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The fuel trims have greatly helped drivability and the car is easier to control at traffic crawling speeds now. Once properly underway, it feels much like before except there is response to a decent prod at any speed in any gear. It almost never needs flooring - just a good prod and the speed builds quickly, something I remember my supercharged Honda doing. I honestly wouldn't want or need more power than this. It's very well matched to the chassis. Will report on average mpg once the gauge has settled into a near-final reading.

Good to see you guys, thanks for coming. Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk

Well all I can say is thoroughly great day out, thanks for arranging Vad and nice to see all who came along. Pic posted on FB. Paul here are those pictures of the 2 new Honda models. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Supra review 5th October 2019 Well, so much hyperbole, ‘the legend is back’, ‘fifty years of heritage’, ‘racing DNA’, the first global car by Toyota Gazoo Racing, Toyota’s rebranded motorsport department. Then there is the now legendary status of the A80 Supra with Smokey Nagata at the wheel driving at 197mph on the A1M at 4am in the morning. No pressure then? Much talk has been made of the collaboration with BMW and as is the way these days collaborations are extremely common in the car industry. Remember the Toyota/Subaru one with the GT86/BRZ? That turned out alright didn’t it? The new Supra shares its basic platform in terms of running gear with the BMW Z4, but there are a lot of differences with the most obvious one being that the Supra has a roof and the Z4 does not. Plus it looks so much better. They both share the reworked BMW B58 engine which Toyota improved upon and whilst to the die hards it isn’t a new ‘2JZ’ it is a 3 litre turbocharged straight six. This is a well liked engine with 340bhp though some tests of production cars by tuners have seen up to 380bhp and 369lb/ft of torque, though 500nm as in the spec sheet sounds more. At around 1500kg it’s no lightweight but par for the course for a car in this sector. As we shall find out, it’s not lacking in torque. This car is fully loaded with every conceivable option and many will be relieved to find Apple Car Play in a Toyota. Good news, I think. There were too many options to fully appraise when I only had the car for an hour, but as the only car available for test drives in the whole of the North West this would be something of a taster to gain initial impressions. I didn’t play with the sat nav, turn the stereo on or try out the adaptive cruise and lane assistance options. My mission on a cool and slightly damp morning in Macclesfield was to focus on what it drives like and how it feels. Getting into the car it feels similarly low to the GT86 and the driving position feels familiar. Nice and low and with the electrically adjustable seat I’m soon in a good driving position. I ponder if the accelerator pedal is a centimetre further to the right and note it being hinged from the floor. Richard from RRG Toyota Macclesfield tells me to try ‘comfort’ mode in full automatic as we head through Macclesfield. As I pull away from the lights I notice the throttle is soft in response and accelerates smoothly with no hint of what the power figures suggest. It feels a bit lazy to me, which is I suppose ideal if you’ve got no sensitivity in your right foot, but I prefer a sharper response. Solace is found in the ‘Sport’ button. Much better, it even holds gears longer which is uncanny. As we head out towards what used to be called Fools Nook and with a higher speed limit, I ease the throttle down. Wow, does it go. I’m pushed back in my seat, but soon have to ease off for traffic ahead. It gives a tantalising glimpse of what is to come. I note the seats are comfy and after the first few corners, the steering is direct. The control weights feel much as the GT86. That extra 300kg is well compensated by that powerhouse of an engine. We turn left at Boseley and head up the A54 on the uphill in the direction of the Cat and Fiddle (Buxton Road). At last a clear road ahead of me, so I push the throttle to the floor in second, I’m already in manual mode. Wow, it’s quick, really quick, one gear comes after another and I joke to Richard that I better think about trying the brakes as we head into the tricky double right left chicane before snicking up the hill on an unseen left. This is Macclesfield so predictably there’s a small stream crossing the road ahead of us mid-corner. I’m on sticky Michelin Super Sports. No matter though, reminding myself this car is a bit precious and registered to the managing director of RRG, caution wins. The car feels surefooted and has a nice direct feeling front end. We push up the hill and soon catch a straggler who after a time opts to pull over and let me past. This car has some presence on the road. The A54 has a lot of crests and dips. I push hard along these trying not to get airborne, and the car copes with compressions well, the undertrays remaining as good as new! The damping is good and the car feels controlled, no float and whilst we are in Sport mode, we are in normal mode for damping which is probably a good thing on a road such as this. There is zero slop in the suspension and as I push hard into an uphill left hander, the car feels direct and well connected. What dominates the experience is the power. Perhaps it’s because I’m used to a whole 213bhp and half the torque of the Supra that I am constantly gobsmacked by the mid range torque of this car. It flies and the rate it piles the speed on constantly impresses. What I do notice and perhaps this is due to the shorter wheel base compared to my GT86 is that the Supra responds, really well, but feels like it may be a little more of a handful when the rear does let go. I didn’t turn the stability control or traction off on this drive given it was the only available demonstrator in the northwest, but I could feel it cutting in as I applied the throttle mid corner interrupting my progress and making it feel like I’m point and squirting the car down the straights in-between corners. Given the power of the engine, it’s making the Cat and Fiddle feel a bit too tight and twisty. It’s almost as if it craves some long fast sweepers where I can properly load the suspension and get it to work a bit longer. I’m desperate to try adjusting the throttle mid corner but here I feel like I’m either on it or off it, again stability aids making it feel a bit too binary for my liking. Thinking about it more, as the wheels are smeared with 275 wide rear tyres and 255 up front, with these super sticky tyres it’s not easy to exploit the handling and response on a dry road. I need more time behind the wheel to try out the features properly, play with damping modes and it would be interesting to see what it feels like on a wet road. One thing that has not come to mind is the turbo. There doesn’t really seem to be any lag with pushing the throttle, there’s no wait for a response. Whilst I would prefer a more sensitive throttle, this is probably more about my conditioning with my super sensitive throttle on my own car. The engine is very responsive, but perhaps it’s the mid-range torque that really dominates, though it does run freely to the limiter if you’re brave enough. The Supra just simply decimates roads like these, shortening the straights and bringing the next corner to you at an ever increasing rate. My mind is trying to process it all. I should also add that I didn’t try automatic mode as such, though I was really impressed by the speed of the upshifts using the paddles, I was probably in too low a gear a lot of the time, trying to remember I have eight gears to deal with rather than six. User error I admit, but there is a lot going on when you have a lot less time to think between corners! With the Cat and Fiddle road bullied into submission by the Supra, I ease off and try to collect my thoughts. This would be a nice car to live with. The interior switchgear will be familiar to anyone who owns a current BMW and this is no bad thing. It feels in a different world compared to the hard plastics in my car and well, one would have to expect that given it’s twice the price. The infotainment systems are obvious BMW and there are a myriad of functions. I admit I was a little too busy driving to get a chance to try everything out. There is also a nifty head up display showing speed limit and speed, though I put the seat on its lowest setting so couldn’t see it, though it can be adjusted I’m told. I like the dash with the central tachometer. Why don’t all cars have this, speed is always secondary to revs after all. I’m finding it a bit difficult keeping an eye on the digital speedometer, it would be better placed in the middle of the rev counter I think, but that’s reserved for what gear and drive mode the car is in. It’s probably a matter of getting used to these things though. The seats are nicely supportive and feel better than the seats in my GT86 which are really good. I like the feel of the controls and thinner steering wheel is a nice touch. Visibility is good, though at first I’m drawn to the huge chunky A pillars and small windscreen. Five minutes behind the wheel though and I’m not noticing it. Visibility from the rear view mirror feels a little like looking down a tunnel with the long rear windscreen framing the view, though there is a very good reversing camera that does apparently stop you hitting things as well as highlighting any points where you are close. There’s a decent boot as well, though the shape of the opening would restrict bulky items. Having no rear seats helps though. As my drive nears its end, I’m given a lot to think about. Wow, that engine, the power, the ease with which you can make other cars disappear in you rear view mirror, the effortless overtaking, the way in which it pushes you back into your seat. If you’ve had a bad day, you could instantly improve your mood with one deft shove of the accelerator. I never felt like I could really properly assess the handling, which such high limits of grip and the stability control putting me on the naughty step. I absolutely understand that in a car with this kind of power how a less experienced driver could quickly find themselves in a whole lot of trouble very quickly in this car if it allowed more slip. Also with the short wheelbase, you will have to be quick to catch it. I think it will remind me more of driving mid-engined cars where opposite lock has to accurate and quickly applied. Things such as these I want to explore more. The Supra is enticing me to come back as there is unfinished business here. When RRG Macclesfield have their own demonstrator I look forward to getting to know this car better. I like it, a lot. Familiarity with this car makes me like the looks more. I love how it's got it's own look with a really obvious link to the MKIV Supra and bringing the old badge back.

Shhhhh don't go telling everyone......

Great review Lauren! I'm hoping to get my hands on one soon for a Youtube/video review which will be exciting. The more I look at a Supra the more I need/want one!

Nice review! Not really my kind of car, but great to see Toyota bringing more sports cars, just need a new MR2 now.

Thankyou for your review Lauren. Personally having driven it at the Thruxton event both on road and track whilst I agree with you about speedometer placement in general I didn't problem find it a problem in the Supra as I really liked the HUD.

Thanks for that Lauren,great review. Can I point out that you can have that very same engine/gearbox combo in the M140i...something to be considered when you think how little you need to pay for one of the last of these compared to a Supra. However,having briefly owned one, I can say that the rest of the M140i (i.e just about everything other than the engine and box) was distinctly average...and no doubt way below the attributes of the Supra, certainly it seemed to have too much power for my talents and UK road conditions! If I was in the market for a Supra I would have to sample an M2 Competition first (similar engine and gearbox again)...but I'm not,so I'll carry on debating what to do/when I'll do something about the GT86's torque dip...next year,I hope!

Forgot how little traffic there is early in the morning on a Sunday. Well early 😂

Hi @Twigman, I had my screen replaced by Autoglass and they peeled it off by carefully sliding a razor blade or something similar down behind it, they had to do that twice too as the first replacement screen I had fitted was substandard and the black finishing strip on the A pillars wasn't parallel all the way along the side of the screen, ended up having to insist on a Toyota screen and one of their better fitters (they grade them internally apparently) to fit it. I seem to remember that when I asked the first windscreen fitter about removing the DAB aerial he said that if it broke when he did it it wouldn't be covered by their insurance as he was doing me a favour, might be worth checking this out before you have the windscreen replaced.

I don't have access to a hosepipe, nor the space to store a machine to properly spray foam onto my car, so I bought a pump bottle sprayer, using the correct ratio of 1-5 as indicated in the instructions on the foam. I knew it wouldn't be the same, but figured at least I could spray the foam on there. Well, it really didn't foam up at all, it just came out in a fine mist, but I figured it was ok. It didn't really coat the car thickly as it should. It just sort of dripped. So, I let it sit for about 10 minutes then rinsed it off with a jet wash (there is one at a Sainsbury's near me). The effect was that it left streaky/veiny marks in my paint and the black bits. I rinsed it again, and wiped it down with Meguiar's Detailer spray and a good microfibre, but the marks are still there. They do seem to have faded on the body, except for the door handles, but the black parts, especially on the wing mirrors are ruined. I'm rather pissed off, needless to say. Does anyone have any suggestions? Is there any way to rectify this or is it a lost cause?