Interview Questions for Detroit from the Fans

[jm6k]

I'd be REALLY surprised (pleasantly so) if it came with a manual.. everything is going auto or at least DCT/SMT at this point.

I just look to Lexus for clues, and the evidence is right there clear as day. Toyota has always been about making safe and profitable decisions after all. Those tenets have occasionally aligned with fun and sporty in the past, but I dont think the manual is going to be such an instance this time

I agree with this and have feared for a while that this would be the case. Toyota needs to understand that a Lexus sports sedan is NOT the same thing as a Supra. Even an RCF is a different customer base with it's 467hp V8 and 4000lb+ weight. I have a 2014 IS350 F Sport. It's a GREAT car and performs very well, but I absolutely do not enjoy driving it the way that I want to. I had significantly more fun driving my 2008 IS250 6MT, even though it was slow and the manual was out of a Tacoma, which worked terribly in a sporty car. They tried to market the 2IS as more of a luxury car than the IS300 was so the manual didn't get any attention. That's what killed it off, IMO. Then they decide to bring the sporty image back and people are asking where's the manual? I just don't get it. The 8 speed automatic is a great transmission and there's no doubt that it would outsell a manual, but I certainly don't see myself getting another IS when I get rid of my current one in a few months.

I dunno man, BMW accounts deemed otherwise. Genesis is bringing a Manual G70 to the states next year. and that 3800lb-leather-cladded-boat is like the last place anybody would want a manual tranny; an entry level luxury sedan car with ZERO performance heritage. also cheap-little-Hyundai has a manual only i30N that got sold out in Germany in 48 hours.

Its not just Korean cars, as the 991 GT3 demonstrated. and AFAIK all the Supra's competitors, with similar price ranges, come with manuals too : Cayman, non turbo 911, Corvettes ,Jaguar F-Type ..even the Audi TTRS.

am not trying say you're wrong or anything, i do appreciate you sharing any tidbits with us. but -such decision by them- is just so hard to fathom, it doesn't make any sense to me. they went all they way to BMW to cut costs, the bmw version does have a manual, just to cheap out on the "Supra's Successor" ..WTF?!!

Also Toyota Raved about the 86/BRZ being a no-committee car, and Lexus actually lost money on each LFA, but gained that in marketing budgets and brand awareness. Safe decisions can take place elsewhere other than transmissions!

I totally agree with this. It's absolutely ridiculous in my mind that they would make a Supra with no manual transmission with the competition that's on the market. But I don't doubt at all that that's what they're doing.

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[Turbo Badger]

Does it come with 2+2 seats?

 

[Supraman]

So here are 2 interesting questions regarding the Tokyo auto show: Due to the time difference for those of us here in the US, I'm assuming there will be some stream going. If this is the case, we'll be seeing this Thursday night 10/26/17 live right? and it being in Tokyo will there be an English translation stream? Anyone know?

Because if all holds true I want to see what Toyota, Nissan, Honda, and Mazda have coming since there are rumors each one of them will be showing something exciting

 

[madfast]

I totally agree with this. It's absolutely ridiculous in my mind that they would make a Supra with no manual transmission with the competition that's on the market. But I don't doubt at all that that's what they're doing.

this is the FALLACY that everyone falls victim to... those other cars aren't competitors! the thing i've learned is that toyota makes cars that fit THEIR standard, and do not try to "compete" with other brands. they offer what they think is a good overall package and that's it, take it or leave it.

 

[Spilner]

MF ghost might be coming true
https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/27/16373778/california-internal-combustion-ban-emissions-carb

 

[jm6k]

this is the FALLACY that everyone falls victim to... those other cars aren't competitors! the thing i've learned is that toyota makes cars that fit THEIR standard, and do not try to "compete" with other brands. they offer what they think is a good overall package and that's it, take it or leave it.

There may be some truth to that, but I mostly think that's just what people say to validate Toyota's decisions. Maybe it's a little more true on a vehicle like this, but every other vehicle they make fits nicely into its segment.

My example of the Lexus IS F Sport; Yes, Toyota has proven that they don't care about the 5% of people who want a manual and don't care that it doesn't do as well in testing as a BMW and they seem happy that it meets THEIR standard, as you say. But that doesn't mean they didn't build the car to compete with BMW's 3-Series, it just means that they're ok with losing a percentage of buyers to the competition because you're never going to get all of the buyers anyway. That car was still a direct target; because Toyota/Lexus did it their own take-it-or-leave-it way does not mean that they were not trying to compete.

 

[Supraman]

I'm still holding out hope for a manual. Look at recent cars that you would consider a 'drivers car', they all offer it with a manual or option at least: 911 GT3 (brought back the manual), Corvette, Mustang GT350, Cayman GT4, BMW M2, BRZ/86, Miata, etc. I'm taking a wild guess but I'd think this car is going to be in this class range in terms of fun + power to weight ratio and fitting the 'drivers car' category. Unless this thing is coming with some serious power going after the GT-R and super cars from the factory, having a DCT/AUTO only eliminates a lot of potential buyers in this class range wanting a manual.

I guess we'll see.

 

[A70TTR]

From what I was told, only a fraction of people buy manual in that segment versus something like the 86.. Do other manufacturers offer it? yes, but they arent Toyota.

I'd personally be fine with DCT, but not sure how I feel about a traditional auto.

 

[PerformanceSound]

I don't understand the decision making people from these Japanese automakers....I really don't. They do this not only for sports cars, but also for their 4x4 SUV and trucks. Look at Jeep and the Wrangler!!! It has offered a manual transmission since the Wranglers inception. Toyota pulled the plug on their manual trans for the FJ, 4Runner (direct Jeep competitor), and the Tundra. WTF man, manual transmissions are not only fun for 4wheel drive vehicles, they actually are very very useful in rock crawling and climbing. The R35 GTR....no manual available??? Who cares if it beats a Veyron out of the box...give people some options for goodness sake, who cares if you only build 200 of them a year....at $100k, that's $20mn that I guarantee you will sell very very quickly. If they end up stuffing BMW manual transmission in the FT-1, let's at least hope it is one made by Getrag (Germany) and not ZF....historically speaking, those Getrags (including the V160 and 420G) have been known to hold up quite well to serious punishment.

 

[Supra93]

From what I was told, only a fraction of people buy manual in that segment versus something like the 86.. Do other manufacturers offer it? yes, but they arent Toyota.

I'd personally be fine with DCT, but not sure how I feel about a traditional auto.

Sadly, you are right. Good example is the C7.

Only 23 Percent of 2016 Chevrolet Corvettes Have Manual Transmissions
http://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/car-technology/news/a30217/2016-corvette-manual-take-rate/

 

[Captain_Kirk]

The ZR1 was spotted with an auto.

https://www.motor1.com/news/181313/chevrolet-corvette-zr1-interior-revealed/

 

[A70TTR]

let's at least hope it is one made by Getrag (Germany)

Toyota and Getrag actually had a falling out during the mkiv era, and Getrag decided to not do business with Toyota for the foreseeable future pending the end of that contract.

I was made aware of this during the discussions for the new Supra when a TMG employee was showing us around some facilities.

It had to do with warranty claims pushed to Getrag due to improper dealer training and service. I won't expand on it any further than that however.

This discussion started after I said I was annoyed that Toyota discontinued the V160 parts, only it wasn't Toyota, it was Getrag (who BTW still make those parts for Nissan and BMW). Pure spite move.

 

[PerformanceSound]

It had to do with warranty claims pushed to Getrag due to improper dealer training and service. I won't expend on it any further than that however.

This discussion started after I said I was annoyed that Toyota discontinued the V160 parts, only it wasn't Toyota, it was Getrag (who BTW still make those parts for Nissan and BMW). Pure spite move.

Are you serious??? All this time, I thought Toyota was the one who was phasing parts out because of their policy on reproductions past 15yrs....but your saying it was Getrag who did this just to get back at Toyota!?!?!?!

Jesus....this must have been some hell of a disagreement. Really wish they could just be adults about things, and brush it off...

 

[A70TTR]

Yes, this 100% happened and I was surprised as well. He went into more detail about what those issues entailed, but Getrag was just SUPER unhappy about the way Toyota handled things and felt like they were treated unfairly.

Like you said, contract was likely set to expire after 15 years (not sure), but Getrag has continued to make parts for other transmissions/manufacturers past contract expirations because they had no issue. Anyhow, I figured you might find it as interested as I did lol.

 

[PerformanceSound]

Yes, this 100% happened and I was surprised as well. He went into more detail about what those issues entailed, but Getrag was just SUPER unhappy about the way Toyota handled things and felt like they were treated unfairly.

Like you said, contract was likely set to expire after 15 years (not sure), but Getrag has continued to make parts for other transmissions/manufacturers past contract expirations because they had no issue. Anyhow, I figured you might find it as interested as I did lol.

Good info, thanks!

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