I have a confession: I can be a bit of a hater. When Toyota unveiled the fifth-generation Supra in 2019 as a 2020 model, I was rather vocally disappointed they essentially outsourced their most revered nameplate to BMW for development and production. The “Zupra” as it became known—on account of its underpinnings shared with the Z4—didn’t sound appealing to a JDM fanboy such as myself. At that point, I had never—and still haven’t—driven the legendary fourth-generation Supra, but Fast and Furious put those cars on a pedestal for me. Well, five years later, it’s time for me to put my foot in my mouth. Haters be damned, the 2024 Toyota GR Supra 3.0 is a fantastic car.
This particular example is a 45th Anniversary Edition model, one of only 45 produced exclusively for Canada. It’s finished in a fetching shade of orange, accented by a handful of contrasting accents such as matte black wheels, a gloss black side decal and calipers, and a raised decklid spoiler also finished in black. In essence, it’s not that different from the standard Supra, but if you like the cosmetic upgrades, being one-of-45 puts you in some exclusive company.
As my hater phase softened, the Supra’s look grew on me. It captures the essence of previous Supras—the headlights give off fourth-gen Supra vibes—and the bona-fide sports car proportions of a long hood, short rear deck, and low-slung shape overall make it damn near impossible to mistake this Supra for anything else. It looks absolutely nothing like on the BMW Z4 it’s based on; the 19-inch wheels look great and the GR-branded brake calipers add to the appeal. Out back, I love the two-positin spoiler out back, and the standard oversized diffusor has a neatly integrated reverse light and two proper-sized exhaust tips. My only miscues on the exterior are the fake vents; they can be made functional on race versions, so why not just make them functional to begin with? Nobody likes fake vents!
After you bonk your head on the unusually thick roof frame and settle in, the Supra feels rather dark and cramped. The black leather and trim throughout make sure of that; there’s some nice carbon fibre trim to help break up the sea of black, but the entire theme is dark—and BMW-ish. The entire interior is essentially pulled from the BMW parts bin, including the iDrive-based infotainment and 8.8-inch display, the central knob and switchgear, the steering wheel—even the warning chimes. The digital gauge cluster is unique to the Supra, however, and the rev counter dead-centre adds to the sportiness. The seats are very comfortable, and despite the low roofline, headroom isn’t that bad due to the double-bubble roof that carves out extra space for helmets. There’s no real storage space between the two front seats, as it’s taken up by a pair of old-school-looking subwoofers for the mediocre JBL sound system, but because the Supra has always been a hatch, there’s a surprising amount of space in the trunk despite being shallow.
But you don’t buy a Supra to haul gear—you buy a Supra to haul ass. And boy oh boy, does this thing get moving in a hurry. Credit the BMW-sourced 3.0-litre turbocharged inline-six engine known as the B58. There’s a reason it has a cult following not only in our offices, but the auto industry in general. Toyota was smart in picking the B58 because not only is it a proven powerhouse, it hearkens back to the famous 2JZ, which was also an inline-six. See? Just because Toyota outsourced the Supra, doesn’t mean they forgot their roots. The 2JZ put down a monstrous-for-the-90s 320 horsepower; the newer, more modern B58 churns out a robust 382 hp and 368 lb-ft of torque. I know that doesn’t sound like a heck of a lot more, but BMW tends to underrate their engines from the factory, and it certainly feels underrated here. It pulls hard, with gobs of torque available way low in the rev range. I only wish it either revved out beyond 7,000 rpm, or had slightly taller gearing, as the rev limiter comes at you fast.
But it’s all the more fun for it, especially with the six-speed manual. I generally dislike BMW manuals, but the Supra just gets it right. There’s usually a rubbery vagueness to BMW shifters, but the Supra gets it right, feeling as though Toyota changed out some bushings compared to the Z4. The clutch feels very BMW—springy and I assume attached to a heavy flywheel—because like most manual BMWs and Minis I’ve driven, it feels like there’s some rotational inertia that keeps the revs up when you clutch-in. That said, the Supra is nowhere near as bothersome as the Mini John Cooper Works 1 to 6 Edition.
The steering is typical BMW, in that there is no feel whatsoever. Yes, most modern cars suffer from this, but BMW tends to be more egregious than the rest. The Supra’s weighting is solid, though, and I love that even though it’s a BMW steering wheel, it’s thin-rimmed, making it feel like a bit of an older car. The suspension tuning is pretty perfect in Comfort mode, and like most cars, far too stiff in Sport. The perfect balance is everything else in Sport mode, and suspension in Comfort. Toyota did tune the suspension differently from the Z4 despite sharing parts, and you can tell. The Supra feels more like a sports car, whereas the Z4 a slightly softer (but still properly fast) grand-tourer.
The most shocking thing about the Supra might be how well it puts the power down. I expected it to be a little wild, but the 19-inch wheels and staggered Michelin Pilpt Sport 4S tires—255-section up front, 275s in the rear—do their darndest to stay glued to the road and seldom step out on you. Yes, if you want to be a hooligan you can, but the Supra is easy and rewarding to drive fast. It’s a fantastic back-road carver, and I can see why it’d be a good track weapon.
Although I received lots of compliments on the colour, I’m not sure I’d pay the premium for the 45th Anniversary Edition—not that you can get your hands on one, as they’re probably all sold out by now. A base, manual Supra with the inline-six starts at $69,500, and opting for the 45th Anniversary trimmings bumps it up to $77,220 as-tested—that’s roughly an $8,000 premium for paint, stickers, and a spoiler.
Do yourself a favour: go with the regular 2024 Toyota GR Supra 3.0, ideally with the manual, and put that money towards track days and tires. You’ll still have a heck of a time, because the reborn Supra is a bona-fide sports car that sits at the top of its class and does its famous ancestors proud. Even if it does have a whole lot of German DNA.
