Toyota built a mid-engined prototype packing a new turbo-4

• Toyota unveiled a mid-engined GR Yaris prototype at the 2025 Tokyo Auto Salon
• The prototype is powered by a newly developed 2.0-liter turbo-4
• The prototype’s reveal has reignited rumors of the return of the MR2

Toyota surprised visitors at the 2025 Tokyo Auto Salon on Friday with a GR Yaris prototype featuring a new 2.0-liter turbo-4 engine in a mid-engined layout.

Toyota stated that the prototype is part of a collection of test vehicles engineers are using to develop what the automaker describes as “ever-better motorsports-bred cars.”

The other cars in the collection include a GR Yaris used in endurance races at the Nürburgring and a GR Yaris with an experimental aerodynamic package currently being evaluated by Toyota engineers and several professional racing drivers.

The mid-engine prototype, officially named the GR Yaris M, is particularly intriguing, as Toyota has not indicated plans to launch a mid-engined car—despite persistent rumors about the return of the MR2. Notably, in 2023, Toyota unveiled an electric sports car concept, the FT-Se, with proportions that would align well with a mid-engined platform.

Toyota’s official comment on the GR Yaris M is that it was built to explore the potential of the GR Yaris platform. The automaker plans to further develop this potential by entering the car in Japan’s Super Taikyu racing series.

Toyota has confirmed that new sports cars are in the works. A senior Toyota official announced last November that a modern Celica is coming, although it is not expected to feature a mid-engined design.

Additionally, an episode of Toyota’s self-published cartoon, “Grip,” released last year, showed a whiteboard listing several potential new models. These included a new Supra, a new Celica, a new MR2, a new GR86, and a GR GT3. Of these, the GR GT3 has already been spotted undergoing tests, both as a race car and as a road car. The road car could eventually be marketed under the Lexus brand.

The GR Yaris in stock form is already a potent track machine. Sold outside the U.S., the latest version features a turbocharged 1.6-liter inline-3 mounted under the hood and spitting out 276 hp. The engine can be paired with either a 6-speed manual or Toyota’s newly developed 8-speed Direct Automatic Transmission.