26 <strong>Selwyn</strong> <strong>Times</strong> Wednesday <strong>March</strong> <strong>31</strong> <strong>2021</strong> Toyota Supra – return of a true icon I KNOW MY son regrets selling his Toyota Supra. You see, it was a rare targa top model, twin turbocharged and it had had a manual transmission conversion. He still talks about that car with much enthusiasm, and from my time driving it I can recall it was a ferocious, wild beast, hard to tame but immense fun at the same time. It was one of the last Supras Toyota made, until now. Well, you could be forgiven because the new Toyota Supra isn’t entirely a Toyota, it’s been developed in conjunction with BMW and even gets a BMW engine. What’s more, the sleek, sporty, very desirable body shell sits on a BMW Z4 platform and is built in Graz, Austria. I’m not knocking that concept, and it’s not the first Toyota collaboration that has been successful, take its 86 sport coupe, it was shared with Subaru and has gone on to claim healthy sales amongst a wide buyer demographic. The Supra, though, is something else. It’s a car for those who want a little more grunt in their sports car purchase, and being built under the influence of Toyota’s vast manufacturing machine you can guarantee it’s going to last you for many years to come and will be totally reliable along the way. Much like it was with my son’s Supra, it was bullet-proof, no matter how hard it was driven. The newcomer is a touch of class, its looks stunning, low, sleek and sharp and is every inch the desirable two-seater coupe you would expect wearing that badge. Under the skin there’s no mistake it has a lot of BMW input, the controls, displays and materials are much the same as you would find in other models from the German brand. Nevertheless, I’m hooked. It’s the best of both worlds really. The Supra lands here at $98,990, and to me that’s a bit of a sports car bargain, the evaluation car was a limited edition high spec variant that added an extra $1000. Buyers of the Supra will also want performance, and I’m pleased to report that the 3-litre engine is true to the design of the past. There are six-cylinders boosted by a twin-scroll turbocharging arrangement. Toyota claims power outputs of 285kW and 500Nm, the torque figure available all of the way from 1800 to 5800rpm. If these outputs look familiar, yes they are the same as Z4 and the 340i wagon that I evaluated in these columns recently. I recall saying that engine was an absolute dynamo in terms of strength, it is responsive and constantly wanting to work hard. The Supra will lunge from a standstill to 100km/h in a blistering 4.1sec, and will push through a highway overtake in 3.8sec (80-120km/h). These are quick times and will satisfy any driver who likes to feel the urgency of a genuine sports vehicle. What’s more, the engine is quiet and smooth, it howls a little towards the redline but that’s a traditional six-cylinder characteristic, and a Supra buyer would like to have the sound of energy. Drive is through an eight-speed automatic gearbox, there are few surprises there, quick, clean shifts are on offer, and there are paddle shifters if you want to change manually. Power is then channelled rearwards, and the feel you get from that is traditional, there’s something about the push you get from the rear wheels and, for that matter, the Supra delivers a forceful feel and sitting almost above the rear axles all that movement and feel is delivered to the driver. I took the evaluation car on my favourite Canterbury high EYE-CATCHING: Low, sleek lines of the new Supra compares well to the 1999 Kiddie-owned targa top. • Price – Toyota Supra, $99,990 • Dimensions – Length, 4379mm; width, 2026mm; height, 1292mm • Configuration – Sixcylinder, rear-wheel-drive, 2998cc, 285kW, 500Nm, eight-speed automatic • Performance – 0-100km/h, 4.3sec • Fuel usage – 7.7l/100km country run. The Supra feels tight on the road and although the spring and damper rates are firmish there is still on board compliance, you don’t get tired or sore sitting in it for long periods, it just feels so right, it is balanced and controllable. Sure, there are extensive traction control systems, but they aren’t put to the test. Huge rear Michelin Pilot tyres (275/35 x 19in) have grip in abundance and it’s actually quite hard to make the rear playful while turn-in up front is direct and feedback of what the tyres are doing in relation to the road surface is TOYOTA SUPRA: BMW technology used throughout. communicated fully. Powering out of some of those tight corners, the rear squats and grips,propulsion is mustered in quickly, and if you need to stamp on the brakes for the next corner a premium Brembo system generates huge stopping force. You could well be excused for thinking all of this fun comes at the price of fuel use. Instead, you may well be surprised, Toyota claims a 7.7-litre per 100km combined cycle average, much the same as BMW claims with the Z4. My time with the test car was surprising given I did explore high revolutions on many an occasion, it went back to the dealership showing 8.6l/100km on the readout. For the record, at 100km/h the engine is turning over at just 1600rpm, merely sipping fuel at the rate of just 5l/100km. There’s nothing quite like the feel of a turbocharged sixcylinder engine, I’ve hung on to my trusty old Toyota in the event finances would allow that to become a project whereby I could afford to hook a turbo kit onto that engine, it’s the same design as my son’s old Supra. I’ll never be able to afford a new Supra, but I consider myself privileged to have had a week with the evaluation car, it certainly is something very refreshing and is a car you would never tire of. However, you may tire of the attention you will receive, never before have I been in a car that has received so much comment and adoring looks.
Wednesday <strong>March</strong> <strong>31</strong> <strong>2021</strong> <strong>Selwyn</strong> <strong>Times</strong> 27 CHRISTCHURCH MITSUBISHI 386 Moorhouse Avenue, Christchurch Tel: 03 379 0588 | christchurchmitsubishi.co.nz 10 year / 160,000km Powertrain Warranty (whichever comes first) (non transferable). 5 year / 130,000km New Vehicle Warranty (whichever comes first) (non transferable). THE ALL-NEW NAVARA IS HERE Stock available for immediate delivery The New Nissan Navara range is HERE. It’s tougher and more rugged than ever before with an enhanced level of safety, comfort and advanced technology. Models available to drive away today! Contact us today to book in a test drive. Example Dealer *Arriving late April Pro 4X * ST-X ST SL CHRISTCHURCH NISSAN, 380 Moorhouse Avenue, Christchurch Dealer Ph: 03 Address 595 6820 Dealer www.christchurchnissan.co.nz Phone christchurchnissan.co.nz
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