The new 2016 Mazda Miata is so good that Fiat is going to borrow its underpinnings for a new 124 Spider. But what of its chief current rival, the Scion FR-S/Subaru BRZ? That car is due for a replacement eventually, and what will it do then?
It’s simple, according to this completely insane rumor in Car and Driver. In order to defeat the Miata, the Toyobaru will become the Miata.
Whoa.
The magazine reports that as they work to craft a successor for the Toyobaru — a car produced and mostly engineered by Subaru — Toyota is considering using the ND Miata’s platform. The platform would underpin the Subaru version as well.
Toyota says it will produce a successor, and an insider close to Toyota tells us that both the FT86 and the BRZ could switch to the new Miata platform in their next generation.
Rumors are that Toyota has tested the new Miata, and the initial evaluation is promising. Says our source, “If Toyota were to employ the MX-5’s chassis, it would be on the next-generation FT86.”
I would like to remind everyone before we proceed that this is literally the exact plot of FACE/OFF. Except instead of like, Nicolas Cage, it’s Japanese sports cars.
It’s very important to make clear here that this is merely a rumor, and one about a car surrounded by more rumors than John Travolta’s sexuality. How many turbocharged, supercharged, convertible and sedan variants of the Toyobaru have the “inside sources” promised us by now? Take this with a gallon of salt.
At the same time, Toyota and Mazda just announced they’re together now and it’s Facebook serious, so it’s not unfathomable to think that budding relationship could lead to something more.
Personally, I’d rather Subaru and Toyota keep this in the family, engineer their own car and then say “May the best sports car win” against the Miata, but it’s awfully hard to justify the production costs of a low-volume sports car with ever-dwindling sales because nobody appreciates how good it is. It would be a smart business decision for them, going with the Miata platform.
Anyone know if a boxer engine will fit under that hood?
Contact the author at patrick@jalopnik.com.