Fuel cell fun? 2023 Toyota Mirai given the GR Sport treatment, but will it really happen?

Are hydrogen fuel cell-powered performance cars something we could see in the future? Toyota still doesn’t seem like it’s giving up on the FCEV dream, and its latest nudge at that space is a little spicy.

At the recent Super Taikyu Fuji 24 Hours, Toyota showed up with a couple of cars to display, one of which being the 2024 Crown Sedan FCEV. But paired with the Crown was something more unexpected - a second-generation Mirai FCEV with GR Sport kit.

A couple of Youtube channels, including LOVECARS!TV! where the screengrabbed images accompanying this article came from, conducted walkarounds of the GR-modded Mirai at the event.

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Redesigned bumpers, extra black trim and a rear spoiler are key changes on the GR Mirai along with larger black alloy wheels, but since Toyota hasn’t put out a press release to explain the car, it’s likely just a visual ‘look what we can do’ show car. For now, at least.

The standard Mirai has a 650km range thanks to a 5.6kg (or 141 litres) hydrogen tank, with an electric motor driving the rear wheels with 134kW/300Nm.

Toyota executives even here in Australia still mention hydrogen as a potential alternative to the full-BEV path that most brands have adopted.

Key changes on the GR Mirai include larger black alloy wheels. (Image: LOVECARS!TV!)

“Whilst we don't have concrete plans on anything beyond the Mirai,” Vice-President of Sales and Marketing Sean Hanley told CarsGuide earlier this year.

“We're certainly exploring opportunities with hydrogen, hydrogen fuel cells, hydrogen conversion, all of these things are on our agenda of testing and trialling to see the practicalities.

“The only thing stopping hydrogen right now, in my opinion, is infrastructure.”