Toyota GR86 (2022), why buy it and why not

Today it is one of the most beautiful cars to drive. It is pure driving pleasure, and even inside it is well done except for details

The Toyota GR86 has just arrived on the market but is a strong candidate for the title of the most fun car to drive. The beauty, however, is not only that it is engaging to drive, but also has a competitive price considering what are the standards of today.

It is a small coupe, aggressive, while inside it is rational and tailored to the driver. It has a manual gearbox, rear-wheel drive and a limited-slip differential as standard: let's find out together in this Why buy it!

Pros and cons

Let's enjoy these cars as long as we can. The GR86 is the last of its kind and there will be no more Toyota exactly like it as production will be stopped from 2024 and the lucky owners will have a car with a value destined to grow. This little Japanese is pure expression of driving pleasure for those who combine fun behind the wheel with rear-wheel drive, manual gearbox and lightness. Chapeau.

Dimensions, trunk and space

The Toyota GR86 has  quite compact dimensions  : it is less than 4 and 30 meters long, less than 1 and 80 wide and 1 and 30 low. To have sports proportions, however, you are comfortable inside as long as you travel in two. The trunk then with 276 liters of minimum capacity is roomy, in line with the category average.

A few more can also be obtained by folding down the single backrest of the rear seats and, in this way, the surface obtained is completely flat and well usable, a detail that is not found even on the most famous sports cars. The access mouth to the compartment is rather narrow but the space is regular in the shapes and, underneath, there is a double bottom where the inflation kit or any tools can be stored. There is no 12V socket as well as no rings and hooks.

Behind there are two single seats as the car is approved for four. The space is reduced to the bone and, if the driver exceeds the meter and 85 in height, rest assured that not even a child will be able to take place behind. As on all 2 + 2s, these seats are not designed for two adults and can be handy in emergency situations or as an extra trunk when traveling.

Dashboard and controls

Soft or premium upholstery materials are not expected from a car designed to ensure maximum driving pleasure and fun in curves , and the Toyota GR86 is no exception. Just get down on the seat to immediately feel at ease: the triangulation between seat, steering wheel and pedals is perfect and all the controls are close at hand.

The air conditioning is not integrated into the 8 " infotainment screen  and is managed by three large and comfortable rotors, while the seat heating is activated from the central tunnel and the driving modes are changed. The upholstery is almost all in plastic except for the the upper part of the door which is soft and the assemblies are of a good standard. Some details could have been treated with more attention, such as the steering column cover, the bulkhead in the lower part of the central tunnel or the lever for activating the cruise control on the steering column These buttons could be integrated into the steering wheel.

For a car of this size and category, the GR86 makes good use of the interior space : in the center of the tunnel there is a retractable compartment with two cup holders, two USB sockets and one AUX. There are pockets in the doors - which is not to be taken for granted - and the glovebox in front of the passenger seat is also roomy.

How it goes and how much it consumes

There are two categories of people: those who when it comes to Toyota bring up the Yaris  and efficiency, and those who immediately think about driving pleasure, the Gazoo Racing sports cars like the Supra or the GR86 of this test. . It is the direct evolution of the GT86 which was already one of the funniest small coupes of all: the power has increased and the engineers have worked to remedy the small chronic defects from which it suffered by succeeding in a big way. But let's start with order.

The GR86 is a car that many of the lucky owners will use every day and, if you are athletic enough to get in and out without problems given the "baseness" from the ground, you will have a great time. The driving position is simply perfect, the controls have the right consistency - the clutch is medium heavy and the steering wheel has an optimal load - and the engine is springy. The visibility is good and parking is also very easy: there are no sensors but they are not needed; the rear-view camera instead is standard and that's it and advances.

But let's see what exactly the Japanese engineers have done to evolve a product that was already of a very high level. The frame of the GR86 has been reinforced using ultralight materials so the car is lighter, 50% stiffer and has a lower center of gravity. The beating heart then, the engine , is always aspirated and maintains the same cylinder block as before but has a larger displacement resulting from the increase in the bore, the diameter of the internal section of the cylinder.

It is a 234 hp 2.4 four-cylinder boxer developed exactly like the six-speed gearbox with Subaru. Compared to other aspirated, it does not always have to be kept in the red zone to perform at its best because it reaches peak torque already just above 3,500 rpm and has no gaps up to 7,000 - which was one of the GT's weak points - also because the the diameter and length of the manifolds have been specifically designed to ensure this continuity. All things considered, it has standard power but, when you step on the right pedal, it is a fury and the recovery is also excellent.

Therefore, you should not always be downshifting but you will still be tempted to play with the ratios because the manual gearbox is a pleasure. The lever has a short stroke and the grafts enter surgically both uphill and downhill even when the pace is increased while driving. Performance is good because this GR sprints from 0 to 100 in just over six seconds with a top speed of 226km / h but inside it feels like it's going faster. Too bad for the sound: inside it is amplified by the speakers of the audio system while outside it is rather anonymous. But nothing that cannot be remedied immediately after leaving the dealership.

But back to the original question: how is it to drive? Is she the coolest little sports car to drive? Yes, yes and again yes considering all that this GR86 is able to offer overall. One of the elements that we liked the most is certainly the set - up because it is not as rigid as one would expect from a sports car and it is also comfortable on the holes. The suspension has a MacPherson pattern at the front, with a double wishbone at the rear, and this allows for fantastic support in the front - even pulling it never understeers - with the rear that behaves differently depending on what you want.

If the goal is to go fast and not waste a second, the GR86 lends itself perfectly to a clean and smudge-free ride but, if you prefer the dirty one, it will follow you in the same way. Entering sharp corners and playing with load transfers - or giving throttle while driving - it is a moment to make it oversteer . The striking thing, however, was not so much this ease but the naturalness with which it is possible to control the skid. It is communicative , it speaks to you, it is as if it warns you what it is about to do.

You can feel how the rear gradually widens, giving you plenty of time to play with the steering and decide the angle of departure, with this progressivity which is also thanks to the limited-slip differential  standard on all GR86s. The intervention of the electronic controls can be adjusted by playing with the various driving modes: by putting the Track, the most thrusting one, the electronics are less invasive but still present, leaving room for fun but is always ready to intervene. This GR, however, is appreciated more with the controls completely detached, the only way to fully enjoy the excellent balance of the frame.

We conclude with two notes: the steering is the element that convinced us the least despite being an excellent command. It's precise and direct but, for example, compared to a Mazda MX-5 , it feels like the feedback is slightly filtered by the electric power steering. The second instead on the brakes: they are powerful and resist well even to intensive use thanks to the low weight of about 1,250 kg.

Consumption chapter : in the city, in intermediate traffic conditions, you drive just over 9 km with a liter of petrol, 12 and a half on the motorway at code speed and almost 17 in extra-urban. All this for an average of just under 13 km per liter which corresponds to about 7.7 liters per 100 km.

Prices and competitors

To take home a Toyota GR86 you need just over 34,000 euros . The engine is unique, the 234 HP boxer, while the set-ups are two with a difference between them of 2,500 euros. The top of the range can also be combined with the automatic transmission for another 2,000 euros more.

The GR86 has no direct rivals considering that, at this price, it is the only rear-wheel drive coupe of this size. The most accredited competitor is the Mazda MX-5 2.0 which is smaller, costs more but has the advantage of being chosen in a double variant of bodywork, spider or targa. We must then necessarily go up in price and power and here we find the Alpine A110 , the sister Toyota Supra , the BMW Z4 and the Porsche Cayman .