2017 Toyota GT86
Discussion
After landing a new job and using my 28 year old Discovery as a daily driver for 7 months, I finally treated myself to a newer daily car that I promised myself following redundancy last year.
It’s a 2017 GT86 (base) in GT86 Grey with the optional navigation, rear PDC and armrest. I wasn’t too fussy with spec, I was after a facelift and anything without a spoiler. This one happened to pop up at my local Toyota dealer and they were able to offer me a very fair deal, so it was deal done.
Irritatingly I was dealing with a gout attack when I picked it up (I’m 27, not 80 before anyone asks
), so the first two weeks were mainly spent feeling very sorry for myself and not being able to enjoy the car.
Finally once that was out of the way, I was itching to take it to Wales which I managed this weekend. A selection of terrible pictures of when it was collected and some from the Welsh road trip.
GT86 by ollieteb, on Flickr
GT86 by ollieteb, on Flickr
GT86 by ollieteb, on Flickr
GT86 by ollieteb, on Flickr
GT86 Wales by ollieteb, on Flickr
GT86 Wales by ollieteb, on Flickr
GT86 Wales by ollieteb, on Flickr
GT86 Wales by ollieteb, on Flickr
GT86 Wales by ollieteb, on Flickr
GT86 Wales by ollieteb, on Flickr
The car was great fun on the Welsh roads, and no matter how steep or how open and sweeping the road was, it never felt out of it's depth. A nice easy cruise at 80-85 also yielded nearly 40mpg, and 35mpg was the average for the whole 720 mile trip.
After just under a month and just over 1500 miles of a mixture of journeys, I've begun to get a feel for the car and understand how it ticks. Very much enjoying it so far, as this is my first real foray into RWD for any length of time there's still much to learn.
A very brief summary of things I like and don't like;
LIKE:
Roast away
It’s a 2017 GT86 (base) in GT86 Grey with the optional navigation, rear PDC and armrest. I wasn’t too fussy with spec, I was after a facelift and anything without a spoiler. This one happened to pop up at my local Toyota dealer and they were able to offer me a very fair deal, so it was deal done.
Irritatingly I was dealing with a gout attack when I picked it up (I’m 27, not 80 before anyone asks
), so the first two weeks were mainly spent feeling very sorry for myself and not being able to enjoy the car. Finally once that was out of the way, I was itching to take it to Wales which I managed this weekend. A selection of terrible pictures of when it was collected and some from the Welsh road trip.
GT86 by ollieteb, on FlickrGT86 by ollieteb, on FlickrGT86 by ollieteb, on FlickrGT86 by ollieteb, on FlickrGT86 Wales by ollieteb, on FlickrGT86 Wales by ollieteb, on FlickrGT86 Wales by ollieteb, on FlickrGT86 Wales by ollieteb, on FlickrGT86 Wales by ollieteb, on FlickrGT86 Wales by ollieteb, on FlickrThe car was great fun on the Welsh roads, and no matter how steep or how open and sweeping the road was, it never felt out of it's depth. A nice easy cruise at 80-85 also yielded nearly 40mpg, and 35mpg was the average for the whole 720 mile trip.
After just under a month and just over 1500 miles of a mixture of journeys, I've begun to get a feel for the car and understand how it ticks. Very much enjoying it so far, as this is my first real foray into RWD for any length of time there's still much to learn.
A very brief summary of things I like and don't like;
LIKE:
- The new track setting for the traction control.
- The driving position
- The way it looks, especially since it's been facelifted. I can see a lot of LFA in the design, maybe it's just me.
- It's tiny. Very easy to place on the road.
- The 6 speed manual and LSD, a real delight when you're in the mood to play
- I keep getting electric shocks when getting out of it
- The fact I don't get a pound for everytime I've heard "aren't they really slow" or "are you going to turbocharge it" since I've collected it, I could have gone and bought another one by now
- The touchscreen can be a bit slow to respond to volume inputs, but strangely it's fine for everything else
- The boot opening is a bit narrow (I'm coming from a long line of Hatchbacks and Land Rovers, so this might be being a bit harsh)
- Overall weight. I think 1250kg is a lot considering an MX5 weighs 200kg less. I know the MX5 is smaller, but 200kg is an awful lot.
Roast away
Lovely, such a fan of these cars. You can save nearly 30kg by using a Li-on battery and tyre weld instead of the spare wheel / jack / tools etc.
My zed never had a spare wheel anyway, so the lack of a spare wouldn't worry me.
You could probably drop another 5-10kgs or so and get rid of the torque dip with a new header / exhaust and a remap. All in, that would probably make quite a noticeable difference without impacting usability.
My zed never had a spare wheel anyway, so the lack of a spare wouldn't worry me.
You could probably drop another 5-10kgs or so and get rid of the torque dip with a new header / exhaust and a remap. All in, that would probably make quite a noticeable difference without impacting usability.
Thanks all for your kind comments, I was expecting the worst 
I prefer them without the spoiler. The spoiler on the facelifted one is really not to my taste;
TwoStrokeNut said:
Lovely, such a fan of these cars. You can save nearly 30kg by using a Li-on battery and tyre weld instead of the spare wheel / jack / tools etc.
My zed never had a spare wheel anyway, so the lack of a spare wouldn't worry me.
You could probably drop another 5-10kgs or so and get rid of the torque dip with a new header / exhaust and a remap. All in, that would probably make quite a noticeable difference without impacting usability.
I think that's probably where I'll head, thank you!My zed never had a spare wheel anyway, so the lack of a spare wouldn't worry me.
You could probably drop another 5-10kgs or so and get rid of the torque dip with a new header / exhaust and a remap. All in, that would probably make quite a noticeable difference without impacting usability.
Pulse said:
Nice to see people still buying proper cars! Which roads are these?
These were all taken in Wales. The 1st 4 were taken in the Elan Valley, the 5th was just the other side of Llanberis pass heading towards Bedgellert, the final one was on a stretch of the B4391. A full day heading from South to North Wales, driving round, then driving back to Hertfordshire mikey P 500 said:
Looks nice in grey, was the no spoiler requirement because you like them without a spoiler or just wanted to avoid holes in boot lid so can pick own spoiler to add later? Had mine gt86 nearly 2 yrs now and still enjoying it.
Glad to see you're still enjoying yours, I see you came from a MINI Cooper S too I prefer them without the spoiler. The spoiler on the facelifted one is really not to my taste;
boombap said:
Why would you turbocharge it?
Supercharged ftw
Quite Supercharged ftw
ECG1000 said:
Very good cars. I miss mine.
How do you find the Fiesta ST in comparison? That was another car I considered.LordGrover said:
I see you enjoy similar roads to me; when I first got mine it spent a decent amount of time over the Brecons. Perfect for the car's characteristics.
I think I'll be getting another in the not too distant future too.
I think I remember your thread, did you have one back in late 2012 ish? Brecons were indeed perfect for this car.I think I'll be getting another in the not too distant future too.
GH421 said:
Aren't they really slow?
Yeah They're not too bad really, the problem arises when you're sat in the torque dip between 3.5k-4.5k rpm. In a straight line I'd say it feels as quick as my lightly tuned MINI Cooper S. Corners I'd say the cars were similar too.PorkRind said:
Can you turn the TC fully off on these? LSD?
You can 
LSD and low rolling resistance tyres make greasy/wet road progress quite interesting when you want it tostuart-b said:
When are you going to turbo charge it?
That'll be a pound please 
GiveItSomeWellie said:
LordGrover said:
I see you enjoy similar roads to me; when I first got mine it spent a decent amount of time over the Brecons. Perfect for the car's characteristics.
I think I'll be getting another in the not too distant future too.
I think I remember your thread, did you have one back in late 2012 ish? Brecons were indeed perfect for this car.I think I'll be getting another in the not too distant future too.
If I get another I won't be fecking about with it this time. Spent a few bob and much time getting mine modded and mapped but it was money not well spent. Enjoy it as-is - they're great fun and it's easy to spoil them.
LordGrover said:
May be mine you remember. They were a rare site when I picked mine up 1 September 2012.
If I get another I won't be fecking about with it this time. Spent a few bob and much time getting mine modded and mapped but it was money not well spent. Enjoy it as-is - they're great fun and it's easy to spoil them.
Gotta agree with you there, if I could do it all again I'd fix up the torque dip with the TD manifold package and get some decent brake pads on there for track days and enjoy the s*** out of it If I get another I won't be fecking about with it this time. Spent a few bob and much time getting mine modded and mapped but it was money not well spent. Enjoy it as-is - they're great fun and it's easy to spoil them.
Lovely purchase OP, hopefully see you around at some of the 86/PH events
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