Gotcha: Toyota's New Mid-Engine Sports Car Possibly Caught Testing On Video

Is this the long-awaited return of the Celica in action? We’ll have to wait and see.

Toyota GR Celica Prototype Fuji

Photo by: @You_SuiKoyoAZ / X

Jeff Perez

By: Jeff Perez

Jul 22, at 3:00pm ET

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the breakdown

New spy video appears to show Toyota's mysterious sports car testing at Fuji Speedway.
Rumored to revive the Celica, the coupe is expected to feature a mid-engine layout.
A production version could make around 400 horsepower, with a hotter 600-hp variant and a WRC race car reportedly in the works.

Toyota has some very exciting vehicles in the works. One of the most exciting is a rumored mid-engined, all-wheel-drive sports car, and this new video might give us our first real look at it in action.

Posted to X (formerly Twitter) by user @You_SuiKoyoAZ, the clip shows a prototype we haven’t seen lapping Fuji Speedway. The clip is only a few seconds long, but you can clearly hear the burbly exhaust note as the car blasts around the turn. The shift pattern even hints that it could have a manual transmission. Take a look:

Compared to the mystery prototype spotted testing on rally stages a few months ago, this one looks much closer to the real thing. It's clearly a two-door coupe, with slim, downturned headlights, a large hood vent, and taillights that look straight out of Toyota's current design playbook.

It's still hard to tell exactly where the engine sits based on the footage alone. But if we had to guess, this could be the long-rumored mid-engined sports car that's expected to revive the Celica name (or, as some are reporting, the MR2).

Rumors suggest the car will use Toyota's new turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine, sending power to all four wheels under the GR banner. It may not even wear a Toyota badge, with the automaker looking to establish Gazoo Racing as a standalone performance brand.

The road-going version is expected to make around 400 horsepower, while an even hotter variant with a larger turbocharger could push that figure closer to 600 hp. Some level of electrification is also rumored.

What do you think?

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Comments

If this is the same prototype previously spotted on rally stages, we may see a WRC-spec version debut before the production car. If everything stays on schedule, that could happen as soon as 2027.

Motor1’s Take: If this is the long-rumored Toyota Celica return, color us intrigued. It looks and sounds like an impressive little sports car.

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