well, rumored revival. The evidence is thin, to be clear. The Daihatsu Vision Copen apparently previews the bones of a future S-FR, and seems an appropriate basis; the windshield surround and the doors look very S-FR. It’s rounded and cute. Toyota-izing it would be a simple task.
After all, if Daihatsu is making a small convertible already, it wouldn’t be difficult for Toyota to create a larger, more powerful version at a different price point. Bringing in Suzuki’s small engine expertise would help reduce costs as well. Consider the BMW underpinnings of the latest Supra, and the co-development of the GR86 and the Subaru BRZ. Toyota has signaled it won’t build a sports car without some aspect of it being shared or already in existence.
Best Car pegs the upcoming S-FR to debut in 2026 or 2027 with tweaked styling but a similar overall vibe to the 2015 S-FR concept, and a 150-hp 1.3-liter turbo I-3 engine under the hood.
Plausible? Maybe. Probable? That’s another story entirely. And as for the U.S. market, don't expect a Daihatsu-based anything to make it here; besides, Toyota has the GR86 already, which is essentially a roofed Miata fighter.
Like a lot of the other staffers here, Alex Kierstein took the hard way to get to car writing. Although he always loved cars, he wasn’t sure a career in automotive media could possibly pan out. So, after an undergraduate degree in English at the University of Washington, he headed to law school. To be clear, it sucked. After a lot of false starts, and with little else to lose, he got a job at Turn 10 Studios supporting the Forza 4 and Forza Horizon 1 launches. The friendships made there led to a job at a major automotive publication in Michigan, and after a few years to MotorTrend. He lives in the Seattle area with a small but scruffy fleet of great vehicles, including a V-8 4Runner and a C5 Corvette, and he also dabbles in scruffy vintage watches and film cameras.
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