The samurai in white coats at Mazda have not been sitting on their hands while their bosses and Fiat's Sergio Marchionne go through their mating ritual, which will inevitably give birth to an Alfa Romeo roadster with Mazda MX-5 genes.
In the meantime they gave the current MX-5 a serious beef injection, called the resulting prototype Yusho - the Japanese word for victory - and put it on show at the 2012 Auto Mobil International Show, now on in Leipzig, Germany.
The big deal is a severely modified two-litre MZR engine with forged Cosworth pistons and rods, a supercharger and intercooler, new fuel injectors, a very authoritative exhaust system and a radically remapped ECU.
All of which has taken its bottom line from 118kW at 6700rpm to 177 at 6800 and from 188Nm at 5000rpm to 274 at 5400 - boosting top speed to 240km/h.
Now do we have your attention?
The Yusho concept runs on 17” alloys shod with 215/45 semi-slicks, and uprated suspension with Eibar springs (shorter and stiffer than standard), Bilstein shock absorbers and thicker anti-roll bars.
It's finished in matte white paint with a custom boot-lid spoiler over a neat diffuser framing with dual central tailpipes; inside you'll find Recaro sport seats and a suede-wrapped steering wheel.
Nobody is saying whether the Yusho prototype will make it into production - or even if the hairdryer conversion will be offered as a an aftermarket kit. We can but live in hope…