If you recall, Toyota built the tiny S-FR sports car concept in 2015, this was followed by a concept race version in 2016. With zero follow ups after the two S-FR concepts, many car enthusiasts lost hope that Toyota would build an affordable small sports car again. Of course all this could change soon.
According to Best Car, Toyota will be teaming up with Daihatsu and Suzuki for a front engine rear-wheel drive sports car project. The 2023 Daihatsu Vision Copen concept could be a preview of what to expect. We decided to render our version of Toyota’s small sports car inspired by the Sports 800, the original Toyota sports car.
I based it on the Vision Copen concept which measures 3,835 mm x 1,695 mm x 1,265 mm and rides on a 2,415mm wheelbase. Since I’m using the same hard points, majority of the dimensions are the same as the Daihatsu’s except for the overall length. My design is about 65mm longer, most of which were added to the rear.
When it comes to styling, I gave a modern twist to some Sports 800 design features like the shark-nose front end, big headlight housings, large daylight opening, sloping trunk, and squarish taillights. Up front it has a large trapezoidal grille flanked by slim vertical air curtains. It has full LED lighting and DRLs which mimic the shape of the classic round headlights.
Unlike the Vision Copen concept, I replaced the electric folding hard top with a removable targa-style top, a feature found on the original Sports 800. At the back it has a diffuser and a center-exit exhaust. The Center High-Mounted Stop Lamp is located on a recessed section of the trunk lid.
The small Toyota sports car is rumored to be powered by a 150hp 1.3-liter turbocharged mill. While the estimated power output isn’t high by sports car standards, it should be more than adequate for a small lightweight vehicle. I wouldn’t be surprised though if the engineers at Gazoo Racing cooked up a hotter version, perhaps a road-going track variant?
We just hope Toyota’s version of the small sports car gets a proper manual transmission option. This could be a potentially fun two-seater.
What do you think of our Toyota Sports 800-inspired rival to the Mazda MX-5? Would you consider one if it looked like the sports car in our renderings? Please let us know in the comments.
