2023 Toyota 86

Boot space is a claimed 237 litres.

he 2023 GR86 GT manual won’t feature any active driver-assist equipment.

Opting for the GT automatic gets you a more generous safety suite, including:

• Autonomous emergency braking
• Adaptive cruise control
• Lane-departure warning
• High-beam assist
• Reverse autonomous emergency braking

Opting for the GR86 GTS adds the following to the existing list of standard inclusions:

• Blind-spot monitoring
• Lane-change assist
• Rear cross-traffic alert

The Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ haven’t been crash tested by ANCAP or Euro NCAP.

The GR86 has a 50-litre fuel tank, and drinks 98 RON premium unleaded. Claimed fuel economy is below:

• GT manual: 9.4 litres per 100km
• GT automatic: 8.7 litres per 100km
• GTS manual: 9.5 litres per 100km
• GTS automatic: 8.8 litres per 100km

Power in the Toyota GR 86 comes from a 2.4-litre naturally-aspirated four-cylinder boxer engine, driving the rear wheels. Peak power is 174kW and peak torque is 250Nm, up 22kW and 38Nm on the old car.

Buyers are able to choose between a six-speed manual or six-speed torque converter automatic. Our tester was fitted with the enthusiast’s choice, the manual.

The 100km/h sprint takes a claimed 6.3 seconds.

The GR86 has a 50-litre fuel tank, and drinks 98 RON premium unleaded. Claimed fuel economy is 9.4 litres per 100km on the combined cycle, which we perfectly matched on our week behind the wheel.

he first 86 had a distinctive feeling from behind the wheel, and the new one doesn’t deviate too far from the formula. It just feels a touch more grown up, and a touch more refined in a few key areas than before.

Slot the stubby shifter into first and the light, short action will instantly feel familiar to previous owners, as will the slightly springy clutch. The second you ease off the clutch, however, it’s clear the bigger new engine has torque in all the places the first-generation car was missing it.

It pulls more happily from the bottom of second or third gear around town, and when the road opens up that horrid torque valley in the mid-range of the last car has been flattened out. It’s not going to crush your chest and make you beg for mercy with its sheer pace, but getting the best out of it doesn’t feel like a chore anymore.

The 2.4-litre engine has the same slightly offbeat bark as before, piped into the cabin for a bit more drama behind the wheel, but it’s not coarse or buzzy like before at the top end.

Like the wider Toyota range, the GR 86 will be backed by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty.

The Toyota GR86 has taken a meaningful step forward in this second generation. It’s more powerful, more composed, and more usable day-to-day, but hasn’t lost the spirit of the original.

Toyota has made some strange decisions on the specification front, though.

The fact the base GR misses out on kit that’s standard across the related Subaru BRZ range is hard to defend, especially when the range of safety options on manual models is so skint to begin with.

With both in stock, the fact the base manual Subaru BRZ is better equipped and cheaper than the 86 means it’s the twin we’d be taking home. If you have an affinity with Toyota, or can’t get a BRZ, the base GR86 isn’t a bad backup plan.