Toyota will do the coupe while BMW does the roadster.

by Wallace Wyss –

It’s a little risky talking about a car that is so far off but pictures of the new Supra are leaking out.

The big news is that this is a car made in combination with BMW, similar to the chassis sharing deal Toyota made with Subaru.

In this case BMW is marketing a roadster they call the Z4 and Toyota is going to make a coupe based on that car, but surprise, it will be powered by a BMW inline-six.

There are stalwarts, though, who say it should be powered by what they call a “legendary” engine, the 2JZ inline-six of the Mark 4 Supra.

Exact details are hard to get. It will have between 300 and 330 hp. It will go 0 to 60 mph in under 5 seconds. It will have a curb weight of “about” 3,300 pounds. For all of you who think sports cars need manual shifts, the only gearbox I find mentioned is a ZF 8-speed automatic, though a manual may be available if there’s enough demand to cause them to offer it.

By the way though it’s a German-made chassis and engine, the car will be made alongside the Z4 by Magna Steyr in Austria.

The coupe will be a car built for occasional track use, featuring such BMW bits as adaptive dampers, a shear plate stiffening the front end, 19-inch BMW-spec Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires (17-and 18-inch will be optional), and Brembo brakes.

Surprisingly though you would think the teams developing each car were in constant touch, reportedly the two teams don’t talk much so the cars could be pretty different, especially the interiors.

PRICE COULD BE TOO HIGH FOR TOYOTA NAMEPLATE

Pricing will be around $50,000. Which brings me to why I think the Supra failed in America in its previous incarnation. I drove the targa version of the last model imported to America to Laguna Beach and thought it a great car as far as quality, handling and workmanship but it was almost an insult that you got out of the car and saw that it still had a TOYOTA badge, the exact same one that was on $10,000 Corollas.

It was so high quality a car, I though it more deserving of the name Lexus than Toyota. I think back then, those who visited a Toyota dealership couldn’t believe a Toyota could cost $50,000! And though it’s many years later, they might have that problem again.

DESIGN CRITIQUE

FRONT

The big proboscis is back, and not only is that a retro move right back to some prewar French classics, but the sloping front hood even reminds me of a VW beetle. It has a double bubble roof. The front air intakes are big enough for a small fighter plane, but look well done, Ferrari Enzo-like, and let’s hope the public is getting used to this idea of no radiator cavity, when on some cars the radiator surround is the biggest identifier of the car (like Bentley) .

SIDE

The side sculpturing adds to the interest in the form, and the side scoop seems functional. A targa roof could be a later option.

REAR

The body shape-conforming built-in spoiler rises upward (not sure if it’s powered by the driver) but for a racing version they have already shown one that doesn’t move and is straight across. One rear shot of the street car from a South African magazine is confusing because you can’t see the extendable spoiler, apparently because it’s so tightly fitted when the car is at rest.

Toyota may have different exhausts for different countries. In this picture, it’s got exhausts coming out of the rear fender flanks but in a British magazine they were farther in, below the bumper, in the black area.

It is a hatchback, that will take a small amount of luggage, maybe one set of golf clubs to use the old comparison.

SUMMING UP

It’s a typical Japanese sports car, lots of busy little “design cues” from other cars. No single pure unsullied shape (like the Toyota 2000GT of many decades ago). But I still welcome the concept of two different firms taking the same chassis and working out such diverse approaches…

Let us know what you think in the Comments.

Wallace Wyss

 
 
 
THE AUTHOR: Fine artist Wallace Wyss has also served as a consultant to automakers, among them Honda, Toyota, and Ford. For a list of his car prints, write mendoart7@gmail.com