2023 Toyota GR Supra Manual Review Thread!!!

[ColonelAdama]

Not going to lie, this is part of the reason why I bought mine.

FOMO is a bitch and I wish I wasn't a child when the E46 M3 was new.

Why is it when I can afford a brand new M3, they go make them fugly, heavy, AWD (blasphemy), make the manual suck, AND sound bad.

Like the fuck man lol.

Ha! I feel the same way about the MK8 Golf R. Have had my GTI since 2015 and always wanted to upgrade to a new Golf R since I love the platform. As soon as I could afford them, the price ballooned to 50k+, they got stupid capacitive touch and got uglier.

Blessing in disguise, wouldn't have gotten the Supra otherwise. The timing of the MT announcement helped a lot.

Sponsored

 

[Denton]

I think we had the opposite experience! To me at least, the '23 MT feels like an improved version of the 20' in every way (missing adaptive cruise control & transmission discussion aside); I assume most of that is the general tweaking that the 23' got though (plus the power bump).

I miss the auto, but when I had the auto I missed driving with a stick! I wish I could own one of each

Also, put me into the group of owners who are glad that the exhaust pops and bangs got drastically muted.

 

[Spart]

The out of the box experience on the MT definitely leaves something to be desired. I would not claim that it's a top-tier manual experience.

Doing the clutch delay valve delete and putting an exhaust on that you can actually hear in-cabin did wonders for the experience though. I definitely look forward to driving the car now.

Others have mentioned that as BMW factory shifters go, the Supra has the best one. From my view, that's damning with faint praise. It's still quite nerfed. I prefer the feel and sound of more metal than plastic/rubber in the shift linkage. MGW makes the best remote-mount shifters for S550 Mustangs (which seem to have a similar shifter arrangement to BMW/Supra) that bring more of a toploader feel back, such a shame I can't convince George to take a look at BMWs/Supras. Maybe if more of us hit his inbox, he'll soften a bit.

FWIW on the sound front, I did an aFe Takeda exhaust and replaced the resonator with the resonator delete they sell, stock downpipe, and coded out the fake engine sound that comes through the speakers with Bimmercode. This gives a pretty good in-cabin sound with the valve open, and with the valve closed it's nearly as silent as factory going down the interstate at 3k RPM. Being able to hear real engine sound in a sports car is pretty vital to me, being able to shift by ear reliably is important and the fake engine sound through the speakers just doesn't do it for me.

 

[visbits]

I'm at almost 4000 miles with my MT car and I think my review is a little different than everyone else here.

First and foremost my opinion is based on the numerous shifters I've had over the years. I've done a lot of part swaps and my experiences are with the following:

- GR STI with all the shifter bushings
- 2018 M2 Comp MT
- GT350 with stock and MGW shifter
- FRS with billet chassis mounted shift assembly (k24/kpower)
- S2000 AP2 with shifter upgrades, MK4 supra with T56 magnum F (hnngggg)

The first 1000 miles or so the supra shifter felt really meh but the reality is the break in period for the linkage/moving parts in the transmission is clearly a real thing. Post 1000 miles It's probably my most favorite stock shifter! I really like the pressure level and feedback it provides while engaging a gear.. this is something a lot higher capacity transmissions struggle with. The GT350 and T56 frequently require going back out of gear in neutral to get it fully engaged in first at a stop and this is a bit annoying but common.. the supra zf box does not have this issue.

As far as the whole car goes.. its the absolute best rounded car I've owned.. I think most people just don't like the overly softened suspension and mounts that the car is delivered with and a couple simple upgrades really changes the driving experience.

 

[FuzzyRev]

Others have mentioned that as BMW factory shifters go, the Supra has the best one. From my view, that's damning with faint praise. It's still quite nerfed. I prefer the feel and sound of more metal than plastic/rubber in the shift linkage.

The plastic shift knob that only weighs 200 grams does not help this. Try it with a 300-500gr metal knob instead. Makes a world of difference!

 

[Spart]

I really like the pressure level and feedback it provides while engaging a gear.. this is something a lot higher capacity transmissions struggle with. The GT350 and T56 frequently require going back out of gear in neutral to get it fully engaged in first at a stop and this is a bit annoying but common.. the supra zf box does not have this issue.

The transmissions you're comparing it to can handle a lot more torque reliably, and I suspect this isn't true of the Supra's ZF. But it must be said that it shifts effortlessly, like how you'd expect a car with half it's power to shift. Some of the feel goes out the window with that, I actually prefer a bit more resistance. I'm the same way with keyboards, I hate when I have to type on a keyboard that has almost no resistance.

As far as the whole car goes.. its the absolute best rounded car I've owned.. I think most people just don't like the overly softened suspension and mounts that the car is delivered with and a couple simple upgrades really changes the driving experience.

I must be getting old because the suspension to me feels about perfect.

I'm not sure there's a lot more turning performance to be wrung out of the car (on factory rubber) with suspension changes. It sticks pretty good and doesn't ride too harshly. They did a good job with it.

The plastic shift knob that only weighs 200 grams does not help this. Try it with a 300-500gr metal knob instead. Makes a world of difference!

I'm looking to do this at some point. The fact that you have to get a knob with some sort of shift boot retention seems to drastically decrease the options.

 

[Stvee]

The transmissions you're comparing it to can handle a lot more torque reliably, and I suspect this isn't true of the Supra's ZF.

It should be able to hold plenty. It's essentially the same transmission that the f80 and g80 M3s use and there have been a bunch of high power builds using the stock transmission.

The clutch would need to be upgraded after a certain point obviously but the transmission itself should be pretty strong.

 

[Spart]

It should be able to hold plenty. It's essentially the same transmission that the f80 and g80 M3s use and there have been a bunch of high power builds using the stock transmission.

The clutch would need to be upgraded after a certain point obviously but the transmission itself should be pretty strong.

Only one way to find out.

 

[kappa_md]

S58 G87 M2 vs Camaro SS 1LE vs GR Supra MT

 

[BMWAF]

S58 G87 M2 vs Camaro SS 1LE vs GR Supra MT

Interesting review. I think our little car punches well above its weight. The only surprise is really how confidently it does so.

 

[kappa_md]

Todd & Paul has ranked the GR Supra MT the No.1 amongst the the three

 

[nashcarr]

I'm at almost 4000 miles with my MT car and I think my review is a little different than everyone else here.

First and foremost my opinion is based on the numerous shifters I've had over the years. I've done a lot of part swaps and my experiences are with the following:

- GR STI with all the shifter bushings
- 2018 M2 Comp MT
- GT350 with stock and MGW shifter
- FRS with billet chassis mounted shift assembly (k24/kpower)
- S2000 AP2 with shifter upgrades, MK4 supra with T56 magnum F (hnngggg)

The first 1000 miles or so the supra shifter felt really meh but the reality is the break in period for the linkage/moving parts in the transmission is clearly a real thing. Post 1000 miles It's probably my most favorite stock shifter! I really like the pressure level and feedback it provides while engaging a gear.. this is something a lot higher capacity transmissions struggle with. The GT350 and T56 frequently require going back out of gear in neutral to get it fully engaged in first at a stop and this is a bit annoying but common.. the supra zf box does not have this issue.

As far as the whole car goes.. its the absolute best rounded car I've owned.. I think most people just don't like the overly softened suspension and mounts that the car is delivered with and a couple simple upgrades really changes the driving experience.

The GR STi transmission is "maybe" one of the very best; I miss my 2010 STi for sure. Looking forward to this MT GR Supra. Did you replace the clutch delay valve?

 

[johnnyskids]

Finally got a chance to drive a Supra, this one being a 2021 model year. While the majority of the impressions were positive, it took me a bit after the fact to assess my true feelings.

So on the route I take on my test drives I do a half hour loop that includes highway, city, and back road sections. For me a sports car the most important section is the back road. I was left a bit underwhelmed with the car in that setting, and actually preferring the new BRZ that I drove the weekend prior. Which didn't make a lot of sense because the Supra is every bit as good of a handler and rides superior.

The only thing that I can figure is the lack of a manual. I thought that maybe I could live with an automatic but it appears that's a must have in any car I own. Do you manual Supra owners feel like the car is much more engaging in this setting with the manual?

 

[Marsone]

Finally got a chance to drive a Supra, this one being a 2021 model year. While the majority of the impressions were positive, it took me a bit after the fact to assess my true feelings.

I was left a bit underwhelmed with the car in that setting, and actually preferring the new BRZ that I drove the weekend prior. Which didn't make a lot of sense because the Supra is every bit as good of a handler and rides superior.

Do you manual Supra owners feel like the car is much more engaging in this setting with the manual?

You’re going to get a bunch of different opinions on this. Probably a different one from each person who responds.

Personally, I wouldn’t have gotten a Supra without a 6MT. Idk if I would say the manual is more engaging than the auto, but definitely a different type of engaging, and that’s the type of engaging that I like. With that being said, I’m also coming from an 86, and the Supra does not feel nearly as engaging as an 86 (last gen) to me.

It’s all going to come down to your personal preference.

 

[Stvee]

The only thing that I can figure is the lack of a manual. I thought that maybe I could live with an automatic but it appears that's a must have in any car I own. Do you manual Supra owners feel like the car is much more engaging in this setting with the manual?

Yeah I agree with the poster above. The supra is kind of boring with the automatic to me. The engine and transmission are both very smooth and it just makes for an overall dull experience unless you're really pushing it. The manual brings back some much needed engagement.

Sponsored