Toyota does not build many cars like the Toyota MR2: a 2-door coupé or T-top with 1.5 , built from 1984 to 2007 in the age of turbocharging and the first electronic engine management. Its designer of record is Seiichi Yamauchi (1981).
How it came about
The Toyota MR2 is a two-seater sports car which was manufactured and marketed by Toyota from 1984 until 2007 over three generations. It was the first Japanese rear-mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive production car and was sold around the world. The first generation (W10) was produced from 1984 to 1989, the second generation (W20) from 1989 to 1999, and the third generation (W30) from 1999 to 2007.
Conceived as a small, economical and sporty car, the MR2 features a straight-four engine, transversely mounted in front of the rear axle, four-wheel disc brakes, and fully independent coilover suspension with MacPherson struts on each wheel. The name MR2 stands for either "mid-ship run-about 2-seater" or "mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 2-seater". In French-speaking markets, the vehicle was renamed Toyota MR because the abbreviation "MR2" sounds like the profanity "merde" when spoken in French.
The hardware
Under the skin sits 1.5 other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. Kerb weight is 2282 lb. The gearbox is a 5-speed manual / 4-speed Toyota A transmission#A2xx / automatic. The wheelbase is 91.3 in. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Family and rivals
Where it sits in Toyota's history is not in doubt: it was built at Sagamihara, Kanagawa (Central Motors), Japan. On a showroom list of its day it stood against the SEAT Ibiza, the Ferrari Testarossa, the Renault Espace. Its Toyota stablemates include the Toyota Agya and the Toyota Calya.
The money
There is no federal ownership record for the Toyota MR2 — it predates the complaint database or was never sold in the United States — so MotorJury publishes no running-cost figure for it. For a car of this age the price is set by the collector market and the condition of the individual example, not by a formula.