- First global GR model from Toyota Gazoo Racing
- Modern design ‘evokes Toyota’s sports car heritage’
- 250kW, 500Nm, straight-six turbo engine
DETROIT, Michigan – An all-new Toyota GR Supra, the fifth generation of Toyota’s legendary sport car and the first global GR model to be produced by Toyota Gazoo Racing, has debuted at the North American international auto show here.
Toyota says in its media pack it was conceived as a sport car in its purest form to continue the heritage of previous Supra generations and the 2000GT sport car with its classic layout of a front-mounted, straight-six, engine driving the rear wheels.
”Driving enthusiasts can look forward,” Toyota says, ”to an exhilarating blend of power, agility and precision handling thanks to the car’s combination of short wheelbase and wide track, light weight, low centre of gravity, and highly rigid body.”
EIGHT-SPEED AUTO
The three-litre engine and its twin-scroll turbocharger can make 250kW/500Nm to pass on through an eight-speed auto transmission to the rear wheels.
Toyota Gazoo Racing (bakkies from Toyota SA are racing now in the 2019 Dakar desert race) says it was instrumental in honing the car’s performance with extensive testing on the Nürburgring Nordschleife and surrounding roads in Germany in order to achieve the most agile, stable and rewarding handling. Further testing was also carried out on roads around the world, including in Australia with chief engineer Tetsuya Tada.
To be certain that the car delivered on its promise, Toyota president Akio Toyoda put it to the test at the Nürburgring in his role as a master driver before giving it the final green light. Toyoda said he had developed his craft as a master driver by spending countless hours driving an old Supra at the Nürburgring.
SA LAUNCH IN 2019
He said: “Even though Toyota had no plans to make a new Supra I secretly wanted to make it happen, just like a lot of other die-hard Supra fans around the world. The new GR Supra was born through testing at Nürburgring – it’s fun to drive and better than ever.”
The new Toyota GR Supra will be launched in South Africa mid-2019. All vehicles will be built in Graz, Austria.
