Here’s a thing you don’t see every single day: A supercharged MX-5 Miata project automobile at a German auto display. Mazda is calling the 1-off Miata the Yusho, which is Japanese for “victory.” Victory is proper, as this potent MX-5 most likely could win a stoplight battle or two.  It is constructed largely from readily obtainable components, and was debuted at the Leipzig car display in Germany. The supercharger kit comes from American Miata-tuner Flyin’ Miata, and ups the MX-5’s output from 167 hp to 237 torque increases from 140 lb-ft to 202. Aside from the blower, the two.-liter four also gets a modified ECU, new injectors, and Cosworth pistons and connecting rods. The Yusho’s go is further aided by a sport exhaust system, a beefier clutch, and a shorter final-drive ratio.

To help the MX-five Yusho turn even better—the stock vehicle is pretty good, if you didn’t already know that—Mazda fitted Bilstein shocks, Eibach lowering springs, and thicker anti-roll bars. A set of semi-slick Toyo tires wrapped all around dark gray 17-inch aluminum wheels round out the dealing with upgrades. Cosmetically, the MX-five Miata Yusho is relatively tame. There is a matte-white entire body wrap, carbon-fiber-look rear diffuser, and the aforementioned dark-finished wheels. Within, a pair of leather and faux suede Recaro sport seats encounter a suede-wrapped steering wheel.

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Even though it’s unlikely Mazda will put a automobile like the Yusho into production, the motivated out there can snag most of the exact same stuff a la carte and build a facsimile themselves. For inspiration, we suggest you check out the photographs beneath.

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The Mazda MX-5 Miata offers one of the purest and most enjoyable modern roadster experiences—just look at how much fun these guys are having. Recently, rumors have been popping up that Mazda will add purity by drastically cutting the car’s weight in its next iteration, some suggesting a 2000-pound target, while others claim engineers are aiming for 1760 (that’s 800 kg). We asked Mazda for confirmation and were told “don’t believe everything you read.” We pass the same advice onto you. Except keep reading this, please.

The current Miata weighs around 2550 pounds, so such reductions would be, at best, difficult to achieve. Mazda’s own attempt at a lightened, current-gen Miata came in the form of the Superlight concept, which weighed a claimed 2200 pounds. And that’s without a windshield. Or a top. It also used copious amounts of carbon fiber and would therefore be prohibitively expensive.

As we understand it, the company hasn’t yet decided what form the next Miata will take. That said, Mazda has recently recommitted itself to improving efficiency with its new, lighter Skyactiv engines, and to add further lightness through the use of more high-strength steel. We can expect any MX-5 successor to be more fuel-efficient, and likely lighter, but expect a drop of 50 to 100 pounds rather than 500 to 800. While not quite as exciting, those figures are more realistic, and we wouldn’t mind if the Miata didn’t change much altogether.

Mazda’s bringing its prodigal son of the seminal Elan back to its spiritual home of Blighty’s racing circuits in the guise of the MX-5 GT, destined for the Britcar MSA British Endurance Championship. The lightness-added, horsepower-increased racing machine’s said to accelerate to 60 in three seconds and top out at 160 mph, using that Chapmanian formula of modest power and hair-tearing sacrifices to Saint Leggera.

Okay, the power isn’t too modest. The team at Jota Sport have turned in a car that pumps out 275 hp and weighs in at 1870 pounds—about a quarter-ton less than a showroom-fresh MX-5. Despite the acid-dip job that shaved 33 pounds from the bodyshell, Jota claims the car’s body still comes in 17 times stronger than the FIA’s minimum mandate. Other changes: The Mazda’s famously snicky shifter’s been swapped for a pair of paddles connected to a six-speed sequential gearbox, the engine’s been dropped lower in the chassis for a more favorable center of gravity and the steel doors have been replaced with carbon-fiber units.

The GT’s baptism of fire takes place this weekend during the three-hour race at Silverstone, piloted by Mark Ticehurst and Owen Mildenhall. It marks the fourth time Mazda’s entered the nine-race Britcar series.

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