Japanese two-seater for the UK?

I was in Japan primarily to attend press day of the Tokyo Motor Show. But the mood there was grim, mainly because everyone bar the local car makers – Honda, Toyota, etc – had pulled out for cost-cutting reasons. Scores of hacks milling about with nothing much to write about was good news for a tiny Japanese firm called Suzusho, which was giving a world debut to its latest two-seater, the Supasse (above). Tipping the scales at just 850kg, it weighs less than a Lotus Exige S and is powered by the 2.3-litre turbo unit from the Mazda 3 MPS. The name is an abbreviation of super-passer, as in ‘excellent overtaker’ and it’s priced at nine million Yen (£60,000). The Supasse is launched in Japan next year and while the boss talked the talk about bringing it to the UK, I wouldn’t hold your breath. Judging by the questionable build quality of his show car, he’ll be busy keeping Japanese customers happy for a while.