UK Owner feedback/reviews

[Davidpingu]

So having ordered my Supra in December and still waiting (current ETA being August) I'm keeping myself occupied with looking at various reviews but understandably most of these are US based and theirs differs somewhat from ours as we know.

I'm keen to hear from you guys how you're finding ownership, particularly those with 2020 models and later because I'm ASSUMING that the improvements in chassis/handling still carry over to these cars despite not getting the power hike?

I've mentioned here before that the one thing that makes me slightly nervous about part ex of my FK8 is how confidence inspiring the handling is and I do wonder just how I'll find the Supra on a B road.

The majority of my drives to be fair are in built-up areas or on long straight stretches and I know this is where the Supra will really excel, particularly in the comfort department, not that the FK8 is in anyway uncomfortable, its seats are rated very highly in terms of comfort. It's just that I see a lot of people rate the Supra as an easy daily/GT style car which is what appeals.

How is it on a typical British B road though?

A couple of complaints I hear from the US:

- Factory alignment is garbage - Do you find this?
- Tyres are garbage - Again our roads and weather conditions differ, how do you find them?
- Steering is a little numb at centre but also overly quick in the corners - What do you think?
- Brakes feel overly long. Good stopping power but the travel isn't confidence inspiring (Again FK8 is excellent on the brakes and brake feel)

Probably a long shot but has anyone experienced improvements in chassis between the "older" models vs the 2020/21 cars coming through? A US review I watched yesterday compared the later model despite having more power seemingly hooking up better at launch, not spinning up quite as eagerly and being a little less tail happy in the corners. I'm guessing a lot of that has to do with software but can anyone confirm this carries over on the UK cars?

Is there anything about the car, having lived with it for a while that you think it would benefit from?
E.g. 4 wheel alignment but perhaps going as far as getting camber adjustable arms etc?

Any feedback to read during this looooong torturous wait, greatly received

Thanks!

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[nc_]

So, I had an FK2 for a little over a year. In comparison the Supra is more compliant, the steering is quick and sharp but the overall handling is sensitive to tyres and alignment.

An alignment as part of the PDI or after delivery is a must.

The Pilot Super Sport tyres are clearly a generation or two behind the best currently on the market. Once they’re warm they are good, but until then they aren’t great. I’ve swapped to Eagle F1 Supersports which tighten up the initial turn in and round off the handling nicely.

Before the Supra I enjoyed a 718 Cayman, and with a little bit of the tinkering I’ve mentioned it’s the equal of it.

 

[eliotrw]

I'm not going to pretend i'm the oracle here lol as i've only had mine a week.

Copied your questions below:
- Factory alignment is garbage - Do you find this? - Easy answer to this is i'm not sure yet to be honest, I need to get to South Wales so i can use it properly (live in London but from South Wales, head there occasionally as all my family are there and there's a lot better roads. In london I can't press the throttle 2 seconds in any area without breaking the speed limit ), I have heard similar stories as you, and have even saved a picture of some adjusted alignment settings others have used, but for the moment i have been thinking i'll see how it goes first. before i got the car i though it be rolling it into litchfield day one for a remap and the rest, the reality is i've got it now at probably need to get use to it, to me it feels already fast as **** for the moment.
- Tyres are garbage - Again our roads and weather conditions differ, how do you find them?
I think the Supersports are a good tyre just like NC says above, things have moved on since they came out though, the mine have alot left on them so will get used to it on the Supersports and then at some point move to PilotSport4S's or maybe even 5S's by the time i get to it.
- Steering is a little numb at centre but also overly quick in the corners - What do you think?
Coming from a 306 Gti-6, then an old merc i've missed the whole "Steering feel missing" phase of modern cars, so knowing that, i kind of expected the worst going in..... to be honest, I still need to drive it "properly" as above, but so far so good in sport mode at least.
Its not as bad as i expected (probably talking more about modern cars in general here...)
- Brakes feel overly long. Good stopping power but the travel isn't confidence inspiring (Again FK8 is excellent on the brakes and brake feel)
So far i feel very differently, I find it quite hard to be smooth with the brakes actually, I found they bite very quickly and i tend to over brake more than under (while barely using much pedals wise), so to me thats the opposite of long

 

[Chappers]

I've owned the supra 2 weeks Monday and after driving a mustang for 5years it's soo much better, I've still got a bit of getting used to the car but I'm not as worried about the back end with traction turned on, put it this way the supra with traction off is exactly how the mustang drove with traction on

Too early to tell though in terms of performance, the car seems to go where you point it with little effort so I tend to over steer the corner driving on B and A roads mainly living in North Birmingham, the sound system isn't as good as the shaker system in the mustang so may look at upgrading subs at some point, I've done the port mod minus the ports at this point

Ive booked in to get the exhaust mod in July as you can't really hear the car that much, bearing in mind I'm coming from a v8 with an exhaust so it was loud

But all in all I'm soo glad I got my supra and I'm looking forward to getting on track with it to properly drive it.

 

[djbilly]

- Factory alignment is garbage - Do you find this?

I had my alignment done not long after picking up my 2020 car. It was a little out according to the Hunter Alignment system.

I then had it done again about 6 weeks ago two weeks after having Eibach Pro springs fitted, again it was a bit out and need realigning.

- Tyres are garbage - Again our roads and weather conditions differ, how do you find them?

Yes, if it comes with standard Pilot Sports then I don't rate them at all. I'd 100% recommend fitting Pilot Sport PS4S tyres.

- Steering is a little numb at centre but also overly quick in the corners - What do you think?

I've had no issue at all with the steering.

- Brakes feel overly long. Good stopping power but the travel isn't confidence inspiring (Again FK8 is excellent on the brakes and brake feel)

I've had no issue with the brakes, but I haven't done any track days. I think they're more than good enough for regular fast road driving.

Is there anything about the car, having lived with it for a while that you think it would benefit from?

One of the big improvements for me was replacing the stock steering wheel, which I'm pretty sure was taken from the Toyota van parts bin.

I've done quite a few other mods to the car and have more planned, but that's all subjective I guess.

If you don't have one I'd recommend doing some coding to the car via BimmerCode. There's a lot of really cool stuff you can do in there such as activating Sport+ mode, having the car start in Sport mode, activating the rear DRL's and loads more.

Enjoy!

 

[TurboTime]

Generations
No difference between a 2019 or 2022 they are all A90's having none of the updates that other countries have (US etc.)!

Tyres
Tyre's are shocking in the cold/wet, but in the dry and get them over 20c you can push them hard tbh. Basically just a poor choice for the UK as it is often cold/wet for 4 -5 months.

Suspension
If you lean on the suspension it's a little soft even in Sports mode, but is refined enough for the UK roads so compromised about right. Geo is something you need to get done only by recommendation of establishment. No point taking to places that do not use weights etc. as it possibly still out. This is something that takes sometime to get right and speedy fit places, just don't have the time or experience and can only work of manu specs, not recommended ones. There of course will be exceptions to this, but most aren't enthusiastic enough and red tape regarding out of spec adjustments.

Brakes
Pedal travel and assistance feels about right to me and on the road holds up well when leaning on them.

The above 3 would all be changed if you were tracking with aggression/often.

Steering
I was critical of the steering and even had it in Normal in Sports mode due to it just adding weight which gave even less feedback. Now on some good back roads at speed I have it in Sports and it's enjoyable enough.

Engine/Drive Train
Depending on expectations this one is most subjective! Stock power of say 340-345 which lots in the UK rolling road @ (if you're interested in paper power figures) is fine. The torque is delivered strong from the bottom, no lag and mated to the gearbox is an extremely creamy experience and feels top quality, but...
Adding more power makes the car wake-up, giving felt push through 3K, back end movement and generally smiles to the face (in the cold/wet on stock tyres smiles turn to leakage from your rear end). This is how I expected the car to be stock and from my test drive I'd not have bought one if it wasn't for the ridiculous deals first quarter 2021. I think a stage 1 is the most you really need to have epic fun on the road. Stage 2 will give you the exhaust you would have hoped from factory and anymore power is possibly chasing numbers and losing daily driveability.
* Yours being new will not allow Stage 1 or 2 mapping due to DME locking, but piggy backs systems for the BMW motor are very good and well proven if you need more then stock.
Gear ratios are also nice for the first 5.

Coding
BimmerCode and decent OBD dongle are two items I bought before collection day. Some of the features to enable are a must (subjective I know) and make the experience better and safer.

The Hate
- Build quality inside is very below par! Now I've sorted most of this by using sound deadening material ( added 20Kg of weight :-o ) behind all the cheap plastic bits which has mad a massive difference to the rattles, creaks and just cheap feel.
- Stereo if important is just shite, seriously an embarrassment and adds to the cheap feel of the interior quality. With some work and taking it one step further from just adding ports (includes cutting metal, fully lining and separating the boxes within with sound deadening and removing lots of interior along the way to do this) I'd say mine is now acceptable if it came from factory as. Still having 500hz down coming from what is meant to be the subs is ridiculous :-/ Project in the summer to have it all out again and address this with filter or dedicated amp with crossover.
- Steering wheel feel I find actually okay (size and thickness), but even changing the wheel leaves that 18" airbag which is my beef and looks cheap. I've seen some swapped out wheels and they look brilliant.
- Leather seats, again feel cheap to the look and feel and could have been improved being a sports car, but as a GT they are comfortable with good adjustment. I think the half leather seats are better tbh. Ultimately not having black would have helped here, the red is lovely like BMW do and for me would have so improved things.

Conclusion
Really love it tbh, but without doing the above I'd have got rid of it.
A great looking (not over subscribed in the UK) car in the current climate, creamy engine and gearbox.
Exhaust is non existent for the most part, but no fault of manu as euro restrictions dictate this.
Toyota Dealers and UK are seriously poor, basically they don't have a bloody clue about anything and this is frustrating. If you are lucky enough to live near a dealer that is keen and you have a good relationship with them I'm sure things are acceptable. I don't expect my 55K car nor me the owner to be treated like I've rocked up with a 5K knacked Yaris (no disrespect to Yaris owners).
Check the PDI, that you have 2 years 20K servicing all set up on the iDrive along with brake fluid etc. My dealer just didn't know how to do this, let me take the car without performing half the checks, rang me back to say they need the car for the day to finish it etc. etc. (they were not local). Trying to book this in they said the only GR Tech said the service manual was massive and no clue how to program the battery etc. etc. etc. oh and will not work Saturdays. I gave up and did it myself. BimmerLink is also very useful for this aspect.

So with all my mods, that have taken days and days to do, pulling apart a new expensive car I now feel great getting in, starting and driving along feeling special (jokes aside) in a world of SUV cars. Performance when modded is cracking, lively, engaging holding the arse straight and therefore rewarding compared to many very quick 4 wheel drive cars.

 

[Chappers]

Most people complain about the thin gauge steering wheel but imo I like it as I only have small hands... I've set my self up here for small jokes but I am a small guy haha I didn't like how hard the steering got in sports mode so kept it normal in sports through the idrive settings

 

[djbilly]

Generations
No difference between a 2019 or 2022 they are all A90's having none of the updates that other countries have (US etc.)!

Tyres
Tyre's are shocking in the cold/wet, but in the dry and get them over 20c you can push them hard tbh. Basically just a poor choice for the UK as it is often cold/wet for 4 -5 months.

Suspension
If you lean on the suspension it's a little soft even in Sports mode, but is refined enough for the UK roads so compromised about right. Geo is something you need to get done only by recommendation of establishment. No point taking to places that do not use weights etc. as it possibly still out. This is something that takes sometime to get right and speedy fit places, just don't have the time or experience and can only work of manu specs, not recommended ones. There of course will be exceptions to this, but most aren't enthusiastic enough and red tape regarding out of spec adjustments.

Brakes
Pedal travel and assistance feels about right to me and on the road holds up well when leaning on them.

The above 3 would all be changed if you were tracking with aggression/often.

Steering
I was critical of the steering and even had it in Normal in Sports mode due to it just adding weight which gave even less feedback. Now on some good back roads at speed I have it in Sports and it's enjoyable enough.

Engine/Drive Train
Depending on expectations this one is most subjective! Stock power of say 340-345 which lots in the UK rolling road @ (if you're interested in paper power figures) is fine. The torque is delivered strong from the bottom, no lag and mated to the gearbox is an extremely creamy experience and feels top quality, but...
Adding more power makes the car wake-up, giving felt push through 3K, back end movement and generally smiles to the face (in the cold/wet on stock tyres smiles turn to leakage from your rear end). This is how I expected the car to be stock and from my test drive I'd not have bought one if it wasn't for the ridiculous deals first quarter 2021. I think a stage 1 is the most you really need to have epic fun on the road. Stage 2 will give you the exhaust you would have hoped from factory and anymore power is possibly chasing numbers and losing daily driveability.
* Yours being new will not allow Stage 1 or 2 mapping due to DME locking, but piggy backs systems for the BMW motor are very good and well proven if you need more then stock.
Gear ratios are also nice for the first 5.

Coding
BimmerCode and decent OBD dongle are two items I bought before collection day. Some of the features to enable are a must (subjective I know) and make the experience better and safer.

The Hate
- Build quality inside is very below par! Now I've sorted most of this by using sound deadening material ( added 20Kg of weight :-o ) behind all the cheap plastic bits which has mad a massive difference to the rattles, creaks and just cheap feel.
- Stereo if important is just shite, seriously an embarrassment and adds to the cheap feel of the interior quality. With some work and taking it one step further from just adding ports (includes cutting metal, fully lining and separating the boxes within with sound deadening and removing lots of interior along the way to do this) I'd say mine is now acceptable if it came from factory as. Still having 500hz down coming from what is meant to be the subs is ridiculous :-/ Project in the summer to have it all out again and address this with filter or dedicated amp with crossover.
- Steering wheel feel I find actually okay (size and thickness), but even changing the wheel leaves that 18" airbag which is my beef and looks cheap. I've seen some swapped out wheels and they look brilliant.
- Leather seats, again feel cheap to the look and feel and could have been improved being a sports car, but as a GT they are comfortable with good adjustment. I think the half leather seats are better tbh. Ultimately not having black would have helped here, the red is lovely like BMW do and for me would have so improved things.

Conclusion
Really love it tbh, but without doing the above I'd have got rid of it.
A great looking (not over subscribed in the UK) car in the current climate, creamy engine and gearbox.
Exhaust is non existent for the most part, but no fault of manu as euro restrictions dictate this.
Toyota Dealers and UK are seriously poor, basically they don't have a bloody clue about anything and this is frustrating. If you are lucky enough to live near a dealer that is keen and you have a good relationship with them I'm sure things are acceptable. I don't expect my 55K car nor me the owner to be treated like I've rocked up with a 5K knacked Yaris (no disrespect to Yaris owners).
Check the PDI, that you have 2 years 20K servicing all set up on the iDrive along with brake fluid etc. My dealer just didn't know how to do this, let me take the car without performing half the checks, rang me back to say they need the car for the day to finish it etc. etc. (they were not local). Trying to book this in they said the only GR Tech said the service manual was massive and no clue how to program the battery etc. etc. etc. oh and will not work Saturdays. I gave up and did it myself. BimmerLink is also very useful for this aspect.

So with all my mods, that have taken days and days to do, pulling apart a new expensive car I now feel great getting in, starting and driving along feeling special (jokes aside) in a world of SUV cars. Performance when modded is cracking, lively, engaging holding the arse straight and therefore rewarding compared to many very quick 4 wheel drive cars.

Hey, any chance you could give us a steer on what sound-deadening materials you used, and where you applied them? Cheers.

 

[MK_Surrey]

My 2,000 miles summary that doesn't directly answer your questions. I'm 34, no kids and the Supra is my only car.

1) It looks stunning. It attracts a lot of positive attentention and interaction. Children in particular. It's a nice feeling.

2) I drive on the M25 a lot. It's very comfortable and behaves well in traffic.

3) I live in the countryside and need to drive on a very bumpy, potholled road. It's completely fine, just don't smash into a pot hole. I have no issue with size, placement, traction or confidence.

4) It's practical. Have taken a large, medium and small suitcase in it, with a passenger.

5) I've not taken traction off and probably never will on normal roads. I'm fine with the behaviour of the rear end and it's predictable.

6) I'm not sure I'll ever notice the difference in the tyres beating people at traffic lights or getting to 70 very quickly. I've had PS4S before and I can't say I feel like I have inferior tyres.

7) Same with the brakes. Stopped me very confidently getting cut up on the M25 - is there higher praise?

8) IT HAS A 10 YEAR WARRANTY.

9) There is wind buffeting but I wouldn't drive with my windows open above 50/60 anyways.

10) I like the BMWness of the interior. It's comfortable and practical.

11) Fake vents. Don't care, they add to the styling for me.

12) It makes me happy. I can't say more.

I'm not someone that will modify my car and the most extreme thing I'll do with it is an MVP novice day at Snetteron/Brands Batch, so caveat my comments with that.

For me, the car is fantastic and beyond going for something double the money, it ticks every single requirement I currently have.

I hope your car arrives soon and you love it as much as I do mine.

Edit - I do have a BZ4X on order so that the Supra isn't my only car for Winter, just for full disclosure.

 

[Supra_UK_]

My 2,000 miles summary that doesn't directly answer your questions. I'm 34, no kids and the Supra is my only car.

1) It looks stunning. It attracts a lot of positive attentention and interaction. Children in particular. It's a nice feeling.

2) I drive on the M25 a lot. It's very comfortable and behaves well in traffic.

3) I live in the countryside and need to drive on a very bumpy, potholled road. It's completely fine, just don't smash into a pot hole. I have no issue with size, placement, traction or confidence.

4) It's practical. Have taken a large, medium and small suitcase in it, with a passenger.

5) I've not taken traction off and probably never will on normal roads. I'm fine with the behaviour of the rear end and it's predictable.

6) I'm not sure I'll ever notice the difference in the tyres beating people at traffic lights or getting to 70 very quickly. I've had PS4S before and I can't say I feel like I have inferior tyres.

7) Same with the brakes. Stopped me very confidently getting cut up on the M25 - is there higher praise?

8) IT HAS A 10 YEAR WARRANTY.

9) There is wind buffeting but I wouldn't drive with my windows open above 50/60 anyways.

10) I like the BMWness of the interior. It's comfortable and practical.

11) Fake vents. Don't care, they add to the styling for me.

12) It makes me happy. I can't say more.

I'm not someone that will modify my car and the most extreme thing I'll do with it is an MVP novice day at Snetteron/Brands Batch, so caveat my comments with that.

For me, the car is fantastic and beyond going for something double the money, it ticks every single requirement I currently have.

I hope your car arrives soon and you love it as much as I do mine.

Edit - I do have a BZ4X on order so that the Supra isn't my only car for Winter, just for full disclosure.

Hi,

Thanks for the really insightful post mate!

If I may ask please, since you have provided so much great info (I'm UK based too waiting for mine) - do you ever have any trouble with speed bumps/driveways hitting the front splitter?

Also, as we tend to go to lots of country fairs and car shows usually in bumpy fields, by any chance did you go to any events like that with your Supra and had any trouble with ride height?

Thank you!

 

[MK_Surrey]

Hi,

Thanks for the really insightful post mate!

If I may ask please, since you have provided so much great info (I'm UK based too waiting for mine) - do you ever have any trouble with speed bumps/driveways hitting the front splitter?

Also, as we tend to go to lots of country fairs and car shows usually in bumpy fields, by any chance did you go to any events like that with your Supra and had any trouble with ride height?

Thank you!

I've only taken it over speed bumps / dodgy country pub car parks and no problem at all. I was a lot more cautious the first few days going over them but the car can handle them fine. Those individual speed bumps in the middle of each lane can be taken at 30 and the car clears them fine.

I do swerve around obstacles a lot more than I used to but that's to be expected. I haven't noticed the car dropping after going over a speed bump etc and rubbing.

I honestly wouldn't worry about it - just be a bit more cautious until you get used to how it handles the obstacles.

 

[Chappers]

I've only taken it over speed bumps / dodgy country pub car parks and no problem at all. I was a lot more cautious the first few days going over them but the car can handle them fine. Those individual speed bumps in the middle of each lane can be taken at 30 and the car clears them fine.

I do swerve around obstacles a lot more than I used to but that's to be expected. I haven't noticed the car dropping after going over a speed bump etc and rubbing.

I honestly wouldn't worry about it - just be a bit more cautious until you get used to how it handles the obstacles.

Yeah I've noticed the clearance is fine I have speed bumps on my estate, my mustang was lowered and alot lower than the supra which cleared most things so you'll be fine

 

[JP_]

Clearance wise I have had a couple of instances where I've heard the front splitter touching and very quickly stopped, so far no visible damage!

Mainly coming out of driveways front first in places where the pavement drop to the road is steep and the road itself is angled. Coming out backwards instead and being at a slight angle (I got in after all!) sorts that.

 

[mwilkinson]

We've done around 2500 miles in our Supra and love it. It's such a fun car.

My wife drives it most of the time as she does the shorter commute.

We did a 7 hour drive to Wales and then to Devon a few weeks back and had a blast. We were able to pack enough luggage to stay away for the week too.

The car gets so much attention.

I've no issues with the steering wheel, geo, suspension, handling or factory tyres. I do occasional spirited drives, but I never drive it like I stole it and compared to my mkiv Supra the cars handling is far more confidence inspiring.

I still look out onto the drive most days just to admire it.

I'll probably only ever add factory options to the car from elsewhere in the world vs any aftermarket parts. I've got the boot mat and valve caps. I will get a set of the US strut braces from Toyota. I'm also watching the price of the OEM carbon wing mirror covers and will grab these if they ever drop to a remotely reasonable level.

I'd love to get hold of one of the factory spoilers.

 

[Supra_UK_]

Thanks to all the lads above for the replies about clearance / ride height, that's a massive weight off my chest!

Cheers

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