2025 Toyota Supra Road Test

Related Forbes Story: https://www.forbes.com/sites/kbrauer/...

Toyota Supra Configurator: https://www.toyota.com/configurator/b...

NOTE: At the end of this video I refer to the engine as naturally aspirated but of course it's turbocharged.

It’s Karl Brauer and here I am standing next to what I consider one of the few holdouts in the ever-shrinking world of true driver's performance cars. This one being of course a Toyota Supra. This vehicle includes not only an inline 6 with 382 hp and the option for a 6-speed manual, still in today’s world, plus an 8-speed automatic. But also really some of the best driving dynamic you’re going to find in a modern car. We know that it shares a lot with the BMW Z4, and you can kind of tell when you’re sitting inside the car, but the driving dynamics and the exterior styling are very distinct to Toyota and the Supra. And it comes very well equipped and works out very well from a drivers perspective.

The 2025 Toyota GR Supra 3.0, as it’s officially called, has a starting price of $56,250, not including the $1,095 destination charge. That’s the starting price for a base model with the 3.0-liter inline 6 and the 8-speed automatic. Choosing the 6-speed manual doesn’t cost you a thing, but adding the Safety and Technology Package Plus JBL (yes, that’s the full name of the package) bumps the price $2,960. For that money you get blind spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, parking sensors, a 12-speaker, 500-watt JBL audio system and wireless Apple CarPlay. That’s on top of standard Supra 3.0 features like dual-zone automatic climate control, 19-inch forged aluminum wheels, an adaptive suspension, heated seats, forward collision warning, lane departure mitigation, and automatic high beams.

The pricier 3.0 “Premium” trim starts at $60,920 with destination charge, and includes many of the Technology Packages items as standard equipment. Enthusiasts looking to get into a GR Supra for a lower price will be disappointed to learn the 2.0-liter, four-cylinder version has been dropped for 2025. That model was available for about $45,000, and had sufficient power to satisfy most enthusiasts. Though why Toyota didn’t offer the smaller engine with the 6-speed manual is a quandary, and might explain why demand was so low for the smaller engine model that it’s been killed off.

The power from the inline 6 is almost addictive. It remains one of the best designs for an engine in terms of balance and smoothness and broad torque. We’re down to a rare breed with a car like the Supra, in that it does have the manual shift. And you can go for the automatic if you want the quickest zero-to-60 and lap times. But if you want to take full advantage of what this car represents, which is a great drivers car, then you want the 6-speed manual that this one’s got.

Of course we know the Supra’s got a very distinct exterior design, but when you sit in it and you look around the interior, there is no getting away from the BMW origins that this car springs from. It’s not necessarily a bad thing by the way. BMW makes pretty nice interiors. But if you’re looking for distinctive Toyota style, you’re not going to find it in the cabinet of the Supra.

The thing about the Supra is, it’s not just great on track, or going around twisty roads. It’s also extremely comfortable as a daily driver. It’s a completely functional and, dare I say, practical vehicle if you just want to commute to and from work.

You get out of the brand new Supra and you’re reminded that this is one of the most storied nameplates in Toyota’s history. And I distinctly remember being in the fourth-gen Supra, and having my first track experience in that car the last year that it was being produced. And I remember very distinctly being really disappointed that that car was going away right as I discovered how fabulous it was.

That means Toyota brought back that same nameplate and they did it in a car that’s equally as fun and engaging, decades later. And we’re happy about that. But just as that car died just as I was discovering how magical it was, I worry about cars like this in today’s world. It just doesn’t seem like a friendly world for cars like a Toyota Supra, a naturally aspirated in-line 6 with 382 hp. How much longer will we see these drivetrains and cars with this nature, and this enthusiasm? Who knows? But for now you can still buy one, and if you want a car like this you should probably get one sooner than later.