Nissan: An Affordable Sports Car Can't Just Be a 'Spicy Sentra'

A low-cost two-door Nissan might still be in development

written by Steven Ewing
edited by Kathleen Clonts
4/14/2026
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What's new: Nissan is still considering building a small, affordable sports car.
Why it matters: This would give Nissan a proper competitor for cars like the Mazda MX-5 Miata, Subaru BRX and Toyota GR86.
Edmunds says: We'll believe it when we see it.

— Yokohama, Japan

Rumors of a reborn small Nissan sports car have been circulating for more than a decade. And while company CEO Ivan Espinosa still won't outright confirm that such a vehicle is in development, he assures us that, if this sports car does come to fruition, Nissan "will do the right thing."

"If I want to make an affordable car that is sporty, instead of making a spicy Sentra, I will probably go and make a Silvia — a real affordable sports car," Espinosa said at a press conference in Japan.

For those unfamiliar, the Nissan Silvia was a compact coupe sold in Japan, which was exported to the U.S. and rebadged as the 200SX. Hypothetically speaking, a modern Silvia would compete with low-cost sports cars like the Mazda MX-5 Miata, Subaru BRZ and Toyota GR86.

Reports of a reborn Silvia have been bubbling up ever since Nissan showed the IDx and IDx Nismo concepts at the Tokyo Motor Show in 2013. Espinosa himself has hinted at production versions of these concepts coming soon — possibly before the end of this decade — but won't officially confirm that a small sports car is in the pipeline.

"I'm not saying I will do it," Espinosa reiterated. But we won't un-cross our fingers just yet.

by Steven Ewing

Steven Ewing is Edmunds' director of editorial content. An automotive journalist for more than half of his life, Ewing's been on staff at Winding Road magazine, Autoblog, Motor1.com, CNET, and he was the U.S. correspondent for Top Gear magazine. He's also contributed to publications like Automobile magazine, Car and Driver, The Drive, Jalopnik, Porsche Panorama, and more. Ewing has worked in the automotive industry since 2003. From testing prototype cars in the Arctic Circle to spilling a beer on a Formula 1 driver at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (oops), he's always got an interesting story to tell.

edited by Kathleen Clonts

Kathleen Clonts has worked in the automotive industry since 2014 and has copy-edited thousands of vehicle reviews and stories about cars and the auto industry in that time. Kathleen is the Edmunds editorial team's copy chief and previously worked as the senior copy editor for Automobile magazine.

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