Mazda s Secret Sports Car : Toyota and Mazda are set to join forces in the development of a next generation sports car, according to major news coming out of Japan. The two manufacturers have collaborated on tech previously, such as hybrids, but what we are now hearing from Japan’s best-selling car magazine Best Car is truly mind-expanding in its ambition and scope. No one’s seen it, but Mazda has a new sports car, and Toyota’s building it.
The engine in question is the 3.3-liter 6-cylinder
After jointly developing the present-day model GR Supra with BMW, Toyota is hoping to replace the inline 6-cylinder turbo engine it used in the Supra for a Mazda-developed 6-cylinder turbo. Well, that Mazda engine is the same 3.3-liter gasoline powertrain also going into the U.S.-spec CX-70 and CX-90, and its rear-wheel-drive configuration is what gets Toyota’s attention. We expect this engine to make something like 360 hp, making it the closest thing to a current-gen Supra.
But while Toyota is quite content to shift from Germany to Hiroshima by way of the Mazda engine, Mazda itself is working on its own new sports car using the same rear-drive powertrain. Now while the Miata MX-5 maker is contemplating a direct 2-door foe to a next-gen Toyota GR Supra, more likely is a 4-door coupe styled model with a similar straight-6 powerplant from the brawny breadbox. Best Car reasons that such a decision would sell better since it would provide a larger selection of sports car for potential buyers, a 2-door from Toyota, or a 4-door from Mazda.
This new 6-cylinder turbo car would zip into the lineup as a third sports car from Mazda
While we know the Hiroshima-based firm has its 5th-generation Miata MX-5 in the works, as well as an all-new rotary-hybrid powered sports car, by preparing to add this 6-cylinder powered sports car to its lineup would round out the firm’s trio of hooked-on-driving sports cars. Now sure, some folks will question whether or not a 4-door sports can even be a sports car in the first place; however, given that it will share a platform and engine with the upcoming GR Supra, a competitor it is, and expands the definition of a sports car. Or at least that’s how Mazda seems to view it
In 2017 Mazda and Toyota launched a capital tie-up after Toyota, which became Mazda’s third largest shareholder after buying a 5.1% stake. From 2021, under the joint venture and using the same production line, Mazda assembles the CX-50, while Toyota builds the Corolla Cross at the Huntsville plant in Alabama. How close is the relationship, exactly? That CX-50 built in Alabama uses Toyota’s very successful THS hybrid system, while in Europe, the Mazda2 hybrid is based on a Toyota Yaris.