Enlighten me, Oppo

"TheHondaBro" (wwaveform) 08/12/2015 at 17:08 • Filed to: None

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The MR2 and Miata were both RWD compact sports cars. One of them thrived while the other faded away. Seeing as they both served the same purpose, why did the MR2 get cancelled and the Miata continue on? It has to be more than just declining sales.

Brian, The Life of > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:12

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Because “MR2 is always the answer” just doesn't roll off the tongue quite as naturally.

nFamousCJ - Keeper of Stringbean, Gengars and a Deezul > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:12

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My 2c would be that the Miata appealed to both causal drivers and enthusiasts where as the MR2 was too sports-car and scared away the casual drivers.

RazoE > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:12

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MR2s had snap-oversteer and the turbo made it fast. The Miata was slow as hell, and incredibly predictable.

Party-vi > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:17

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With the third-gen MR2 sales declined because it sucked ass. It was ugly and sales were terrible, plus it’s the only mid-engine car Toyota produced at that point and people could get sporting cars for less (see Miata).

Van Man, rocks the Man Van > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:18

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Im not really sure, but I bet it has something to do with the mid-engine layout. Also, according to RCR, the MR2 is for “adrenaline junkies who chug Jolt cola and want to stare down the Grim Reaper on every wet interstate off ramp” whereas the Miata is not. I think a more puzzling question is why the S2000 didn't do as well.

djmt1 > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:25

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Word of mouth. It got a negative rep for setting people’s shopping on fire.

MultiplaOrgasms > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:25

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The Miata is cheap, small, easy to drive and adorable. The MR2 lacks those last two, which incidentally are also the most important when it comes to sales. Plus the french pronounciation of “MR2” is the same as the french word for “shit”.

daender > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:25

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The Miata was aimed at people wanting that British roadster vibe without the maintenance headaches, so they were able to sell thousands to seniors wanting one last hoo-rah or to young adults who wanted a predictable rwd convertible that could handle on rails. The Miata also received its own racing class in the late 90s and early 2000s with SCCA/NASA’s Spec Miata series, I doubt Toyota made enough MR2s to justify a series.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Party-vi 08/12/2015 at 17:25

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Toyota really screwed the pooch on the last gen MR2, it should have gotten the 2ZZ.

MonkeePuzzle > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:28

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wider appeal. enthusiasts bought the mr2, everyone bought a miata

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:37

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I recall that the MR2 was a more expensive car and wasn’t always a convertible. And I suspect that the mid-engine layout might have made servicing it a bit more expensive. And I suspect most people liked the styling of the Mazda better.

beardsbynelly - Rikerbeard > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:40

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Toyota killed off the Celica the same year as the MR2. It was the start of their truly extra beige period.

Officially it was because they were focusing on “other exciting cars” from Scion and the Corolla XRS.

coelacanthist > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 17:42

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I recal reading that Toyota thought they would be pulling sales away from scion by selling the mr2 or “spider” as a Toyota, but they weren’t ready to market scion as a “performance” brand.

Ross Kraz > MonkeePuzzle 08/12/2015 at 17:44

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and now, faced with no other option, enthusiasts have become Miata fans. Funny how that works.

Skamanda > Van Man, rocks the Man Van 08/12/2015 at 17:56

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The S2000 was priced too high for hits horserpower. It’s a phenomenal handling car, but the mass market doesn’t buy phenomenally handling cars, they buy fast cars.

Van Man, rocks the Man Van > Skamanda 08/12/2015 at 18:01

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But it was built off of the same principles as the Miata. And it was much faster than a Miata.

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 18:09

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The Elise replaced it. The US ones even have a Toyota engine

Skamanda > Van Man, rocks the Man Van 08/12/2015 at 18:25

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But it was more than $10,000 more than the Miata. If it had been as luxurious as the Z3, it’d have sold well. If it’d been $7-10k cheaper, it’d have sold well. As it was, it was a losing proposition from the start. Miata owners that were car enthusiasts, and were looking for a faster Miata to take to the track bought them. Beyond that, there were just better cars in the same or similar price points, for the general buying public...

Van Man, rocks the Man Van > Skamanda 08/12/2015 at 18:44

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I knew the S2000 was more expensive, but I just wasn't sure how much. $10k is a lot.

MisterToo > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 18:49

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I’ve driven both and I’ll never sell my mr2 turbo for a miata. It’s a bit nerve wracking to drive, especially in the rain. It’s silly quick turning makes it feel like you have to stay on top of it at all times or the back will come loose. The third generation killed off the mr2, sure on paper it may have been better but it was ugly and slow. I’ve never driven a third gen but have driven an 85 mr2, my friends 88 or 89 mr2 supercharged and I daily a 1991 mr2 turbo hardtop(no leaky t tops for me!!!) Having two trunks ftw.

TheOnelectronic > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 19:01

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Simple. The Miata is “cute.”

I’d be willing to bet that the majority of Miatas are sold to someone who thinks it’s “cute.”

marshknute > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 19:28

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Simplicity. The Miata has a conventional drivetrain, a manual soft top, and a trunk in the usual place. It’s easy to repair and modify, and was normal enough to attract non-enthusiast buyers. It doesn’t make any sacrifices to be a fun sports car.

The MR2 was mid engined, which makes it extremely difficult to work on or modify, compromised trunk space, and it had a fiddly targa top.

Plus the 3rd gen MR2 was a bit rubbish with its smaller engine, complete lack of trunk space, and derpy appearance. So it kind of killed off the allure that the 2nd gen created.

TheHondaBro > 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) 08/12/2015 at 19:51

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I never thought of it that way.

Blunion05 drives a pink S2000 (USER WAS BANNED FOR THIS POST) > Van Man, rocks the Man Van 08/12/2015 at 20:51

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Yup, MSRP of ~$34k.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Brian, The Life of 08/12/2015 at 21:29

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Even worse

M R2
I s
A lways
T he
A nswer

BrainYoga > TheHondaBro 08/12/2015 at 21:29

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Easy for me: I’ve thoroughly enjoyed trying to kill a Miata on several occasions. My ’91 MR2, however, seemed a little too eager to off me on several occasions!

I do miss the MR2.

Nauraushaun > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies 08/12/2015 at 23:46

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The MR2 was always the only mid-engine car Toyota produced. Don’t blame the 3rd gen for that. As if it’s even a negative.

Nauraushaun > nFamousCJ - Keeper of Stringbean, Gengars and a Deezul 08/12/2015 at 23:47

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Agreed. That and compromises like boot space, I imagine that’s better off in the MX-5

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Nauraushaun 08/13/2015 at 00:10

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I wasn’t insulting the MR2, I was just saying that having an 8k+ redline 180hp engine would have been better than an 130hp engine.

nFamousCJ - Keeper of Stringbean, Gengars and a Deezul > Nauraushaun 08/13/2015 at 07:39

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Plus I’m sure when the salesmen said Frunk some people ran away scared

Party-vi > Nauraushaun 08/13/2015 at 08:59

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Blame the 3rd gen for lackluster styling, because that is what separates it from the W10 an W20.

Tohru > TheHondaBro 08/13/2015 at 10:53

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The MR2 liked trying to murder its owners at a rate approaching air-cooled 911 territory.

I’ve seen one go spinning off a wet Interstate on-ramp across two lanes of traffic into the median, and then blitz back out onto the road like nothing happened. You and I both know the driver filled his trousers with brown soft-serve though.

Nauraushaun > Party-vi 08/14/2015 at 00:08

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That’s a good point. I think it looks good enough, and not so different to the MX-5 of the period. But it wasn’t as awesome as the earlier ones.