The Toyota GR86 is something glorious and rare in our time – an affordable rear-wheel-drive (RWD) sports car. Engineers didn’t overpower it with a huge engine. They just made it fun, with an emphasis on balance. At 228 horsepower, it offers enough power to thrill on a highway cloverleaf but not so much that you’re tempted to endanger your driver’s license.
SUVs pay the bills today. Car companies know that selling more midsize SUVs will help their bottom line more than a new low-slung sports coupe that appeals to few buyers. So, the car has little competition.
But Toyota still builds one (even if they get help from Subaru, which shares costs on the car to sell its own version, the BRZ)
For 2025, Toyota will distill it a little finer. We don’t know 2025 pricing yet. The 2024 edition of the GR86 starts at just $30,395 ($1,095 delivery fee included).
Performance Tweaks
The little car’s fundamentals won’t change for 2025. But Toyota engineers have made refinements to make it better at the things it already does well.
“GR86 shock absorbers have been re-tuned to help improve handling response and a sense of ground contact,” the company says. The power steering has been retuned “for a more responsive handling feel and an improved sense of direct contact with the road.”
Engineers also refined throttle mapping “to increase the ease of ‘blipping,’ an action commonly used when performing heel-toe downshifts in a motorsport setting.”
Gorgeous Hakone Special Edition
A limited Hakone Special Edition joins the lineup for 2025. Named for a highway near Tokyo with a curvy mountain pass beloved by car enthusiasts, the limited edition comes painted in a gorgeous dark shade Toyota calls Ridge Green. Eighteen-inch bronze wheels and a throwback ducktail spoiler complete the look.
Inside, designers trimmed the sport seats in black Ultrasuede faux suede and tan leather.
Toyota will ship just 860 copies of the Hakone GR86 to the U.S.
All GR86 coupes come with one of the industry’s most unique features – a one-year membership to the National Auto Sport Association (the other NASA), complete with one free high-performance driving event.
The 2025 Toyota GR86 will arrive at dealerships this fall.
