Toyota is a Japanese automaker founded in 1937 that has developed a reputation for reliability across a multitude of segments, from sports cars and family sedans to pickup

Of course, it’s not just any ordinary Yaris as it’s the GR Yaris. It doesn’t stop there, though, as the folks from Toyota shoved an engine where the back seats are supposed to be. Yes, this is a mid-engined GR Yaris, and it’s possibly a test bed for the Toyota MR2 revival.

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 .”

Toyota's foray into the world of mid-engine hot hatchbacks stems from motorsports, as the racing wing of the Japanese brand is set to enter the concept model in the Super Taikyu series. Born in 1991,

Toyota’s mid-engined GR Yaris M will go racing to test the new G20E high-performance petrol engine, and it could offer a first look at the next MR2

This GR Yaris will compete in Japan’s S-Taikyu racing series. The company plans to torture test the vehicle to see what breaks.

The concept is fitted with a new turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that is currently under development