Wild Rumor Suggests Toyota, Mazda Could Share an Inline-6 in Future Sports Cars
The current version of the Toyota Supra has its charms, but its deep BMW roots leave it feeling very little like any other Toyota product. Mazda, meanwhile, doesn't even make a sports car larger than the MX-5 any more. Both of those things could be changing soon, and a wild new rumor suggests that the related cars will both use the same inline-six engine.
That rumor is from Japan's Best Car, which reports that Mazda is preparing a sports car to succeed the long-lost RX-7 line. Unlike the rotary-equipped PHEV Iconic SP concept shown two years ago, the magazine claims that this model would be powered by an inline-six engine shared with Mazda's corporate allies at Toyota. This car would be front-engined and rear-wheel-drive, suggesting possible shared development between the Mazda and the potential successor to the current BMW-aligned Supra.
If Mazda were to go forward with this rumored sports car, it would be the brand's first rear-wheel-drive performance car larger than the Miata line since the RX-8. Toyota, on the other hand, has a wide variety of performance cars across its Toyota and Lexus lineups. Since embracing performance cars again in the 2010s, the brands have introduced the GR 86, the newest Supra, the Lexus LC grand tourer, and rally-style GR variants of both the Corolla and the not-for-America Yaris.
This Supra report is far from the only new performance car rumor swirling around Toyota, either. Toyota has teased possible returns for both the Celica and MR2, and a new trademark in Brazil suggests that a GR Celica could be coming soon. The brand has also showed off and tested a GT3 concept that is expected to go racing in the near future, although the production version of that car could be sold as a Lexus rather than a Toyota.
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