MR2 W30 (MK III)

About the MR2 W30 (Mk III)

Toyota went in the opposite direction with the W30 and half the car community never forgave them for it. Gone was the turbo. Gone was the coupe roof. In their place: a 1.8-liter naturally aspirated four, a sequential manual gearbox, and a curb weight of 975 kg. The W30 was a Lotus Elise competitor, not a baby Ferrari. The 1ZZ-FE made just 138 hp, which looked like a insult next to the W20 Turbo's output. But the W30 wasn't about straight-line speed. It was about the conversation between steering wheel and front tires, the willingness to rotate on a trailing brake, the way the car communicated every surface change through the seat of your pants. In Japan, it was called the MR-S. In Europe, the MR2 Roadster. In America, the MR2 Spyder. Everywhere, it was misunderstood by people who wanted more power and quietly adored by people who actually drove it on backroads. The W30 was Toyota's most honest sports car — and the last mid-engine car they sold before the company decided SUVs were more profitable.