Within the enthusiast market, versions are often more clearly identified by the specific period in which they were built, from Revision 2 through to Revision 5. This MR2 had an incredible ten-year lifespan, reciving only minor refinements throughout. A major reworking of the previous SA-X prototype, the SV-3 was so visually close to its production form that only the front and rear spoilers were redesigned for the production model for better aerodynamic stability in crosswinds. The next notable date in the MR2’s history was the 1983 Tokyo motor show when Toyota’s mid-engined SV-3 prototype first came to the attention of the public, displayed on a brightly-lit turntable. The enthusiasm within Toyota was so great that many engineers famously gave up their summer holidays to contribute to the project. In 1980, the project was revived and given a new sense of direction: Toyota would produce another affordable sports car akin to its Sports 800 of the 1960s, spurred on by a hastened desire to launch exciting new models into the rapidly-expanding market in North America. Used Toyota MR2: what is it like to own one? The history of the Toyota MR2 can be traced all the way back to 1976 when the company officially commenced its landmark ‘middie’ project, but the worldwide oil crisis delayed the project’s development. Toyota wasn’t the first manufacturer to explore the concept of a small, mass-produced sports car with a mid-engined layout – since the late Sixties, European automakers had developed various models based around this exotic-sounding formula, but none of them made much of a splash in terms of sales. The Toyota MR2 was a landmark car that’s as popular today as it was when it launched back in 1983.
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