9 Discontinued Japanese Performance Cars That Deserve A Successor

It was rumoured that the Subaru BRZ would die out after just one generation. Fortunately, that turned out to be false, as it’s been confirmed the BRZ will be living on to see a second generation, but many other fast Japanese cars haven’t been so lucky.

In fact, of all the world’s car makers, manufacturers from the Land of the Rising Sun seem to have the worst track record for bringing out incredible and iconic performance cars, only for them to be killed off with no replacement. Here are nine Japanese cars we wish had a successor.

1. Toyota MR2

Toyota gave us three generations of its mid-engined sports car. The final version weighs just under a tonne and has a 1.8-litre VVTi engine sporting 138bhp, and when we took one to Wales recently for our big Toyota shoot (full story coming soon), we found it to be an absolute blast to drive. Production stopped in 2006, and Toyota never brought out a direct replacement.

2. Mazda RX-8

Mazda brought rotary power to the masses when it replaced the RX-7 with the more accessible RX-8. The 1.3-litre, two-rotor ‘Renesis’ engine (better known by the childishly amusing ‘Wankel’ name) was available with either 198 or 227bhp, slotted into a sweet handling rear-wheel drive chassis.

UK sales ended in 2010 when the inefficient rotary engine proved too polluting for tightening EU emissions laws, and production ended in Japan a year later. Various rotary-powered replacements have been rumoured, but nothing has been confirmed.

3. Honda S2000

The incredible S2000 is pretty much guaranteed to go down as a classic, helped in no small part by the fact that it was never replaced. The front-engined, rear-wheel drive roadster has an F20C 2.0-litre four-pot under the bonnet, which delivers 240bhp at a screaming 8300rpm.

It requires a more attentive driver than other sports cars, too; early versions have no traction control to step in if you get things wrong. Show it the respect it deserves, and you’ll be rewarded with a brilliant drive, courtesy of the well-balanced, stiff chassis.

4. Honda Integra Type-R

The ingredients for the mighty ‘Teg Type-R weren’t complicated: a high-revving VTEC engine under the bonnet, a stripped-back interior to give low weight, and power sent to the front wheels through a limited-slip differential. However, those ingredients all came together to create an incredible driver’s car, not to mention one of the best handling front-wheel drive cars ever seen. However, the final incarnation of the standard Integra died off in 2006, taking the Type-R with it.

5. Toyota Supra

The Supra went through four generations before being discontinued in various markets in the late 1990s. Production in Japan wound up in 2002, and we’ve not seen a new Supra since. The final incarnation is the one that’s probably most beloved by petrolheads, with its legendary 2JZ 3.0-litre straight-six, which in twin-turbo form kicks out 276bhp.

However, we’d love to see the Supra name make a comeback on something like the incredible Toyota FT-1 concept.

6. Subaru SVX

Before the Impreza had even gone on sale, Subaru was busy penning a powerful and luxurious grand tourer. The result was the SVX, a strikingly-styled coupe with a 3.3-litre 227bhp flat-six powering all four wheels. Unfortunately, with high prices and a plethora of quirky touches inside and out, the SVX was a huge flop. Production stopped in 1996, and Subaru was understandably reluctant to explore the wafty GT market again. Regardless, a successor for this thing would be interesting to see.

7. Mazda 6 MPS

With a 2.3-litre turbocharged four-pot producing 256bhp, Mazda’s stealthily-styled, four-wheel drive 6 MPS (known as the Mazdaspeed6 in some markets) will get you from 0-62mph in just 6.4 seconds and on to a top speed of 149mph. However, when the first-generation 6 made way for the second, the hot MPS all but disappeared, and it hasn’t returned for the current third-gen cars either.

The 6 MPS’ sales didn’t exactly set the world alight, so you can understand Mazda’s decision to ditch the car, but it’s a shame nonetheless. With the loss of this, the 3 MPS and the aforementioned RX-8, the only performance-orientated Mazda left is the MX-5. On the plus side, if you want a used 6 MPS, they’re an absolute bargain.

8. Mitsubishi 3000GT/GTO

With 280bhp from a 3.0-litre V6, Mitsubishi’s 90s coupe is a very fast thing indeed. It’s also an absolute tech fest: early cars were stuffed with clever things like active aero devices, electronically controlled suspension and an electronically controllable exhaust. It was way ahead of its time, and that was the problem. 3000 GTs were notorious for picking up ludicrously expensive repair bills when the complex electronic bits inevitably started to fail. Later cars were - as a consequence - much less complicated.

Production ran until the year 2000, and the name GTO or 3000 GT hasn’t been on a Mitsubishi since. The iffy reliability associated with the name means it probably won’t be resurrected, but a sporty coupe is something that’d hugely liven up the Mitusbishi brand, which in the UK doesn’t sell a single performance car at present.

9. Nissan Silvia

Darling of the JDM scene, the Silvia name can trace its roots back to the Datsun CSP311, produced from 1965-1968. It was resurrected in 1979 for the ‘S10,’ which was followed by the S11, S12, S13, S14 (pictured) and finally the S15. The S15 came with a 250bhp version of Nissan’s SR20DET turbo 2.0-litre four-pot, but in 2002, production ended and the Silvia was no more.

Nissan still makes performance cars with the likes of the 370Z and GT-R in the range, but nothing ever directly replaced the Silvia.

Click here for part 2