Toyota 86

[Martin_D]

Bit like the factory supercharged HSV thats been coming....four about five years now

[Mad Dog]

Test drove a manual gt other day. I just and i mean just fit in it. I dont fit in a mx5 turbo. Overall impression was good little car. Fairly flat and didnt understeer and i tried. Fairly neutral but the back does skip out a bit on bumps when pushed. Apart from head room driving position is pretty good. Performance as far as speed goes is lacking. Corners are fun. Brakes are poo. Red seemed to show up lots of marks where people had been touching it. Boot space is enough for few small bags. Rear seat is good for claiming it fits four people and thats about it. Sounds like it has equal length extractors. TRD make a seat but wont be available in Australia. Bride make an ultra low seat. But whether it can be fitted with ADRs or airbag computer not throwing up codes who knows. So counts me out as not possible to put on a stack hat which wouldnt do it justice not flinging it around some corners on a track. Maybe the one i drove with 970kms needed the brakes bleeding. The clutch was starting to slip too. Vision is pretty good. Stereo ac etc no idea as didnt bother.

[motorin on]

Convertible is already being talked about,probably 2014,about the same time as the upgraded MX5 - info from Carsguide
Due to the long waiting time for the current hardtop Toyota is trying to maintain interest,a soft top was not originally in their plans

[thomas99]

I got the opportunity to drive one last week. One of my friends got a blue one, one of the first in Brisbane I believe.

Its a good car for sure. They look great, really small in person. The interior is well made and very sports like, visibility is a bit lacking particularly rear and side but not that bad it makes it undrivable. But i'm used to sedans so I cant really comment there.

I didn't get a good hill run in the car as I only drove it through the suburbs but I was a bit disappointed with the lack of acceleration. They say these are 14 second cars but it doesn't really feel substantially faster than a normal 2.0L lancer. I found it difficult to keep up with traffic and was having Aurions and Commodore taxi's pull away from me substantially at every opportunity.

Having said that the steering was really direct and the car felt nicely planted. But it really lacked power from what I felt. Driving it felt like a car you would expect to be in the 9-10 second to 100 range, its really odd that they are quoted as mid 6's.

Having said that with more power it would be fantastic, im sure aftermarket supercharger kits will be out fairly soon.

[motorin on]

They say these are 14 second cars but it doesn't really feel substantially faster than a normal 2.0L lancer. I found it difficult to keep up with traffic and was having Aurions and Commodore taxi's pull away from me substantially at every opportunity..

I have a 2 litre MY11 Lancer auto and have to agree it seems slow sometimes in auto shift,just wants to bog down,
But when I drive it by changing gears manually I am more than happy to take any taxi on,Just waiting to match it with a Toyota 86 auto
I need to go to a speed off the street night at WSID soon so I can get a 1/4 mile time

[Marco]

Having said that with more power it would be fantastic, im sure aftermarket supercharger kits will be out fairly soon.

CHE is putting the finishing touches on a turbo setup ATM

[Martin_D]

I Driving it felt like a car you would expect to be in the 9-10 second to 100 range, its really odd that they are quoted as mid 6's.

Keep it spinning between 7000 - 8000rpm and they go ok, better than ok.
Its a Jap motor so revving it wont turn it into a hand grenade

[[TWIGGA]]

Hardly standard but a good read/watch - http://www.zerotohundred.com/2012/au...the-toyota-86/

[Marco]

I'm late to the party I know, but finally managed to organise a test drive at lunchtime today. I drove a manual blue BRZ (#090 for those of you playing at home) without either of the option packs.

For everyone saying it's slow, their SS would flog it etc - you're right and at the same time you don't get it. There is not the same amount of straight line, push-in-the-back, smile on your face shove as you get in an SS. This wasn't a surprise and nor was it a problem. The BRZ is adequately fast for people who aren't into drag racing. Maybe it's not for you if you're used to pointing your car at a hill and not needing to change gears, but for those of us who enjoy a good manual box it's no problem at all (and it is good - light effort, short throw, no trouble finding gears). Having said that, it could comfortably handle more power; Dale should be able to sell his turbo kits by the truckload and as long as it wasn't laggy, it would make the car just about perfect.

But oh, the way it turns. The way it turns, ladies and gentlemen. I have not driven anything quite like this. The steering is the right weight, points beautifully, and has instant response. I kept overdoing the amount of steering input needed - I'd put in enough to start the process of changing lanes, and bam, lane change done. This is what I've been looking for in a steering setup. I didn't push too hard but there seemed to be no issues with bodyroll and the ride, while harder than say my SS, was not uncomfortable. It was nowhere near as bad as the C6 Corvette I drove once, which seemed to be a classic case of American "make it stiff and handling will follow".

Everything about the driving experience said that someone had really thought about what makes a good driver's car and was focused on delivering it. The seat/wheel/pedals/gearshift relationship is spot on. The pedal spacing was just right for blipping the throttle on downshifts. The seats give a decent level of support (but I'm very glad that I've lost some kilos recently as it would be tight otherwise). Visibility is good, all the minor controls came to hand pretty well and even the engine note is decent, with a nice boxer note through the midrange. My only complaint there is that it does sound a bit strained up top, but I'm sure there will be an exhaust setup along soon if there isn't one already that will deal with this).

Unusually for me, I couldn't tell you much about things like the quality of the interior other than it seemed fine - how nice the plastics and carpet are really seemed to be totally irrelevant because you enjoy the drive so much, whereas when bored in some econobox I tend to start noticing things like hard plastic door trims. For the price, and for the enjoyment factor, I didn't care enough to look closely.

To sum up, I've been an SS guy for years now and I totally get this car. And I want one. For what I would use it for - commuting with the odd mountain road drive for fun - I doubt that I'd need more power, and I'd appreciate the other qualities more.

[jc_sv8]

Sounds like a Toyota version of a MX5, in a new Celica body.

I can certainly appreciate the turn in, almost Go Kart esk, and you have to be careful not to turn in too early, wind some steering off.
Similarly the gearbox and clutch in the MX5 is superb and perfectly aligned as well as the need to have more power.

Looking forward to testing the 86, only if you've got enough time at lunchtime to line up, it seems they are very popular. I've seen a couple on the road now and they are starting to grow on me.

[sjhugh]

These cars do seem to be popular at the moment.

In the last couple of weeks two have arrived in the streets surrounding my place on the Central Coast.

A darkish blue one and a white one, both owned by women on their P’s.

The blue one already has the Southern Cross on the right side of the rear window and a sticker of a girl and a dog on the left side.

I had a good look over it and liked what I saw but I can’t for the life of me see what most people will get out of them.

Not many will end up at track days and most won’t ever be pushed to their limits on a winding road, so what else is left to do with them?

An under powered shopping trolley!

Heaven help you if you have heavy groceries or a fat passenger, you’ll need to get the whip out.

I think in 12 months when the fanfare wanes, you’ll be able to snap them up second hand for a good price.

.

[dazzrael]

i saw one on the westgate this morning - looks good!

[Marco]

These cars do seem to be popular at the moment.

In the last couple of weeks two have arrived in the streets surrounding my place on the Central Coast.

A darkish blue one and a white one, both owned by women on their P’s.

The blue one already has the Southern Cross on the right side of the rear window and a sticker of a girl and a dog on the left side.

I had a good look over it and liked what I saw but I can’t for the life of me see what most people will get out of them.

Not many will end up at track days and most won’t ever be pushed to their limits on a winding road, so what else is left to do with them?

An under powered shopping trolley!

Heaven help you if you have heavy groceries or a fat passenger, you’ll need to get the whip out.

I think in 12 months when the fanfare wanes, you’ll be able to snap them up second hand for a good price.

.

You might need to drive one to understand it. The steering/handling/chuckability is unreal, far better than any Holden I've ever driven. In these days of low speed limits and a camera around every corner, I reckon it is a more usable approach to performance.

[redvxr8clubby]

You might need to drive one to understand it. The steering/handling/chuckability is unreal, far better than any Holden I've ever driven. In these days of low speed limits and a camera around every corner, I reckon it is a more usable approach to performance.

I would say your probably right on, if you buy (or just get to drive) one, if you are used to a lazy 6 litre V8 and you drive that V8 fairly easy and like the torquey feel, I am sure you'd be dissapointed in any 2 litre atmo 4 cyl. If you drive them with some revs up they should go well. I haven't driven an 86, but I have a new Fiesta which is no ball of fire - less than 90 Kw and 150Nm of trorque, but if you keep the revs above 3000 it goes quite well, and roadtests always seem to rate the Fiesta as best of all the light cars from a handing perspective. A Polo GTi or Fabia RS might score best overall, but Fiesta seems to be the best handling of all. From driving the Fiesta, I can see where you would be coming from with the handling/ chuckability statement, and realistically you cannot use the performance capabilities of a Holden V8 anywhere near the capital cities, certainly not around Sydney.

[Martin_D]

You might need to drive one to understand it.

Unless you are on the internet, then all you need is a login, and you know all.....quoting flappy paddles and how many torques with gay abandon....

Oh yeah mine rocked up too, at least on the wharf anyway

Fugly little thing isnt it?