To put the lie to those who think that authentic driving sensations are only for overpriced or old-school thoroughbreds, Toyota presents an unexpected and pleasant GR86. On the menu: propulsion, naturally aspirated engine and manual gearbox. First contact with a pre-production model.
Would the pleasure of driving now be reserved for a certain elite, necessarily demanding to sign a six-figure check to afford a thoroughbred automobile? In order to prove the contrary to us, but also not to leave the Alpine A110 and the Mazda MX-5 alone in the world on the niche of old-style small propulsion, Toyota replaces its GT86 coupe with a new model called GR86.
Thus, after the GR Supra and the GR Yaris, the GR86 has just added to the brand’s sports catalog. A catalog that can make Peugeot and Renault jealous (among others!), Whose sports cars are leaving the ranges due to a necessary drop in CO emissions.2 of their models. In this regard, Toyota has much more leeway due to its investment for more than twenty years in the hybrid. Developed by the Gazoo Racing department, like the Supa and Yaris GR, the GR86 will arrive in France in May 2022. Note that, if the units used during our test are still covered with camouflages, they remain very close to the series. Moreover, the car is already distributed on the North American and Japanese markets (photo below).
The same only better
Taking the same technical basis as its predecessor, this GR86 appears quite close visually and displays almost unchanged dimensions. At 4.26 m long, this coupe remains smaller than the vast majority of compact cars, while its height is reduced by 10 mm (1.31 m), allowing the center of gravity to be further lowered. Increased use of aluminum, especially on the roof, front fenders and hood allows to partially compensate for the weight of the new equipment of the car (in particular of safety), while the torsional rigidity increases by 50% compared to the GT86. And if the weight has increased slightly (1,275 kg empty announced against 1,239 kg for the GT86), it remains below the 1,300 kg mark.
Under the hood, we find the famous four-cylinder flat with its bi-injection system (direct and indirect). However, this one sees its displacement increased by 20% thanks to an increase in the bore from 86 to 94 mm. While its stroke remains at 86 mm (making it possible to justify the name of the car), this block therefore falls into the “supercar” category, and its power now reaches 234 hp (against 200 hp on the GT86). More interestingly, the torque is also progressing and above all is available much earlier in the revs, going to 250 Nm from 3700 rpm, while the 205 Nm of the GT86 claimed to reach 6400 rpm. This less sharp character is accompanied by a significant increase in performance, with a 0 to 100 km / h announced in 6.3 s (7.6 s previously), while the weight / power ratio also improves, reaching 5, 45 kg / ch against 6.19 kg / ch on the GT86.
Toyota GR86 price
The Japanese manufacturer has not yet stopped the prices of its car, but it promises a measured increase compared to its predecessor and lets imagine a starting price around 35 000 €. The most worrying for future buyers of this “old school” coupe concerns CO emissions2 formalized by the WLTP cycle, not very lenient with atmospheric engines, and thus the resulting penalty. On this point, Toyota is hardly under any illusion and suggests that the penalty could reach 50% of the price of the car (capping in 2022), or around € 17,000, while the 200 g / km bar of CO2 should be reached. In total, it is at least 52,000 € that you will have to pay to be able to afford this GR86. Hard … As a reminder, the GT86 was billed at € 32,490 at the end of its career and “malussée” to the tune of € 7,851 in 2020 (191 g / km of CO2), for a total cost of € 40,341.
Driving
The first impressions aboard the GR86 happily recall its illustrious predecessor. Already, the Toyota coupe is one of those rare cars in which, rather than getting in, you descend in order to put your seat at ground level. The specific bucket seats envelop the driver well and support him admirably, contributing to the excellent driving position. The almost vertical steering wheel displays the ideal size, the small gear lever falls perfectly to the hand, always proving to be just as pleasant to handle, while the legs are, for their part, well horizontal. The steering appears impeccably calibrated and offers an extra feeling through its consistency and precision. Thus, thanks to its controls which approach a certain ideal, the GR86 already provides an unusual satisfaction, while we cover the first few meters at low speed. But that’s not really a surprise, as her predecessor excelled in this area.
The first acceleration turns out to be more surprising, however. While the GT86 was often criticized for “running out of juice” and forcing its driver to whip it because of its very high torque, we discover here a mechanism whose range of uses has been greatly optimized. Not reluctant to resume from 2000 rpm, the flat-four then reveals an unprecedented aggressiveness at around 4,000 rpm, and this, until one goes to type in the switch, beyond 7000 rpm. The car becomes both more pleasant to drive on a daily basis thanks to this greater flexibility, but it also clearly gains in sportiness. If the sound is optimized, by being partially broadcast via loudspeakers, it nevertheless retains a rather natural tone and never becomes intrusive. The gearbox staging appears to be very coherent and perfectly in keeping with the more “full” character of this mechanism.
Of course, if the GR86 is more comfortable than its predecessor to tackle the straights, his favorite area remains the series of turns, in which she always shows a delightful liveliness. The front end plunges to the rope without hesitation, while we feel the rear accompany the movement, well helped by the action of the mechanical differential. And, as with the GT86, the happy slips of the hindquarters are still on the program. All you have to do is press one of the two buttons located at the base of the gear lever: the first activates Track mode and partially disconnects the anti-slip, the second completely deactivates it.
A few laps of the track at Castelloli, near Barcelona, allow us to take the measure of this GR86 a little more and finally convince us of the merits of all the improvements made. Thanks to its vitamin cure, the car is no longer afraid of the great outdoors. The apprentice pilot can always launch into beautiful slides with surprising ease and thus have the impression of having become a pro drifting! Note, however, that the Track mode is much more permissive than the old Sport mode and that the tolerated drift angles are already quite large. To meditate on the open road.
Unlike the GT86, which was necessarily fitted with standard tires (the same as those of the Prius) as standard, two types of rubber will be available on the GR86: the Michelin Primacy HP mounted on 17-inch rims and the sportier Michelin Pilot Sport 4 in 18 inches, which fitted our test models. Finally, if the damping has been strengthened compared to the old model, in particular to match the enhanced performance level, this does not appear to be detrimental in terms of comfort, overall preserved and sufficient for daily use.
On board
Competetion
As was already the case for the GT86, the Mazda MX-5 remains the main competitor of this new GR86, especially in its RF version. Like the Toyota Coupe, the Miata retains all the elements of an authentic accessible sports car : propulsion, manual gearbox, naturally aspirated engine and above all a driving feeling that really involves the driver. In its version 2.0 of 184 hp, it is billed at € 35,800 and should be penalized in 2022 by a minimum penalty of € 1,504. The recent second-generation BMW 2 Series, although more bulky (4.54 m), can also compete with the Japanese coupe. However, to have real propulsion and run on gasoline, you have to choose the 220i of 184 hp, whose four-cylinder is turbocharged and necessarily associated with an automatic transmission. A proposal that departs a little from the small, old-fashioned purist coupe and which asks for € 41,800.
On the French side, the competitor is called Alpine A110. Basically much more expensive than the Toyota, it is ultimately not that much if we include the penalty, because much less penalized in this regard. Indeed, the A110 Pure claims 58,400 €, to which it will be necessary to add 1,172 € of malus in 2022 because of its 152 g / km of CO2. In total, the French would ask for € 59,572 (not counting a possible price increase) and would therefore not be much more expensive than the GR86. Remember that, despite an almost equivalent power (252 hp), the A110 is lighter and much more efficient than the Toyota (1,103 kg and 0 to 100 in 4.5 seconds announced for the A110). The Porsche Cayman, although it starts at € 58,010, is much more severely affected by the penalty, with a minimum penalty of € 18,905 in 2022.
Find the test report and the technical sheet on the next page.
