Which Mario Kart game first introduced the coin mechanic?

Super Mario Kart was the first Mario Kart game to introduce the coin mechanic.

In the original 1992 SNES game, coins are placed along competitive race tracks. Driving over one collects it, increasing the kart’s top speed. Coins also provide a small defensive benefit: when a kart is hit, having coins can reduce the impact to losing coins rather than immediately spinning out. Falling off the track or being struck by certain attacks can also cost coins.

The mechanic helped make racing lines matter. Players had to decide whether to take a safer route or move toward a coin line for a speed advantage. Later Mario Kart games retained the idea but changed the details, including the maximum number of coins a racer could carry and how strongly coins affected speed.

Super Mario Kart was released in Japan on August 27, 1992, and was the first game in the series. It began as a two-player racing prototype inspired by F-Zero before Nintendo added Mario characters. The coin mechanic is sometimes confused with later coin-focused modes, such as Coin Runners, but the basic collectible coin system originated in Super Mario Kart.