Remember that guy who paid millions for the first series-production Supra for the 2020 model year? John Staluppi is his name, and VIN 001 hammered for $2.1 million or 38 times the price of the 3.0 Launch Edition.
The problem is, not even that car compares to the 2021 model with the high-output option. Customers are now offered two six-cylinder choices along with a four-cylinder that makes little sense when compared to the Hachi-Roku.
Like the BMW Z4 M40i, the most potent Supra nowadays is rated at 382 horsepower (387 PS) and 369 pound-feet (500 Nm) of torque. The difference over the base 3.0 can be summed up as 0.2 seconds from zero to 60 miles per hour (97 kph), but that’s not all. Curb weight increases by three pounds to 3,400 or 1,542 kilos, meaning that the C7 Corvette Stingray is lighter.
The question is, how does the high-output B58 fare on the dyno? Car & Driver had the opportunity to find out with the help of a demo car and Livernois Motorsports & Engineering in Michigan. Of course, a 2020 model was also tested to compare the rear-wheel horsepower against the newcomer.
For the 2020 model year, the Supra laid down 346 RWHP. This meaning the manufacturer’s crank rating is an understatement at best at 335 horsepower (340 PS). As the headline implies, Car & Driver says the 2021 Supra develops 388 RWHP, six more horsepower than advertised at the crankshaft (!!!).
If you take the drivetrain loss into consideration, the crank output of this particular example of the breed is pretty close to 400 ponies. On that note, the difference in pricing between the newcomer and the base 3.0 is not known at the time of writing. Toyota says the 2021 model year will go on sale in August, and small increases across the board shouldn’t come as a surprise.
If you want a rear-wheel-drive sporty car but spending $50k on the Supra seems too much to fathom, you’re in luck! Alternatives range from the Toyota 86 mentioned a few paragraphs before to roomier cars like the Kia Stinger. Don’t forget that the most affordable V8 pony for the 2020 model year is the Camaro LT1 with the small-block LT1 engine. Dodge matches the Chevy’s price with the Challenger R/T that offers a 5.7-liter HEMI motor for $35k.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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