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2022 Toyota GR Supra 3.0 Premium – Review by David Colman +VIDEO


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2022 Toyota GR Supra 3.0 Premium

Pure driving pleasure at every turn

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David Colman
By David Colman
Special Correspondent to THE AUTO CHANNEL


Without question, the biggest buck you can bag in the ultra high performance sector is the GR (Gazoo Racing) Supra. At an all-in price of $56,910, you're also getting the best bang for that buck. With a 0-60mph time of 3.8 seconds, a quarter mile dash of 12.1 seconds at 117mph, and a governed top speed of 155mph, the latest edition of the turbo 6 cylinder Supra produces .44 Magnum power for a .22 Caliber price. Now lots of fast cars don't handle. And many fine handlers aren't fast. But the GR Supra defies convention because it's not only a slingshot in a straight line, but a hip-hop champ in the corners. You can buy this Toyota and use it to win local and national level autocrosses without spending a dime to throw a setup on it. That's because Toyota has already done everything you need to go fast. The only question is - are your reflexes quick enough to keep up with your Supra?


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On a stretch of really twisty road, you discover that the steering of the Supra is so precisely weighted that you must feed in just the right amount of lock to keep the car tracking through sequential apexes. The immediacy of the connection between hand and wheel is akin to what you would experience racing an open wheel formula car. It's exceptionally rare to find this synaptic feedback in a street legal car. The fact that Toyota has nailed the delicate nexus endorses their observation that "the 2022 GR Supra is driven by a single-minded focus on the feeling you experience behind the wheel. The GR Supra is ready to unleash pure driving pleasure at every turn." A lot of manufacturers of far more expensive sports cars routinely make this kind of claim. Very few can substantiate it with the kind of authority exhibited by the GR Supra.


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You may be familiar with Toyota's racing organization in the USA called TRD (Toyota Racing Development). This outfit has built everything from Indy cars to NASCAR stock cars, with a lot of off-road champions as well. Now the company is expanding their race slate by introducing the GR Supra as well as a new GR version of the Toyota 86. Gazoo is the name of the garage where Toyota racing projects originated back in 2008. Gazoo Racing is responsible for recent victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the World Rally Championship.

While that GR badge on the butt of the Supra may not mean much to the casual observer, it does in fact denote the company's total commitment to high performance driving. You sense that laser focus the instant you slip into the all-business cockpit of the Supra. With the possible exception of 2 beverage receptacles, there is nothing superfluous about the design of this fighter jet environment. The high backed race style seats fit snugly, the pedal box is small, the low roofline confining, the rear vision almost nonexistent. That's because the GR is all about fast forward, not slow backward.


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To be sure, the GR carries the usual parking alerts if you absolutely must back up, along with a full bevy of safety aids like lane departure warning with steering assist, pre-collision warning with pedestrian detection, automatic high beam control, and speed limit information conveyed on a head-up hologram. But to Toyota's everlasting credit, you can deselect any of all of these aids as you see fit. After all, when you’re clipping apexes, you don't necessarily want nor need a bevy of automated nannies squawking, blinking or otherwise raining on your parade.


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In particular, you will marvel at the incredibly high level of lateral grip generated by the GR's Michelin Pilot Super Sport radials which are mounted on forged 19 inch aluminum 10-spoke alloys. The front Michelins measure 255/35ZR19, 20mm narrower than the rears at 275/5ZR19. 13.7 inch, 4 piston Brembo front brakes coordinate aircraft carrier stops with 13.0 inch 2 piston Brembo rear brakes. All four rotors are ventilated, insuring long life at track days.


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The heart of the GR equation is its all aluminum straight 6 cylinder engine, long a Supra trademark. In its latest guise, the 3 liter unit makes 382hp thanks to turbocharging and intercooling. It even manages an impressive 25 MPG in overall driving duty. Although a manual gearbox is not offered in the Supra, the 8 speed automatic transmission gets the cog swapping done very nicely, especially if you slot the stick into manual mode and process gear changes via the paddles behind the steering wheel. We were especially impressed with the fact that this gearbox will not automatically shift up no matter how close you come to redline in a given gear. This kind of obedience is rarely found today, and a true measure of just how far Gazoo Racing trusts the driver to do the right thing at the right time.


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2022 TOYOTA GR SUPRA 3.0 PREMIUM

    ENGINE: 3.0 liter inline 6, aluminum block and heads, 24 valves, DOHC, turbocharged and intercooled
    HORSEPOWER: 382hp@6000rpm
    TORQUE: 368lb.-ft.@1800rpm
    FUEL CONSUMPTION: 22MPG City/30MPG Highway
    PRICE AS TESTED: $56,910

HYPES: Track Day Tool Supreme

GRIPES: Lack of Rear Wiper

STAR RATING: 10 Stars out of 10