{"id":18149,"date":"2026-07-22T18:51:53","date_gmt":"2026-07-22T18:51:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=18149"},"modified":"2026-07-22T18:51:53","modified_gmt":"2026-07-22T18:51:53","slug":"a-cafe-visitor-at-fuji-speedway-just-caught-toyotas-upcoming-mid-engine-mr2-prototype-on-track","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=18149","title":{"rendered":"A Cafe Visitor at Fuji Speedway Just Caught Toyota\u2019s Upcoming Mid-Engine MR2 Prototype on Track"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.techeblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/22103429\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway.jpg\" alt=\"Toyota MR2 Prototype Fuji Speedway\" width=\"1280\" height=\"853\"\/><br \/><span><strong>Photo credit<\/strong>: You_SuiKoyoAZ<\/span><br \/>Someone sitting in the cafe at the Fuji Speedway Motorsport Museum looked up and saw a low, dark coupe rolling by. Phone out, they grabbed a couple of stills and then a short video of the same car turning laps on the circuit itself. The clips hit social media on July 22 and immediately set off the usual round of speculation about Toyota\u2019s long-rumored mid-engine, next-generation MR2 sports car.<\/p>\n<p>The prototype has a real matte dark finish and a two-door coupe body that appears to have been molded to sit low and wide. To keep the engine cool, the front bumper is large and low-slung, with a prominent splitter and a gaping mesh air intake. The headlights and taillights look strangely similar to those on a conventional Yaris, but let\u2019s be honest: the fenders flare out like a pair of broad shoulders, and the rear has a fixed swan-neck wing hanging off the back. Large intakes are mounted high on the back fenders, and a deep scoop has been carved into the bonnet. All of these minor elements, as well as the general design, indicate that the engine is tucked away behind the seats rather than up front, as one would assume.<\/p>\n<div class=\"aawp\">\n<div class=\"aawp-product aawp-product--horizontal aawp-product--ribbon aawp-product--sale\" data-aawp-product-asin=\"B0DJ197M66\" data-aawp-product-id=\"244892\" data-aawp-tracking-id=\"tec02e-20\" data-aawp-product-title=\"LEGO Technic Fast and Furious Toyota Supra MK4 Building Kit- Toy Car for Kids Boys and Girls Ages 9+ - Creative Gift for Fast and Furious Car Fans - Realistic Engineering Details - 42204\">\n<p>    <span class=\"aawp-product__ribbon aawp-product__ribbon--sale\">Sale<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"aawp-product__thumb\">\n<p>            <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aawp-product__image\" src=\"https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/51kWbzPQYXL._SL160_.jpg\" alt=\"LEGO Technic Fast and Furious Toyota Supra MK4 Building Kit- Toy Car for Kids, Boys, and Girls, Ages...\"\/><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"aawp-product__content\">\n<p>            LEGO Technic Fast and Furious Toyota Supra MK4 Building Kit- Toy Car for Kids, Boys, and Girls, Ages&#8230;        <\/p>\n<div class=\"aawp-product__description\">\n<ul>\n<li>TOY CAR MODEL KIT\u2013 Boys and girls ages 9 and up create thrilling movie action by building one of the most iconic cars in movie history with the LEGO&#8230;<\/li>\n<li>FAST AND FURIOUS CAR \u2013 Fans will be delighted by the LEGO Toyota Supra sports car toy, which is packed with realistic details and authentic movie&#8230;<\/li>\n<li>ACTION-PACKED FEATURES\u2013 Builders assemble the 6-cylinder engine, steering, opening hood and removable Targa top roof, then recreate favorite Fast&#8230;<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\nIn the video, this car is tearing through Fuji\u2019s corners with a very planted and purposeful look, and the exhaust sound is a deeper, more urgent growl than that of the GR Yaris. The fact that it sounds more serious than the 3-cylinder Yaris indicates that it is likely driven by a G20E turbocharged 2.0-liter 4-cylinder. We\u2019ve already heard that this engine will produce between 300 and 400 horsepower in street models, with more extreme versions likely pushing the limit even further.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.techeblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/22103406\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway-1.jpg\" alt=\"Toyota MR2 Prototype Fuji Speedway\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\"\/><br \/>We\u2019ve known for a while that Toyota\u2019s mid-engine development is nothing new, but rather something they\u2019ve been discreetly developing over the last few years. They\u2019ve been driving a succession of GR Yaris-powered test vehicles, some of which have been dubbed the \u2018M Concept\u2019 or \u2018Concept M\u2019, on private courses and even in Japan\u2019s Super Taikyu endurance race. The fundamental layout they\u2019re looking for sounds simple enough: engine in the middle, transmission in the back, and a prop shaft sending power to an all-wheel-drive system with Torsen limited-slip differentials at the corners. They had previously used a smaller 1.6-liter three-cylinder in some of the mules, but after switching to the G20E, they appear to have finally struck the right balance of power and weight. They\u2019ve already verified that they\u2019ll go through approximately twenty development rounds until they\u2019re satisfied, so expect to see a few more test mules around Fuji shortly.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.techeblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/22103415\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway-2.jpg\" alt=\"Toyota MR2 Prototype Fuji Speedway\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\"\/><br \/>The dimensions closely resemble the 2023 FT-Se idea, prompting speculation that it could be a preview for a revamped MR2. It\u2019s unclear whether the commercial version will be called the MR2, Celica, or something else entirely. Toyota has trademarked the GR MR2 name and announced plans to add several mid-engine cars to their Gazoo Racing performance lineup, but when we can expect to see it on the road is still unknown. They\u2019ve been working on this for a long time, and it shows; the development process appears to have been ongoing for several years, with various racing and private track testing.<br \/><span>[Source]<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> A Cafe Visitor at Fuji Speedway Just Caught Toyota\u2019s Upcoming Mid-Engine MR2 Prototype on Track<br \/>\n<br \/>#Cafe #Visitor #Fuji #Speedway #Caught #Toyotas #Upcoming #MidEngine #MR2 #Prototype #Track<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Photo credit: You_SuiKoyoAZSomeone sitting in the cafe at the Fuji Speedway Motorsport Museum looked up&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18150,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[10364,2080,12150,12152,12153,2235,12151,6284,2832,1415,12149],"class_list":["post-18149","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tech","tag-cafe","tag-caught","tag-fuji","tag-midengine","tag-mr2","tag-prototype","tag-speedway","tag-toyotas","tag-track","tag-upcoming","tag-visitor"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway.jpg",1280,853,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway-768x512.jpg",640,427,true],"large":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway-1024x682.jpg",640,426,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway.jpg",1280,853,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway.jpg",1280,853,false],"covernews-featured":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway-1024x682.jpg",1024,682,true],"covernews-medium":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/toyota-mr2-prototype-fuji-speedway-540x340.jpg",540,340,true]},"author_info":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?author=1"},"category_info":"<a href=\"https:\/\/news678.top\/?cat=8\" rel=\"category\">Tech<\/a>","tag_info":"Tech","comment_count":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18149","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=18149"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18149\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/18150"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18149"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=18149"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=18149"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}