Discussion
Just was wondering will anyone else here on Jap Chat, be sad to see the MR2 discontinued! Have been speaking with Toyota this morning, with regards to the TF300 Special Edition. The last batch will be produced in August of this year, then that will be it no more 2's. 
They will also be fazing out the Celica too, so for a period of time there will not be a sports model in the Toyota range. Other than the used 2's & Celicas which will still pass through dealerships doors. Apparently they will bring a new sports model out to replace 2's/Celica, but it is still on the drawing board & no one knows when it will be available.
P.S Has anyone here purchased the TF001 or the TF300, they are certainly the editions to have.
They will also be fazing out the Celica too, so for a period of time there will not be a sports model in the Toyota range. Other than the used 2's & Celicas which will still pass through dealerships doors. Apparently they will bring a new sports model out to replace 2's/Celica, but it is still on the drawing board & no one knows when it will be available.
P.S Has anyone here purchased the TF001 or the TF300, they are certainly the editions to have.
Edited by haze on Thursday 27th July 12:26
It really doesn't make much marketing sense for them to drop all sports models, down here Toyota even have their own racing series! www.toyotaracing.co.nz , wings-and-slicks single seaters powered by the 2zz-ge celica/MR2(/Elise/Exige) motor.
Gazboy said:
There is no planned RX7 replacement (The RX8 IS it's replacement).
Oi you, outside now!
The 8 is most definately NOT it's replacement (it's an 8 not a 7 for starters).
Hiroshima have always stated that they'll review the possibility for a new 7 if the 8 was successful. As it turns out it's been more so than even their most optimistic marketing bod could forecast so the future is looking good for a '4th gen' 7.
As the first info usually leaks out about the car a good way into the development it's possible, and from reasonable rumour, likely that Mazda are already working on it's replacement.
I wouldn't expect any announcements soon though - it seems as though the global climate for major manufacturers is not friendly towards sports cars and it'll be on hold until they're deemed socially acceptable again.
haze said:
Just was wondering will anyone else here on Jap Chat, be sad to see the MR2 discontinued! Have been speaking with Toyota this morning, with regards to the TF300 Special Edition. The last batch will be produced in August of this year, then that will be it no more 2's.
I agree - it's a shame
I ran one for 3 years and I thought it was great fun - especially considering the rock bottom running costs.
Toyota have definatly lost their way.
As gazboy states it defies logic to be so heavy into motorsport (how many millions into F1?)
There hasn't been a replacement for the supra, the Celica has not balls out model like the gen 6 GT4, MR2 they did the Turbo (Albeit domestic market only) but the latest model only had 140bhpish model.
Hopefully they will all have something in the pipeline.
As gazboy states it defies logic to be so heavy into motorsport (how many millions into F1?)
There hasn't been a replacement for the supra, the Celica has not balls out model like the gen 6 GT4, MR2 they did the Turbo (Albeit domestic market only) but the latest model only had 140bhpish model.
Hopefully they will all have something in the pipeline.
Gazboy said:
Toyota lost the will to live over the MR2, as they actually listend to the criticism from each generation and remedied those complaints for the next generation of MR2, they couldn't win so they pulled the plug.
Yes, but what they forgot was that whilst thrashing a revvy little open top through the countryside with great poise and precision is enormous fun and what we all want to do, when we finally get to that little hotel at the end of our trip, it would be nice to have a bag of fresh clothes to change into for the next day!
Having no boot worthy of mention was a monumental cock-up.
Gazboy said:
groomi said:
Gazboy said:
Toyota lost the will to live over the MR2, as they actually listend to the criticism from each generation and remedied those complaints for the next generation of MR2, they couldn't win so they pulled the plug.
Yes, but what they forgot was that whilst thrashing a revvy little open top through the countryside with great poise and precision is enormous fun and what we all want to do, when we finally get to that little hotel at the end of our trip, it would be nice to have a bag of fresh clothes to change into for the next day!
Having no boot worthy of mention was a monumental cock-up.
Agree, but where would they put it? Journo's bitched about the size and weight of the mk2 and that had a decent boot. Whatever Toyota did people bitched, it was hardly a suprise they canned the whole thing.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again, had the Mk2, especially the turbo, had a lotus badge, or something on it, rather than Toyota, it would have been praised for eternity.
Gazboy said:
groomi said:
Gazboy said:
Toyota lost the will to live over the MR2, as they actually listend to the criticism from each generation and remedied those complaints for the next generation of MR2, they couldn't win so they pulled the plug.
Yes, but what they forgot was that whilst thrashing a revvy little open top through the countryside with great poise and precision is enormous fun and what we all want to do, when we finally get to that little hotel at the end of our trip, it would be nice to have a bag of fresh clothes to change into for the next day!
Having no boot worthy of mention was a monumental cock-up.
Agree, but where would they put it? Journo's bitched about the size and weight of the mk2 and that had a decent boot. Whatever Toyota did people bitched, it was hardly a suprise they canned the whole thing.
But the Mki had a suitable boot and was still light. Likewise, the MX5 has a reasonable boot and it's not overweight.
The Mkii on the other hand has a huge boot at the back, a reasonable boot at the front (even with the space saver in place) and plenty of useful compartments in the cockpit. In otherwords it had too much luggage space for a 2-seater sports car which would have contributed to it's relatively lardy weight. Having said that, the Mkii was still a great handling car so they didn't need to brutally change the package in the way they did.
All in all Toyota tried to make a Lotus, but with Toyota build quality. Lotus make light cars because they hold them together with glue. Toyota use hundreds of thousands of screws and brackets so their cars don't break, but therefore weigh significantly more. So to get the weight down they have to make the car smaller and leave things like luggage space out.
...And then it doesn't sell.
Andy Mac said:
It would if it had a nice turbo/supercharged lump in, giving more than a paltry 138 bhp. (By the way, I never found the Mk2 to be heavy at all, it felt very light, and responsive)
I meant in overall weight terms, not how it feels to drive. On that score, I agree with you.
groomi said:
Yes, but what they forgot was that whilst thrashing a revvy little open top through the countryside with great poise and precision is enormous fun and what we all want to do, when we finally get to that little hotel at the end of our trip, it would be nice to have a bag of fresh clothes to change into for the next day!
Having no boot worthy of mention was a monumental cock-up.
the absolute only reason i own an mx5 not a mk3 mr2
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