To Toyota, the GR Yaris hatchback is a hero car. And now, this award-winning hatchback will employ a mid-engined 400-hp plus 2.0-liter turbo and AWD.

Toyota's Gazoo Racing wing has been on a roll for the last few years, bringing us the likes of the revived Supra (with the help of BMW), the upgraded GR 86 (with the help of Subaru), and the rally-ready GR Yaris and GR Corolla (all by themselves).

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 fans have been energized by the possibility of a new mid-engine sports car. Just exactly what form that performance model will take is still very much up in the air (as is the possibility of an electric one,

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

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

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

The return of the Toyota MR2 is closer than ever before, after the car giant revealed a mid-engined GR Yaris to act as a test bed.