2023 Toyota GR Supra

BY DREW DORIAN

Overview

Toyota's halo sports car, the 2023 GR Supra, delivers enough excitement, style, and drama to make up for the brand's more sedate sedans, hatchbacks, and SUVs. Developed and built alongside the BMW Z4 convertible, the GR Supra offers similar build quality and simpler—but still handsome—interior materials inside. The entry-level 255-hp turbocharged four-cylinder provides ample power, but we can't help but adore the ferocious, optional 382-hp turbocharged 3.0-liter BMW inline-six that makes this two-seater fly. Rear-wheel drive is the only setup, and the GR Supra's sure-footed chassis and sharp steering enable it to come alive on twisty roads and race courses. Sure, it may borrow a little too heavily from the BMW parts bin for some Toyota fanboys, and its sweptback exterior design creates some awfully large blind spots, but even so, the GR Supra remains one of our favorite sports cars. It's a driver's car and an enthusiast's delight,

What's New for 2023?

Toyota, surely spurred by the outcries over the GR Supra's lack of a manual transmission, has added a six-speed stick to the menu for the 2023 model year. The manual will be available as a no-cost option with the more powerful turbocharged 3.0-liter BMW-sourced inline-six and will be standard on a new special edition called the A91-MT model. The A91-MT will be limited to just 500 examples in the U.S. and will come in either matte white or matte gray paint with a brown-and-black two-tone interior. Other changes to the GR Supra lineup for 2023 include revised tuning for the suspension and steering systems and the introduction of a new driving mode called Hairpin+, which allows additional wheelspin on one of the rear tires to help rotate the GR Supra around ultra-tight, hairpin turns.

Although there's little driving emotion lost with the four-cylinder GR Supra 2.0, we think the ripping acceleration of the six-cylinder 3.0 is worth the added cost. We'd skip the Driver Assist package, which adds adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, and a lane-keeping assist system that's more annoying than useful. The new six-speed manual offered with the 3.0 model costs the same as the automatic and is a no-brainer. Every GR Supra comes with a one-year membership to the National Auto Sport Association sports-car racing sanctioning organization and a complimentary day at a high-performance driving event. And just think: The money you save by not purchasing the Driver's Assist package can go towards additional track time and fresh rubber.