# Toyota gt-86



## bmwman (Jun 11, 2008)

Test drove one over the weekend. Before I start want to clarify, I have owned and or driven the many cars from bmws to alfa romeos, mini's to mercedes. I currently own and drive daily an Alfa Romeo Brera 2.2 S/prodrive.

The Toyota GT-86 .....WOW. :doublesho

The drive, the gear change (short shift) the steering, the handling, the power through rev range. It has to be the best car I have driven in my entire life. 

I've called the Toyota Salesman every day this week, I'm trying doing my best to gather the money to buy the Toyota. I'm actually dreaming about it at night :driver:. The Mrs couldnt believe I was contemplating trading a top of the range Alfa for a toyota. After the test drive she told me to buy it! 
Its not cheap at £25,000 but I think its worth it.

Anyone own one or had a test drive? Any opinions on it?


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## mighty82 (May 13, 2009)

I like it very much. Havent driven one yet though. If i could get one for £25,000 I would buy it today. Unfortunately the prices start at £50,000 here.


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## Willows-dad (Jul 12, 2012)

A Friend of mine drove it at goodwood f.o.s. he loved it too. And it certainly looks the part.


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## 7MAT (Apr 14, 2006)

Looks one hell of a car! 

My brother has one on order in Dubai.


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## Fish (Nov 16, 2011)

Waiting for the STI version myself.

Fish


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## cossienuts (Oct 14, 2008)

a friend is a sales manger for toyota and has one she has promised to bring it round for me to try...not that i have any chance of being able to afford one


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## Bod42 (Jun 4, 2009)

You would have placed bets that this car would be good. The racing backround of Subaru combined with the refinement and build quality of Toyota. May have to go test drive one.


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## Focusaddict (May 31, 2010)

Nice cars but not much leg room in the back though.


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## wanner69 (Mar 14, 2010)

Looks very nice but needs to up performance, rather slow according to figures I believe


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## SteveTDCi (Feb 8, 2006)

I don't think the intention was to make the GT 86 the fastest thing in the world, with crowed roads and speed cameras all over the place Toyota should be congratulated for building something that can be used in the real world and provide fun.

If it had 400bhp how often realistically could you use all of those horses ? Its one of the reasons why i'm thinking of swapping the Cupra, its just too quick for the road.


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## BeeDubz (Mar 26, 2011)

I've just driven it ! Wow ! I was expecting a Hyundai coupe, cheap tacky plastics etc. I was stunned, it's got the quality feel of higher end cars and it drives well. 

Very impressed


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## bmwman (Jun 11, 2008)

BeeDubz said:


> I've just driven it ! Wow ! I was expecting a Hyundai coupe, cheap tacky plastics etc. I was stunned, it's got the quality feel of higher end cars and it drives well.
> 
> Very impressed


Thats how I felt. It really felt like a different class. Different to everything I've driven in the past. Lightweight yet it feels tight and clings to the road when you need it to. Certainly a car I'm looking to purchase. I was talking to a friend yesteray and said, if i was to win the lottery i'd obviously be looking at maseratis, ferraris, aston martins etc but I'd buy this toyota along with the rest because its that good.


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## Kerr (Mar 27, 2012)

SteveTDCi said:


> I don't think the intention was to make the GT 86 the fastest thing in the world, with crowed roads and speed cameras all over the place Toyota should be congratulated for building something that can be used in the real world and provide fun.
> 
> If it had 400bhp how often realistically could you use all of those horses ? Its one of the reasons why i'm thinking of swapping the Cupra, its just too quick for the road.


Reading the reviews the car comes alive when thrashing it to the limit.

I'm pretty sure the limit comes way beyond the speed limits of the country.

Any car including all the city cars can exceed the speed limits it is how you choose to drive it that gets you in trouble.

I'm not sure how to sum up this car. It is only warm hatch/family saloon performance and to get the best out of it you have to rag it to the limit.

Not sure I agree that a car you have to rag to the limit to enjoy is a sensible road car.


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## rob_vrs (Jan 4, 2012)

Iv test drove one 2 weeks ago and I'm in the exact same position loved it and dream about them haha, unfortunately skoda left me in a difficult position and with my new car only been 3 months ol im leaving buying one for a year or so, the car is simply unbelievable, like everyone has said its under powered however the noise and handling soon makes up for it and there is just enough power for the chassis its BRILL!!!


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## Fish (Nov 16, 2011)

Bod42 said:


> You would have placed bets that this car would be good. The racing backround of Subaru combined with the refinement and build quality of Toyota. May have to go test drive one.


I'm sure that Toyota have some sort of racing experience, so they have plenty of knowledge to draw from. Subaru's used to be very plasticy, but that was mostly the old Impreza's.

Fish


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## bmwman (Jun 11, 2008)

Kerr said:


> Reading the reviews the car comes alive when thrashing it to the limit.
> 
> I'm pretty sure the limit comes way beyond the speed limits of the country.
> 
> ...


Sometimes you shouldnt take what the reviewers say as gospel. Take a look at the engine, have a read about the new injection system. But also take in to consideration the weight of the vehicle. Trust me because the car is so well configured and set very low to the ground its feels alot faster than it is. Thats the whole point, its the enjoyment.

Importantly look at the cost effectiveness of it, lets take the tyres for example. Decent Tyres for my Alfa Romeo brera around £230.00 each. For the Toyota around £60.00 each.


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## Kerr (Mar 27, 2012)

bmwman said:


> Sometimes you shouldnt take what the reviewers say as gospel. Take a look at the engine, have a read about the new injection system. But also take in to consideration the weight of the vehicle. Trust me because the car is so well configured and set very low to the ground its feels alot faster than it is. Thats the whole point, its the enjoyment.
> 
> Importantly look at the cost effectiveness of it, lets take the tyres for example. Decent Tyres for my Alfa Romeo brera around £230.00 each. For the Toyota around £60.00 each.


I thought they choose Michelin tyres specifically for the handling characteristics?

Not going to get them for £60.


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## rob_vrs (Jan 4, 2012)

They ate same tyres as prius i believe, which will be like plastic so would of thought be cheap in comparison but thats what makes the car what it is using them tyres


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## Kerr (Mar 27, 2012)

rob_vrs said:


> They ate same tyres as prius i believe, which will be like plastic so would of thought be cheap in comparison but thats what makes the car what it is using them tyres


215/45 17 Michelin Primacy at £135 each.


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## bmwman (Jun 11, 2008)

Kerr said:


> I thought they choose Michelin tyres specifically for the handling characteristics?
> 
> Not going to get them for £60.


They come with Michelin Primacy 215/45 R17 at around £125.00 but you can get Toyo Proxes which I think are very good for around £80.00. So my initial £60 was a bit off the mark but if your going budget its possible.


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## Kerr (Mar 27, 2012)

bmwman said:


> They come with Michelin Primacy 215/45 R17 at around £125.00 but you can get Toyo Proxes which I think are very good for around £80.00. So my initial £60 was a bit off the mark but if your going budget its possible.


The whole point of the Michelin tyres was for the handling characteristics that people like.

No point buying one for the handling to put soft gripper tyres to change all that.


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## hibberd (Jul 5, 2006)

looks good...45,000 euro in bare version here


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## rob_vrs (Jan 4, 2012)

Kerr said:


> The whole point of the Michelin tyres was for the handling characteristics that people like.
> 
> No point buying one for the handling to put soft gripper tyres to change all that.


Yes thats the one, not as grippy but helps the feel and experience of the car.

I WANT ONE NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Posambique (Oct 20, 2010)

I have to say I like it.
It is definitely the best cheap sports car you can buy new at the moment.
I would need to buy the Subaru though, because I have a personal problem with Toyota - never mind.

Check out what Chris Harris has to say about it vs. Cayman S and 370z.

P.S. The interior is ugly with cheap plastics, but that´s not the point of the car


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## Ross (Apr 25, 2007)

I see two at my local dealers and I am very tempted to go and get a test drive.


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## Trip tdi (Sep 3, 2008)

They are expensive for what they are, reminds me of the old Celica, 200 bhp but the power weight ratio on the figures seems decent; but the designing of the gt is not cool in my books, they should of made it more sporty looking, just does seem right to me the design.

I find you can't beat a Honda s2000, great engines and machines on the road, especially when Mugen tuned.

One thing is though, Toyota had the brains for building a great Supra back in the day, they should least make a new Supra on the market to rival Nissans GTR, there is a market gap there for them.


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## Trip tdi (Sep 3, 2008)

I wonder how it stacks up on it's handling comparing to Honda Accord Type R, old cars, but the handling of them makes me smile plus the engine is very solid; still one of my favourite cars to drive, I'm tempted to sell my Golf for one of these.


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## Focusaddict (May 31, 2010)

hibberd said:


> looks good...45,000 euro in bare version here


I thought from review I saw in failtube there was only one version, fully loaded.


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## Ming (Oct 16, 2007)

An old guys view
My wife has had two celica's. The 2 litre vrsion and the 130 vvti.
both cars were/are under powered but because of the way they drive can and do stay with much more powerful company.
toyota just seem to get that bit right. Secondly they are FUN to drive. I have had all sorts of big powerful sports cars 300bhp plus, and the celica is still one of my favourite cars.
The /gt86 is just the next Gen Celica. 
Would i buy one?
If buying new was not an issue i would get on in a heart beat.
My mate has a 3.2 Porsche boxter and having driven the GT86 he also says it is the best car he has EVER driven and is about to swop.

A few point and they are not aimed at anyone and are just general points of view!!

1. Power does not a great car make.
2. A lot of people bang on about horse power as if they are track day hero's yet drive little turbo diesels with about 70 bhp and rely on other peoples reviews
3. Until you have owned a car with Circa 300 bhp and used it on a daily basis you are not really in a position to comment.
4. Power to weight, power delivery and handling are MUCH more important than outright power IMHO
Ming the courteous

PS I love the GT86 and will at some stage own one!


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## srmtor (Jul 12, 2008)

I must admit I'd not seen much about them until this thread popped up, I googled it and looks like a nice car to have some fun in!


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## SRI Chris (Feb 5, 2010)

any pictures of it ? 

from chris


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## Kerr (Mar 27, 2012)

Looks like a smaller 370z in many aspects.


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## Squadrone Rosso (Aug 11, 2009)

I'm a Brera owner - the very underrated 3.2V6 Q4 version. I too drove a GT86 on Friday & absolutely loved it to the point where I was about to abandon our Maserati GT or AM V8 Vantage aspirations.

Yesterday I took my Brera out on the same extended countrified test route to see if it still thrilled me. The answer was (with the VDC & ASR disables) a resounding yes, as long as I ignored the fuel consumption figure of 14.2mpg....lol

But, if my Brera got totalled, the GT86 would be right up there in the replacement hunt.

To note, we also run a 3.2V6 GT with a slippy diff as a fun car, along with a series 4 Spider & a 500 Twinair as a commuter


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## millns84 (Jul 5, 2009)

I've seen a couple of these around and they're stunning.

I'm thinking that maybe in 3-4 years, depending if I need a practical-ish car, I might get one.


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## andy665 (Nov 1, 2005)

Driven quite a few of them on road and track (Donington)

Styling is obviously a matter of personal taste and its not to mine - too fussy for me but others love it

Lots of 86 references throughout the car that just happens to tie in with the references back to the old Corolla GT (AE86) - 86mm bore and stroke, 86mm diameter tailpipes etc

Its absolutely not a car that is about maximum grip and 0-60 times, if thats your bag then its likely to disappoint - if you want chassis balance and adjustability then its a whole heap of fun, never driven a car that you can throw around and recover so easily

At Donington a fleet of them did over 20,000 miles and over 7,000 drifts with no tyres replaced or mechanical issues whatsoever

Apparently they are not selling well in the UK at all - real shame as its a fabulous drivers car


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## MK1Campaign (Mar 27, 2007)

Love the concept but that is one ugly mutha lol


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## Risk (Feb 1, 2012)

Lichfield had one to develop a performance pack and what I can remember with the upgrades and remap it only then made the power that they had quoted from factory and was about 175bhp before. They seemed to like it though.

Found the link:

http://www.litchfieldimports.co.uk/gt86_brz_performance.asp


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## Squadrone Rosso (Aug 11, 2009)

Fast forward 2.5 years since my above post and well, my wife ordered a new Blue GT86 yesterday. Metallic paint, JBL sound, Toyota touch & go Nav, full quilted heated leather, centre armrest & reverse park sensors.

As above, I drove one back in Oct 12 & loved it. The 2015 MY car adds extra kit FoC & the interior quality seems better too (not that I thought the 2012 car was bad).

Gone for manual (of course). Will replace her V6 GT but we don't need to sell it, but probably will.

Long wait now until July / August but we've got a track tuition session thrown in (exclusive to new GT86 buyers) which we'll do in May.

She's very excited but being a serial Alfista, pretty gutted that nothing Alfa does now or has planned comes close to meeting her needs


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## Squadrone Rosso (Aug 11, 2009)

One very happy lady.

From this:-










To this:-























































Alfa have 3 years to sort out a small usable Coupe.


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## Gav147 (Mar 20, 2011)

These are really growing on me, looks great in blue.


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