The Miura Top Sport arrived in 1988–89 as a more rounded version of the X8 with substantial improvements: a Volkswagen AP 2000 engine, an optional automatic gearbox and, according to the marque’s history, the first anti-lock brakes fitted to a Brazilian car.
Miura Top Sport at a glance
| Maker | Miura, Porto Alegre, Brazil |
|---|---|
| Launched | 1988–89 |
| Based on | Miura X8 |
| Body | more rounded than the X8 |
| Engine | Volkswagen AP 2000 |
| Gearbox | manual, automatic optional |
| Brakes | ABS, a Brazilian first |
| Significance | the marque pioneered ABS in 1990 |
| Followed by | Miura X11 |
| Series production ended | 1992 |
The Top Sport has no article of its own; this page is based on one source, the Portuguese Wikipedia article on the Miura marque.
History of the Miura Top Sport
A softer X8
The Top Sport was one of the two big launches of 1988 and 1989, together with the Saga II. It was a more rounded version of the X8 but brought considerable improvements, starting with the Volkswagen AP 2000 engine. It offered an automatic gearbox as an option and, according to the history of the marque, was the first Brazilian car to have anti-lock brakes; Miura presented ABS as a pioneer in 1990.
The X11 and the end
At the end of its first phase, before it stopped building cars at the beginning of the 1990s, Miura launched the X11. It was a sales failure that hurt the company badly, since it brought no improvements over the Top Sport, and the reopening of imports meant that much of the public preferred foreign sports cars. Over 15 years Miura built about 3,500 cars and had to end series production in 1992, continuing until 1997 with luxury bodies built to order.
Design and features
- Anti-lock brakes: the first Brazilian car offered with ABS, a decade before it became common.
- AP 2000 engine: the larger Volkswagen unit used in the later X8, here as standard equipment.
- Optional automatic: a rare choice in a small-series Brazilian sports car.
- Rounded body: a softer interpretation of the X8’s angular shape with better detail.
Miura Top Sport versions
- Top Sport: the standard car with the AP 2000 engine and a manual gearbox.
- Automatic: the same car with the optional automatic transmission.
- X11: the model that followed with no improvements over the Top Sport, a commercial failure.
The Top Sport followed the X8 and sat above the Saga. More cars from the marque are in the Miura collection.
Video: Miura – Saga, Top Sport e X-11 – Lançamento da Linha 91
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Miura (automóveis), Portuguese Wikipedia: launch, engine, automatic gearbox, ABS, X11, end of production
