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Toyota Officially Teases New Supra, Should The Chevy Camaro Be Worried?

The long-spied, and long-awaited, fifth-generation Toyota Supra is nearly official. The brand teased a Supra race car concept heading to the 2018 Geneva Motor Show next month, and in the process, made the Supra name official. We’ve discussed this car before because we think it’s shaping up to be a proper Chevrolet Camaro rival.

In our previous arguments, we compared a fourth-generation Camaro to the fourth-generation Supra. While the latter was much more expensive in its day, the Camaro has shifted to a more premium and high-performance market. We live in a world where Chevrolet sells a $70,000 Camaro, after all.

2018 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE exterior 004 0

And the Camaro has gone from pony car to sports car and taken on the world’s best in the process. That pegs likely pegs the new Supra as a Camaro rival, even if the two couldn’t be more different.

Leaked specifications, sourced from SupraMKV.com, show a rumored BMW-sourced turbocharged inline-6 engine with 335 horsepower and 332 lb-ft of torque, an a 37-hp bonus overboost function. If the specs are true, the Supra will also weigh in slightly less portly than a 2018 Chevrolet Camaro SS at 3,284 pounds. The Camaro SS tips the scales at 3,760.

The major factor will be price, but we’re likely some time away from a pricing announcement. If Toyota prices the Supra right, it will be one more option for sports car buyers to consider. And competition is good for everyone—even the Camaro.

Former GM Authority staff writer.

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Comments

  1. No. Its more than likely going to cost more than an SS, possibly more than a ZL1, which will still render the Camaro the better per dollar buy.

    Reply
  2. No but it will be cheaper.

    This car will be like the Hyundai coupe. Big news at intro and forgotten in a couple years.

    Coupes are just a tough sell and to bring a new one with no V8 is even tougher. Toyota and Subaru 86 anyone the car many love but few buy.

    Reply
    1. Toyota and Subaru are selling plenty of 86/BRZ’s. The “rumor” that they aren’t selling is completely false. If they weren’t selling, they wouldn’t be in their 6th model year. The rumor was started by Gerald Killman, a European Toyota exec, and he was mis-reported because he was talking about general car sales in Europe, not the 86 in particular.

      From Patrick George at Jalopnik:
      “The twins are also selling better than many of their competitors, including more practical ones. FR-S sales typically trumped Volkswagen GTI sales, for example; while they aren’t direct competitors, they are similarly-priced sporting cars that probably vie for at least some of the same buyers.
      The FR-S is also doing much better than the more powerful, more expensive, less practical Nissan 370Z. Remind me again how a boost in power is supposed to save this car from failure?

      On Motor Trend H2H 86-vs-MX5, Cammisa confirmed the rumors were completely wrong and 86 sales are steady and consistent.

      For Oppenheiser: Sir, you do amazing work, I want one of your pieces of engineering art. However, I need much lighter weight for sport than near-on 4000lbs. You promised a lighter Camaro6, but it only lost maybe 200lbs. I was saved up and ready to buy a Camaro6, but when I read the weight figures, I couldn’t buy. Please seriously think about a dedicated single platform for the Camaro. The Corvette has one, and Toyota figured out how to sell a unique platform for $30K in the US, surely you can too.

      I bought an FR-S instead, and I have since been blown away by the quality and durability of this car. And no, it’s not weak under the bonnet, because I can use a tachometer and my right ankle actually works.

      Reply
      1. http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2012/05/scion-fr-s-sales-figures/

        They sold 6,846 86 last year.

        Global sales are all that are keeping it alive. Even then it came close to being killed when Scion died. There was true debate at Toyota about this.

        The 86 is not a threat to anyone but maybe a Miata and even then…..

        The truth is all coupes are on notice as sales are growing weaker. The Mustang and Camaro are now working to go global to shore up sales but even then it is tough. Dodge is reworking an old platform for all it is worth but at some point they will have to decide what they will do.

        I love the idea of the 86 but the market as a whole likes to sell vehicles in six figure numbers not 6,800 unless they charge more for them. The line it takes up unfortunately could make a CUV that sells in 20 times the number.

        It is not all about love for the car it is about making money at the end of the day and that hurts us as the enthusiast.

        Note 86 sales in Jan of this year 317 You may have a future collectors car.

        Reply
      2. I purchased a 2017 BRZ Limited Automatic for my daily rural and round about commute. Its fun to drive after work and gets good gas mileage. The retro interior reminds of my dads 60’s sports cars. A catback and a canned tune removed the dip in power.

        Reply
        1. For sure a fun car but just a segment most avoid anymore.

          Sad!

          Reply
      3. Just so you know, the BRZ/86 was a joint effort by Subaru & Toyota but Toyota only wrote a check as their contribution in the joint effort. The twins are 100% made by Subaru. The exact same thing will happen with the Toyota Supra and BMW Z5. They will be 100% BMW sourced, it’s just that BMW would have never greenlighted the project because this segment isn’t profitable enough to make a return on investment. They needed someone like Toyota to cover them with a big check.

        Reply
  3. As others have posted, the Supra is an inferior copy of the Camaro. It will sell just for Toyota fans that drink their sweeten saki, but for price versus performance and long life, the Chevy Camaro and the Ford Mustang beat the Toyota Supra always!

    Reply
    1. Seriously, a Stang is more reliable than a Toyota? (actually, you will probably be proved correct because they’re building this Toyota in the Magna Steyr plant in Austria where previously they made Jaguars and Land Rovers. Oh dear…)

      Reply
  4. Can’t tell much with that picture but i’m sure it will be ugly as sin like most of their stuff.

    Reply
    1. I can totally agree with u 1 million percent everything toyota makes is UGLY and STUPID

      Reply
  5. The hipster wannabe rappers that wear straight brimmed caps backwards will absolutely love it.

    Reply
  6. This is like the LFA or the FT86BRZWhateverwhocares, much hype, much stroking from the magazines, much delays and little interest.

    Whoa, a whole 335hp? That would be impressive….. if it was still 1998.

    Reply
    1. 335 is still more than the base 300hp porsche cayman. and it is only 15hp short the cayman s.

      Reply
  7. I think competition will be GTR and ZR1,

    Reply
  8. Don’t laugh it off to much. With engineering by BMW and Toyota quality, it will be a formidable automobile.

    Reply
  9. Rumors are it’s be a two seater (possibly to keep costs and weight down?), no manual, RWD and a possible performance hybrid with EV motors driving the front wheels either available after launch or for JDM only…BMW is not cheap so until we know those previous detail and the price it’s impossible to guess…

    The Supra has never had to compete with sub $30K WRXs, OEM 300ish HP Turbo-ed Camaros or Mustangs…For sub $40K you now have the STI and the 450ish HP V8 Camaros and Mustangs…There’s also the Vettes, Hellcat, Teslas, GTRs, etc…

    Reply
  10. yes, Toyota will make their supra competitive with the camero just in time for the 2019 refresh that will include a lt3 trim, possibly with a v8 and the potential to have the 6.2 in the SS receive some tweaks to lance back at the 2018 stang. too little too late in my opinion

    Reply
  11. Junk! Why bother if it’s not a v8 or twin turbo v6 400 hp plus

    Reply
  12. Depends on pricing and what the real world performance, and all that that entails, will be. Of course, what GM has up it’s sleeve with ’19 models and the 3LT pkg are the other unknown variables so only time will tell.

    Reply
  13. Just depends if Toyota effed up the styling. The 86 concept looks really good, but when it comes to production, it was such an disappointment.

    Reply
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