The 2020 Toyota Supra is Finally Here, and It’s Oh So Good
We waited for it, we heard all of the rumors, we cheered when it was officially announced, and now it’s finally here: the 2020 Toyota Supra. It will arrive in showrooms in July. Was it worth all of the trouble and the wait? So far it seems that “yes” is the most likely answer.
“This is not a car we needed to make,” Jack Hollis told a group of reporters before they went out to test the Supra for the first time. “This is a car we wanted to make.”
The Supra is arguably Toyota’s most famous car, and that’s saying a lot given that the automaker’s lineup also includes the Prius, the best-selling hybrid of all time, and the Corolla, the best-selling car of all time bar none.
The Supra owes its popularity to a lot of things — the ridiculously robust 2JZ engine, its incredible tuning potential, its appearance in the first Fast and Furious movie where it shames a cocky Ferrari driver — but one thing has always remained constant for the people in charge at Toyota: For years, they’ve been asked when they would bring it back. And so, 21 years after the death of the Mark IV Supra, they did.
Related: Why should you buy a Toyota?
This time around, the Supra has no back seats. Toyota says it simply wouldn’t handle the way they wanted it to if it did, and it has quite an ambitious handling target, as the Porsche 718 Cayman S was its primary development benchmark. It has a 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine built by BMW, which makes 335 horsepower and 365 lb-ft of torque. Some people seem to think that’s low, but it’s probably underrated in typical BMW fashion, and it works well in the Supra’s chassis. Make no mistake thinking this car isn’t very fast.
Weight distribution between the front and back is 50/50, power goes to the rear wheels only, the full torque kicks in at 1,600 rpm, and weight is just under 3,400 pounds. All of this helps the Supra launch from 0-60 mph in just 4.1 seconds, making it the fastest stock Toyota-branded car ever. Enthusiasts will be sad to see it has no manual option, but the ZF8 gearbox the Supra does use is the best torque converter-based automatic in the business.
Related: Check out Toyota’s other sports car, the 86
According to Toyota, the Supra is sharper and sportier than the BMW Z4 alongside which it was developed. “One’s a cruiser and one’s a sports car,” Hollis said. It offers tremendous but accessible track performance. It’s eager to get sideways and when you straighten up again, rewards you with a symphony of snarls and pops you might be surprised to hear from a Toyota.
It’s doubtful that it can keep up with a Porsche 718 Cayman S at the track, but we don’t think it actually has to. After all, it does start at nearly $20,000 less.
It’s almost unfathomable that any car could possibly live up to the hype the Supra generated, yet those who have driven it seem to have almost nothing but good things to say. Now that’s impressive.
The News Wheel is a digital auto magazine providing readers with a fresh perspective on the latest car news. We’re located in the heart of America (Dayton, Ohio) and our goal is to deliver an entertaining and informative perspective on what’s trending in the automotive world. See more articles from The News Wheel.