The incredibly strong emotional bond people have to the Toyota Supra is a key part of what makes it a heritage vehicle.
Fair or not, that attachment comes with expectations, and the expectations for the Supra’s return were, to put it mildly, sky-high for a car that hasn’t been around in almost two decades. This explains why, despite all Toyota did, people would still find something to criticize.
When the new Toyota Supra finally made its long-awaited debut at the 2019 North American International Show, that is exactly what transpired, as was predicted. Fair enough, I was among the group of individuals who immediately discovered something wrong with the Supra. Many people, including myself, were not really thrilled of how skepticism played out aesthetically. Others bemoaned the shortage of available engines, especially in the US market. Some people questioned the location of the manual transmission choice. Some others felt betrayed by Toyota’s $50,000 price tag. The 2017 Supra’s one feature that enthusiasts are still struggling to understand is the proverbial “elephant in the room.”
It’s a difficult question to pose, especially given the complexity of the answer. However, the individual who does know the answer isn’t hesitating to provide it. Tetsuya Tada, head of Toyota’s performance division and chief engineer of the Supra, understood better than anyone the importance of the Supra’s development and the role BMW played in it. Tada, however, is not about such revisionist history way of life. He believed that everything went according to plan because the other options would have produced a completely different vehicle.
Tada claims that the entire purpose of the A90 Supra project was to produce a sports car that was affordable for many people.
Toyota held numerous discussions about how it could achieve this, and as a result of some of those discussions, Toyota and BMW formed a relationship to assist in building the foundations for the Supra and the BMW Z4 Roadster, the vehicle that BMW was developing at the time. Despite the success of that collaboration, Toyota was nonetheless criticized by purists who were outraged that the Japanese automaker would allow another business to participate in the development of its iconic sports car. Even worse, the Supra has started to be referred to as a “BMW parts bin car,” a description that Tada rightfully objects to because, well, it’s not true.
BMW’s involvement, according to Toyota’s performance chief, was compelled by necessity in part because BMW possessed the tools required by Toyota for the Supra, particularly Bimmer’s roaring 3.0-liter inline-six engine.
Toyota could have created one independently, but doing so didn’t make sense given the price of doing so as well as the time and resources needed to complete the task. Even if Toyota had built a modular inline-six engine from scratch, it would have known that there aren’t as many uses for it now as there once were, especially because the industry is already focused on electrification and hybridization. Even if that weren’t a concern, Toyota could have better utilized the time and money by focusing those resources on other parts of the project than on constructing an engine exclusively for the Supra. The fact that BMW already had an inline-six engine that met Toyota’s specifications for the Supra was undoubtedly helpful as well.
Tada also denied claims that the Supra’s development was heavily influenced by BMW. While that is partially accurate, the same can be stated of Toyota’s contribution to the Z4’s development. In the capabilities they agreed to, the two automakers profited from one another, but when it came down to actually create the two cars, Toyota and BMW operated independently of one another.
The idea of the new Toyota Supra being a completely Toyota-built vehicle would have been appealing.
The sentimental part of me enjoys it that way as well. However, there is something positive to be stated about the rise in automotive partnerships between automakers in the sports car industry. The current state of the market does not show a particularly positive picture of the desire for sports cars. The segment still has some of the automakers’ most ardent supporters, so manufacturers must still compete at their best. But there must be some concessions along the road, and the Toyota-BMW alliance is a prime illustration of that. And it’s not just these two. For instance, the Mazda MX-5’s chassis is used in the Fiat 124 Spider Abarth. A similar arrangement gave rise to the Toyota-Subaru alliance that produced the 86 and the BRZ. Automakers must adapt as well as the automotive industry, especially when it comes to the creation of models that don’t take part in the hybrid and electrification revolution. The Toyota-BMW alliance was established as a result. Although it may not be to our convenience, it is for their benefit.
In addition, would you be prepared to spend more than $100,000 on a Toyota Supra? Tada predicted that the Supra would cost if Toyota had developed it independently.
Price may not have been the primary driving force behind Toyota’s Supra development plan, but who’s to say it wasn’t a significant consideration in the end?
How about this then? Why don’t we put an end to our quibbling about how the Supra was created? Everyone has their own complaints, but in the end, would you let those grouses stand in the way of genuinely enjoying the Supra? After all, there’s one unavoidable fact about the car that no one can dispute.
There is now a new Toyota Supra. The time has come. Why don’t we take pleasure in it for what it is and not for what we expected it to be?
In This Article...
Toyota and BMW are partners?
BMW and Toyota first announced their technological alliance in 2013, but things are just getting started now in 2020. According to Reuters, BMW CEO Oliver Zipse is in favor of not only extending the partnership until 2025 but also forging a closer connection.
At the Automobilwoche Kongress last week, Zipse added, “We would do well to strengthen ties in the coming decades.”
The alliance has so far produced two vehicles that share a common base and powertrain: a new BMW Z4 convertible and a Toyota Supra sports coupe. As demonstrated by vehicles like the Mazda MX-5 Miata/Fiat 124 Spider and the Subaru BRZ/Toyota 86, this kind of cost-sharing is becoming increasingly prevalent in the industry.
The agreement also covers hydrogen fuel cell propulsion, a field in which Toyota has deep expertise thanks to the Toyota Mirai, one of the first mass-produced fuel-cell cars on the market. At the 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show, BMW debuted its own I Hydrogen NEXT crossover concept; however, the carmaker doesn’t plan to release a hydrogen vehicle in regular production until 2025 or later.
BMW’s CEO also said at Automobilwoche Kongress that if politicians started to push for increased hydrogen production globally, fuel cell vehicles would gain immensely.
However, there may be fewer resources available for enthusiast items like sports cars as BMW and other automakers move toward alternative power systems and various nations implement measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Last Monday, Zipse addressed that directly, first stating that BMW is considering how to save expenses by scaling back its portfolio before making the following foreboding declaration:
That seems to imply that, with or without a Toyota cooperation, vehicles like the Z4 might potentially end up on the scrap heap in the future.
Does BMW produce Toyota motors?
The two titans of the automotive industry, BMW and Toyota, have declared a “medium-to-long-term cooperation” in which they would cooperate to create and exchange green technologies.
Toyota will receive 1.6L to 2.0L diesel engines from BMW. In order to expand its market share on a continent where the vast majority of sold vehicles are powered by diesel engines, they will start incorporating them into some European models in 2014.
The two manufacturers will also work together to develop a brand-new line of lithium-ion batteries for hybrid and electric cars.
At a time when the race to improve fuel efficiency and lower emissions has peaked, this partnership will enable the two corporations to cut research and development expenses.
This is Toyota’s second announcement of this kind; earlier this summer, Toyota teamed up with Ford to create a hybrid system for SUVs and vans.
A Toyota Supra is it a BMW?
In case you somehow didn’t know, the new Supra is essentially a BMW Z4 on the inside. It has a BMW drivetrain, interior, and parts. It is propelled by a B58 twin-turbo straight-six engine from BMW.
What brand is owned by BMW?
The BMW Group is the top premium vehicle and motorcycle manufacturer in the world and also offers top-notch financial and mobility services through its four brands, BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce, and BMW Motorrad. The BMW Group has a global sales network in more than 140 countries, and its production network consists of 31 production and assembly facilities in 15 countries.
The BMW Group sold more than 169,000 motorcycles and over 2.3 million passenger cars in 2020. 2019’s fiscal year had revenues of $104.210 billion and a profit before tax of $7.118 billion. A total of 126,016 people worked for the BMW Group as of December 31, 2019.
Long-term planning and ethical behavior have always been the cornerstones of the BMW Group’s success. As a result, the company has made resource conservation a core component of its strategy, as well as thorough product accountability and ecological and social sustainability across the whole value chain.