2020 Toyota Supra: Passion and torrid torque out of the box

After its long-awaited debut at this year's Detroit auto show, the Supra has officially returned to Toyota's lineup. Powered by a twin-scroll turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six engine from BMW combined with an eight-speed automatic transmission, the 3,397-pound 2020 Supra generates 335 hp and 365 pound-feet of torque. With a low center of gravity, wide track and short wheelbase for crisp handling, the 2020 Supra boasts a 50-50 front-rear weight ratio and body rigidity on a par with the carbon fiber Lexus LFA. Here's a roundup of snippets of Supra reviews from the automotive media.

"I haven't had a go at the BMW Z4 yet, but I did some tire-shredding in the GR Supra on the Shenandoah Circuit of Summit Point Motorsports Park in West Virginia. The out-of-the-box tune feels a bit heavy (3,397 pounds) and a tiny bit underpowered (335 hp and 365 lb-ft), but fabulous — very refined, precisely and impeccably balanced. With the car's computer-stability features turned way down for track time, it was also easy to pitch around corners, sliding sideways, with a lot of steering input and tire squawling. Confirmed: The GR Supra can do a hero drift out of the box.

"However, after a couple of laps paddle-shifting from second to fourth gears — thud-bwwingggAHH, thud-bwwingggAHH — it became obvious how much car lay underneath the factory's civilian settings. Put some tires on and take some weight out and this car would make an excellent sports racer."

-- Dan Neil, The Wall Street Journal

" ... I can hang the tail out around any corner I choose. With that medium traction control mode engaged, the Supra gives about 15 degrees of slip before the ECU and diff move power around and straightens me out. Under hard braking, too, where a normal short-wheelbase car gets skittish, the electronic locking differential which basically works like a torque vectoring system, keeps things in control.

"It's not race car stiff. In fact, it has more of a slight Mazda Miata lean. Twist the wheel, the tires start to sing, then wail, then give up. It's not overpowered, and it's not under-tired like the 86. Changes of direction are smooth, with a split second of lag. It's all very predictable, enjoyable and repeatable. That suspension give also makes it a sweetheart on less-than-perfect public roads."

-- Jake Lingeman, Autoweek

"I thought that driving the Supra would help me realize some of these worries are non-issues, but that's not what happened. Instead, I drove the Supra, and I really did enjoy it: it steers well, it handles well, it's surprisingly quick given the power and I personally love the way it looks -- I think it's stylish and handsome and modern and a big departure from the more restrained look of the Z4. I've previously said the Supra is the less attractive of the two cars, but I take that back -- I think it's the Z4.

"But there are several issues I couldn't get past, and the biggest one is the transmission. Several times during the press launch, Toyota told me that the goal for the Supra was to rival the Porsche Cayman and Boxster -- cars that offer manual and dual-clutch automatic transmissions. So why, then, does the Supra only offer a torque converter automatic? A Toyota presenter said the transmission is "almost as fast as a dual clutch," and I almost let out a laugh. Why not just use a dual clutch, then? More importantly, I think the lack of a manual shows that this isn't quite the sports car this could've been, as serious drivers -- especially at this price level -- do still want manual transmissions, proven by the fact that Porsche still offers them (and sells them) on its mid-engine cars.

"There's also the issue of performance. The Supra drives very well -- it handles well, it's sharp, it's quick enough. But it won't blow the doors off anything. Back in the day, the famed top-end Mark IV Supra Turbo competed with the Nissan Skyline GT-R -- and now, the GT-R has something like 600 hp and does 0-to-60 mph in under 3 seconds. The Supra is a long way from remaining competitive."

-- Doug DeMuro, Autotrader

"We're instructed not to switch stability control completely off, to trail-brake into the turns, and to roll judiciously onto the throttle. Indeed, all those driving-school techniques provoke textbook responses in the Supra sans drama or surprises. The steering is extremely precise and nicely weighted, though it lacks the intimate communication of the Cayman Toyota is gunning for. Stability intervention is pleasantly surreptitious. And the super-strong Brembo brakes survive lap after lap after lap without fade, even as we all learn to press deeper into each of the closely spaced corners. Then during a later afternoon session, when we've probably used up 280 of the tires' 300 tread-life rating, I even manage to string together a couple of very nice, controllable corner-to-corner drifts. I emerge, sweaty but smiling.

"Once the red mist subsides and we take to the country lanes surrounding Summit Point, the car's Sunday-drive demeanor proves equally delightful. The 12-speaker 500-watt JBL system cranks out the jams, the ride quality in Sport mode is sufficiently compliant to encourage leaving the car in this 'fun-exhaust' mode, and when zipping through a series of S-bends with your phone on the Qi wireless charger, a cover and sufficient fencing keep it from flying into the passenger footwell."

-- Frank Markus, Motor Trend

"For one, the ride is much smoother and more compliant than most performance BMWs have been lately, which addresses my chief complaint about those cars. The Supra is a much more comfortable car to drive over bad roads than any M car without giving an inch in handling prowess.

"Then there's Sport Mode, a giant button (much appreciated here) which transforms the Supra's behavior more radically than just about any other modern non-supercar I've driven.

"It's not a subtle thing: this mode changes the engine, gearbox, steering mapping, firms up the active dampening and greatly amplifies the exhaust sound."

-- Patrick George, Jalopnik

"The net result is a car that can hop from zero to 60 mph in just 4.1 seconds and then scream on up to 155 mph before the electronic limiter steps in and slaps the back of your wrist.

"While I wish I could say I explored that limiter in the production Supra, my drive took place mostly in Virginia, a state where the local law has a tendency to skip the wrist slapping and throw people right in jail for speeding. So, I largely used the road portion of the drive as an opportunity to set the cruise control and, well, cruise.

"Boring, perhaps, but this is a vital function for the Supra. While it is a sports car, it's meant to be an everyday kind of thing. It must be comfortable and practical and, winding through the scant hills around Virginia, it proved exactly that. My first fear was that the low-profile, 19-inch tires would result in some awful ride quality and road noise. I was pleasantly surprised to find neither in excess.

"The suspension, on normal mode, is compliant and the seats soft. Likewise, the exhaust is mellow in the default setting and the transmission sedate. I wouldn't call it a relaxing drive, but with the adaptive cruise and the active lane-keep assist systems enabled, I could definitely see myself covering big miles in a Supra without complaint."

-- Tim Stevens, Roadshow by CNET

"The Supra's turn ins are sharp and immediate, and the Sport setting gives you an unflinchingly firm feel as you start to rotate the car. It pirouettes nicely if you're driving a clean line, and you're able to just hear a hint of squeal from the Michelins as you fire out from the apex onto the curbing. There's no body roll, even at some ridiculous yaw angles, thanks to electronically adaptive gas shocks. It just flings in, when and where you want it to. The Brembo stoppers chomp down hard, especially at the end of spirited runs down the long back straight, when the speedometer can display 125 mph if you're really on it. There's no drama when you dive deep, even though there's just a floating single piston employed in the rear. The confidence gives you freedom to brake later, and the nimbleness of the chassis means you can correct mistakes mid-corner, should you come in a little hot."

-- Sean Evans, Robb Report

"Physics also plays a role. At nearly 3,400 pounds the Toyota is closer to a V-6 Camaro than the 2,888-pound Cayman. As a result, the Supra has more mass to control through corners and is jouncier over severe road undulations. Indeed, the Supra's speed (117 mph at the end of Summit's back straight compared to 98 for the Toyota 86) and whippy handling mean some drivers will prefer Toyota's tidier, 201-horse brother.

"Give the handling medal to Porsche — but give the passion prize to Supra.

"That passion is underlined by the inline-6. The single-clutch eight-speed transmission doesn't match Cayman's sophisticated dual-clutch tranny, but it's so good you won't miss the lack of manual option. It keeps you in the meat of the 6's torrid torque band all the time."

-- Henry Payne, The Detroit News

"On the road section of the drive, about an hour's run through winding hills and four-lane highway, we found the car's suspension, ride, and quietness to be typically Toyota-comfortable while still implying the performance potential lying just below the polished surface. It's a fine passenger car, but then so is pretty much everything sold today, so no surprise there."

-- Nelson Ireson, Automobile