Toyota FT-Se Gives Us Hope For An MR2 Revival

The electric two-seater has GR branding and a whole new interior design concept.

Toyota FT-Se concept

By: Adrian Padeanu

Published by: Adrian Padeanu

Oct 25, 2023 at 8:42am ET

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At the end of 2021, Toyota took just about everyone by surprise when it unveiled a whole bunch of electric concepts. The promising Sports EV happened to be one of them, and now, an evolution of that zero-emission performance machine has been introduced at the Japan Mobility Show. Known as the FT-Se, the two-seater proudly carries Gazoo Racing branding and has the proportions of a mid-engine sports car.

The slinky performance EV retains the striking orange paint with a contrasting black roof but has been redesigned to accommodate massive air intakes along with door mirrors and handles. We wouldn't necessarily go as far as to say this is a near-production version of the original concept, especially since Toyota has zero technical specifications to share about the FT-Se. The previous concept had a removable targa top whereas this one appears to be a coupe with a fixed roof featuring two separate glass sections.

Toyota FT-Se concept

Interestingly, some of the adjacent images show the concept on a circuit while flaunting a large fixed wing, suggesting Toyota has envisioned the FT-Se in a track-oriented version as well. It's a pretty little car with or without that aero element, while the ducktail spoiler has the GR emblem rather than the automaker's badge. The extended light strips both at the front and rear give the sensation of a wider car with greater road presence.

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Much like the exterior is a radical departure from the GR86 and Supra, the cabin proposes an all-new cockpit that does away with basically the switchgear. The yoke-like steering wheel is flanked by a couple of smartphone-esque touchscreens from where the driver accesses all the available functions. There's also a wide and flat digital instrument cluster mounted in the upper part of the dashboard, above the steering wheel.

With no concrete details from Toyota, we can only hope the FT-Se will materialize into a production model one day. It would make a great MR2 revival in the electric era but let's not get our hopes up too high just yet.

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