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At last, the Toyota GR Supra will gain the third pedal enthusiasts have been asking for – ahead of an M3-powered GRMN Supra halo due in 2023.
The on-again, off-again manual transmission option for the Toyota Supra is back on track, new reports suggest, with the three-pedal Supra now slated for launch by June 2022.
Japanese publication Car Sensor reports the GR Supra will at last gain the option of a six-speed manual transmission in the northern spring of 2022 (March to May) – more than three years after the reborn Toyota sports car was revealed, and a few months before a rumoured mid-life update for its BMW Z4 twin.
Better still, the manual gearbox won’t be paired with the entry-level 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder offered in other markets – instead, it’ll be bolted to the fully-fledged 3.0-litre turbocharged inline-six, which in Australia, the US and other markets develops 285kW and 500Nm.
Car Sensor claims that when the Supra’s manual option was first approved, the 2.0-litre four-cylinder was selected as its beneficiary – an easier move to justify, given three pedals are available in its BMW Z4 twin, in 145kW/320Nm four-cylinder sDrive20i guise (albeit no longer in Australia).
At an unspecified point during development, focus switched to the 3.0-litre turbo six.
Talk of a three-pedal GR Supra has swayed back and forth since well before the eight-speed automatic car’s launch, with executives and engineers telling Drive in September 2018 a manual transmission had already been developed for the sports car.
“This is not yet finally decided [the introduction of a manual transmission], and depending on feedback from the market, we will decide if we should introduce a manual transmission,” GR Supra assistant chief engineer, Masayuki Kai, told Drive at the time.
“We have developed it, yes, there is hardware ready. Right-hand drive? Yes, of course. It needs to be sold in Japan, which is a right-hand drive market.”
In a 2019 interview with US publication AutoGuide, project chief engineer Tetsuya Tada added: “I’m very aware of the requests and needs for a manual transmission out there, but with the new sports automatic transmission, I am very satisfied with the results of the performance of this transmission system.
“If there is a persistent, overwhelming demand still for a manual transmission, a sports car in itself [will] inherently improve and to continue to improve when those kinds of things will be considered. Obviously, if the mass market demand is there, it would be something that would have to be considered,” he added.
Backing up previous reports, Car Sensor says the manual Supra will be followed in 2023 by a high-performance GRMN version, offered in a limited run with an upgraded chassis and more power – the latter thanks to the 3.0-litre twin-turbo ‘S58’ inline-six from the latest BMW M3 and M4.
It’s suggested a decision is yet to be made on whether to pair it with a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission – though either way, the Car Sensor report differs from previous suggestions from compatriot Best Car of a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission being used.
With a manual transmission due in 2022, and a GRMN range-topper in 2023, that leaves one final update in 2024 for the GR Supra before it is discontinued in 2025, as suggested by Japanese magazines.
Cars have played a central role throughout Alex’s life, from flicking through car magazines as a young age, to growing up around performance vehicles in a car-loving family.
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