There are a few 1990s cars referred to as "The poor man's Ferrari". The Toyota MR2 (SW20) certainly deserves it, as despite not costing nearly as much as a Ferrari, it bears striking resemblance to the Ferrari 348. With that being said, Toyota did offer a version of the MR2 that was capable of humiliating both the 348 and the F355 that came after it. TRD – Toyota’s racing division – did with the MR2 exactly the same thing they did with the Supra. They built 35 highly modified, wide-body MR2 cars, dubbed the TRD 2000GT. And now, one of them is about to be auctioned off.
Technocraft is said to have offered optional performance enhancements. It is believed that at least one of the 35 TRD 2000GT cars has that Technocraft treatment, which gives the mid-engine car 500 horsepower. It is unknown how many cars have performance enhancements. The current owner claims he has restored the car and that it has a heavily modified 2.2-liter stroker engine.
All 35 cars (according to some – 37) have unique VIN numbers, like the TRD Supra 3000GT, and are designated as a TRD 2000GT. There are plenty of replicas too, but occasionally an original pops up for sale. This is one of those rare occasions. This particular example is a 1995 and according to the VIN number is “Number 35” –largely believed to be the last TRD 2000GT ever built.
The car has been enjoyed a lot as it has 149,000 miles on the clock, accompanied by a worn-out clutch. We think it’s a small price to pay for getting your hands on a rare JDM icon. The current bid at the moment is only $13,750, which is about what a low-mileage MR2 Turbo goes for. The car will be auctioned off later this month.
