Thursday 1st August 2019

New Supra gets Akrapovic exhaust treatment

There are plenty of performance parts on the way for Toyota's coupe, but where better to start than at the back?

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Much has been made of Toyota's willingness to allow aftermarket tuners to do the heavy lifting when it comes to getting the most out of the new Supra. The manufacturer has even gone so far as to pre-prepare the car with vents, ducts and mounting points which serve no purpose in standard spec, but could come in handy if additional power or stiffness were required further down the line. So with customers starting to take delivery of their cars, what better time to begin considering a personal touch or two?

And what better place to start than with the exhaust? The standard fit item is fine, but not particularly tuneful; what any true Supra needs is something with a bit more presence. Enter Akrapovic - who else? - to set things right. Constructed entirely from high-grade titanium, the Slovenian firm's offering features a single muffler arrangement and utilises a "unique set of tailpipes, utilising a design not previously seen on an aftermarket exhaust."

Designed specifically for the Supra, the outer surface of the pipe has been coated for greater durability, while the annealed interior hints at its sporting intent. No exact figures are given, but Akrapovic's claims that the new system reduces the Supra's overall weight, while also acting to improve power and torque through the entire rev range, aren't hard to believe - even if the gains will be marginal.

The kit offers different sound modes, including a 'comfort' setting for when you just want a bit of peace and quiet. Based on the video below, though, it doesn't sound particularly unpleasant even at full chat, with a low down burble and high end rasp adding an element of drama missing from standard car's setup. Above and beyond that, an optional Akrapovic Sound Kit is also available, allowing owners to tune the exhaust to their own liking thanks to the addition of a stainless-steel Evolution Link Pipe set.

With Toyota's own set of TRD enhancements already announced, and the rest of the aftermarket not far behind, we could soon be spoilt for choice when it comes to ways to soup-up the Supra. For now, though, this seems like a pretty good place to start...

 

 

 

 

[Neil G60]

Not sure I'd want to draw more attention to a car which is so hard to look at. The front's such a mess.

[cuda]

So you can polish a turd after all.

[fernando the frog]

thought this was going to be a bodykit that improved the look of the car...disappointed it's not

[shalmaneser]

"The manufacturer has even gone so far as to pre-prepare the car with vents, ducts and mounting points which serve no purpose in standard spec, but could come in handy if additional power or stiffness were required further down the line."

Fair enough about the vents and ducts but does it really have additional body mounting points?

[PhantomPH]

The video hardly sells this one - certainly doesn't sound anything to write home about and being Akro, will likely cost half the price of the car to buy.

[Sean207]

with Toyota all but inviting people to mod, I wonder how the warranty claims will go...

"Sorry sir, your new 6K exhaust invalidates the warranty...what? We put vents and stuff in it? Nah, not my department mate..."

[carinaman]

Does the BMW the Toyota is based on have the same preparation for after market mods is that something that distinguishes the Supra from the BMW it's based on?

[donteatpeople]

shalmaneser said:

"The manufacturer has even gone so far as to pre-prepare the car with vents, ducts and mounting points which serve no purpose in standard spec, but could come in handy if additional power or stiffness were required further down the line."

Fair enough about the vents and ducts but does it really have additional body mounting points?

The Supra has mounting points for the front strut brace that's standard fit on some models of the Z4.

[Vee12V]

donteatpeople said:

shalmaneser said:

"The manufacturer has even gone so far as to pre-prepare the car with vents, ducts and mounting points which serve no purpose in standard spec, but could come in handy if additional power or stiffness were required further down the line."

Fair enough about the vents and ducts but does it really have additional body mounting points?

The Supra has mounting points for the front strut brace that's standard fit on some models of the Z4.

They're standard fit on all Z4s, but a Toyota engineer told me they would upset the much stiffer Supra chassis if you'd to fit them. So there's more to it.

[untakenname]

The action pic in the article makes it look like it's got far too much ground clearance and could easily be lowered 40mm.

Don't like the sound tbh, no catback exhaust is going to do an engine justice, needs to be decatted to get some proper crackle on the overrrun.

[DanielSan]

shalmaneser said:

"The manufacturer has even gone so far as to pre-prepare the car with vents, ducts and mounting points which serve no purpose in standard spec, but could come in handy if additional power or stiffness were required further down the line."

Fair enough about the vents and ducts but does it really have additional body mounting points?

Having seen a couple of YouTube vids on this car now there's definitely extra bolt holes for strut bracing under the bonnet and the boot lid has extra bracing sp aftermarket spoilers can be added, think there's mounting points already behind the bumper for oil coolers and inter coolers as well.

[Jon_S_Rally]

Akra really have made it haven't they? Outside the world of bikes, you wouldn't have heard of them a few years ago, but now they are in with several OEMs. Fair play to them. Pricey though thanks to their love of titanium.

What we really need is someone to do some kind of early noughties Max Power-esque headlight swap and body kit. Might mean that the front of this car isn't quite so gopping.

Such a shame, as the side and rear are pretty nice, but it truly does have an ugly face.

[untakenname]

The pandem widebody/rocket bunny kit for it looks promising but $8k for a bodykit is pushing it
https://shopgreddy-com.myshopify.com/collections/r...

[foxhounduk]

Supra, oh Supra. I wish they didn't use your name and called this the GT87 or something. The car is fine but it does nothing to the heritage of the Supra name. BTW, that exhaust doesn't sound remotely interesting. More tin can farting, which seems to be the way nowadays.

[mat205125]

I'm still continuing to struggle to understand all the negativity towards the Supra.

I think it's a great looking car, and a refreshing RWD compact coupe/sports/gt.

The styling is similar enough to Toyota heritage, and includes cues from great cars from the likes of Ginetta, TVR, etc ...... it's a modern, reliable, safe and usable Sagaris, albeit with a few less chest hairs.

Whilst I'd love to be in the market for an Akrapovic exhaust that cost more than many car's I've owned in the past, I can't see that happening any time soon. I hope that we will start seeing more and more Supras on the road though, despite what badge/transmission snobs will keep posting all over the internet.

[mat205125]

foxhounduk said:

Supra, oh Supra. I wish they didn't use your name and called this the GT87 or something. The car is fine but it does nothing to the heritage of the Supra name. BTW, that exhaust doesn't sound remotely interesting. More tin can farting, which seems to be the way nowadays.

It's far closer in styling and performance to the Mk4, than that Mk4 was to it's predecessors, so what's the issue with the naming? I think it's great to see the name and the badge (in the same font!) on the road again.

[RumbleOfThunder]

mat205125 said:

foxhounduk said:

Supra, oh Supra. I wish they didn't use your name and called this the GT87 or something. The car is fine but it does nothing to the heritage of the Supra name. BTW, that exhaust doesn't sound remotely interesting. More tin can farting, which seems to be the way nowadays.

It's far closer in styling and performance to the Mk4, than that Mk4 was to it's predecessors, so what's the issue with the naming? I think it's great to see the name and the badge (in the same font!) on the road again.

The problem is the Mk4 is a legend of Japanese performance cars. It deserved far better than a chassis/engine/interior rebrand of a Z4, which is what it essentially is, despite Toyota's blurb. It doesn't even have the benefit of being faster than the Z4!

[ZX10R NIN]

Sounds good though.

[cerb4.5lee]

I'm over the BMW thing now and I'm pleased that the Supra is back. I really liked the looks of it when I saw it in the metal...although I wasn't as impressed with the interior.

If they offer one with a manual gearbox...then I will definitely be in the market for one in a few years for sure. These don't sound too bad as standard going from some of the videos I've seen.

[j_s14a]

foxhounduk said:

Supra, oh Supra. I wish they didn't use your name and called this the GT87 or something. The car is fine but it does nothing to the heritage of the Supra name.

Not this s**t again.

What heritage? The MK1 Celica Supra was a turd. The MK2 Celica Supra was much better but still not an outstanding car. The MK3 Supra was a big, HEAVY, GT, and wasn't really sporty. Some Japanese only models were sportier, but still not up there with the best.

The MK4 has become a legend, but it is still flawed. (and I own one).

Had Toyota developed the new car alone, it would have had a V6, which would have ruined the Supra heritage, as all the predecessors have had inline 6 engines, dating back to the 2000gt. Maybe one day Toyota will develop inline 6 engines again, but given the current climate, we're lucky to have got a 6 cylinder car at all.