The British Motor Show

This article was posted to the USA email list by Ben Formesyn and is kindly reproduced with his permission.

I was at the Press launch day of the British Motor Show yesterday, and amongst the new car releases (Rover 75 / Jag S-Type / Ford Focus ) I was keen to see the Honda S2000 (ssx?) prototype that has been shown elsewhere, and the MR-S. Disappointingly the S2000 actually wasn’t there - even though all the pre-show hype had hinted that it would be. The emphasis at Honda’s stand was on the R type Integra and Accords that are now on sale in the UK.

Well, at least the MR-S was there - it had pride of place on the Toyota stand, next to a Celica GT and a Corolla WRC. Surprisingly, there were no MR2’s at all on the stand - a lot of the emphasis was on the new small car, the Yaris.

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My first impression of the MR-S was that its angular styling reminded me almost of a soft-top Mk1 - although the back of the car is totally different with Ferrari style mesh to allow air to flow around the engine. If I had to draw an analogy, it’s almost like a bigger version of the Suzuki Cappuccino!

The MR-S’s interior and colour looked good - the car on show was emerald green metallic in colour, (lighter than British Racing Green) and the interior trim was a light beige/ cream colour. The seats had been done in an interesting two layer fabric - a dark fabric base with ‘deep’ white mesh stitching laid on top, giving what probably is a very breathable fabric.

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A lot of parts were recognisable from the current Mk2 - Rubber door seals, window sills, door lights and interior door catch mechanisms were obvious carry-overs. The centre console of the dash was definitely a mock up, but the indicator/ wiper controls were the same as from the Mk2 - unsurprising, seeing at they’re standard parts bin bits.

Trying to make out the mechanicals, it didn’t seem to be a mock-up like some other concept cars at the show. From what I could see, it did have a proper suspension and exhaust system. I couldn’t work out how to get the engine lid up, so didn’t get a chance to see what was there.

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If I had to say anything negative about the MR-S, I would have to say I’m worried about the visibility that taller drivers will have - I’m 6" 2' (183cm), and sitting in the drivers seat looking ahead, my eyes were level with the top of windscreen, blocking my view. Hopefully Toyota will sort this out before the car is sold in 2000.

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I did take a number of photo’s of the MR-S and other cars at the show, and I should get them back tomorrow, with luck. I’ll get them scanned in and drop them onto a webpage - I’ll post the URL once it is complete.

Cheers,
Ben Formesyn
’93 Jap Turbo

Ed’s Note: The WWW page with these pictures can be found at: http://www.btinternet.com/~netsurf/mr2t/bms98.html.