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Toyota unveiled the new Supra in January, then launched it onto the streets a few months later. The new sports car’s return sparked two immediate questions in the enthusiast community: When is the more powerful version coming? And where is the stick shift?
Now, it seems, we may have the answer to the first question, at least: Soon.
Recently, Toyota chief engineer Tetsuya Tada sat down for an interview with Autoblog. While he did not formally confirm a more powerful Supra was coming, or provide precise details, he did strongly hint at a more powerful version.
“With a sports car, the promise is to offer more performance with each additional version,” he said. “We have many ideas.”
Autoblog estimates about a 50-hp bump beyond the current (and likely underreported) 335 horsepower when the Supra receives a facelift in a couple years. (Of course, aftermarket tuners already are hard at work pushing the current Supra well beyond that.)
Tada’s response, when asked about a manual transmission, will likely be less encouraging for Supra enthusiasts. The Supra’s BMW sibling car, the Z4, has an optional six-speed manual in some markets. So, Toyota could, in theory, bring over that transmission with minimal fuss. But Tada dumped a heaping bucket of cold water on that speculation, telling Autoblog: “Customers who want a manual should choose the 86.”
