Tuesday 23rd October 2018

Supra VLN race car... goes racing

Do they count as spy shots if it's racing at the Nordschleife?

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We make no apologies for featuring more Toyota Supra pictures on PH, chiefly because it's a car we're all jolly excited about. Crucially too this racing car, believe it or not, reveals a few more details about the production version.

Look at that interior pic; it shows far more than has been seen thus far of the cabin, and specifically a very strong BMW influence. The ventilation controls, preset buttons, gear selector and iDrive dial (it's under the gloves) all look identical to those seen in numerous production BMWs; heck, even the stalks are carried over. But then Toyota was hardly likely to do different, was it? Using BMW parts saves on the cost and guarantees a level of quality and usability that buyers will expect at £50k, plus the fierce response to the GT86 driving environment may well have put Toyota off attempting its own again.

The Supra was competing in the SP8T class of the VLN over the weekend, where it was racing against an M235i Racing. And came second. Still, it completed a best lap of 9:28.164 (at an average speed of 154.337km/h), and finishing will be as important as anything with the car's final durability testing presumably now taking place.

Handily the weather could hardly have been better for taking pictures of a car nobody expected to see, autumn sunshine showing off the Supra in the best light. The disguise is still pretty thorough, however, as in the prototype drive, so there remain blanks to be filled in. It's interesting to note though just how pronounced the double-bubble roof is, how relatively compact it seems on track, and also how good the Supra looks when it's lowered on some O.Z Racing multispoke wheels. No doubt the tuning companies are already thinking similar, too...

With the roadgoing car due for reveal in January, and a more serious racing version previewed a few months back at Geneva, hopefully this is just the beginning for a new generation of motorsport Supras. Goodness knows there's some legacy to live up to.

[Images: S.Baldauf/S.B.Medien]

[3yardy3]

I absolutely love the fact cars like this are still being manufactured and sold in big numbers, I absolutely hate the fact there is no manual option...

I had a 335i DCT and although it was a fantastic and clever gearbox it just wasn't the same... fingers crossed they release a limited edition manual in a year or two... one can only hope.