Toyota 86 2012 Review

Toyota 86 coupe

Local Launch
Canberra, Australia

What we liked
>> Price even more affordable than expected
>> Unadulterated lightweight rear-drive chassis
>> Most anticipated Toyota ever ticks all the boxes

Not so much
>> Runs on expensive 98 RON petrol
>> No one-touch indicators or grabrails, tight rear seat and boot
>> Two to three-month waiting list

Supplies of just 250 a month and a pre-order bank of more than 500 buyers will ensure a waiting list for those that place a deposit now, and delivery delays are sure to increase following this week's announcement of a lower than expected $29,990 starting price. Australian dealers began taking $1000 deposits in December and some prospective buyers have offered up to $3000 extra to jump the delivery cue.

The 86 is in demand globally, too, with sales going gangbusters in Japan, Europe and the USA. Ominously, annual production capacity limited to 60,000 vehicles at Subaru's Gunma plant in Japan, where the near-identical BRZ coupe is also produced.

Much has been written about the 86 (known as the GT 86 in Europe and the Scion FR-S in the USA) since Toyota and Subaru announced a plan to co-develop a compact rear-drive sports coupe powered by a new boxer petrol engine, in July 2009.

Suffice to say Toyota has delivered on its promise to produce an affordable sportscar for the masses, thanks to pricing that is accessible as the 86's accomplished performance.

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT
>>Two specs, both far cheaper than expected
Toyota has always said the 86's all-important starting price would start with a '3' in Australia, so the announcement this week of a $29,990 entry price (plus on-road costs) comes as a pleasant surprise, to say the least.

What's more, Toyota says that -- in line with its key affordability target and to help counter the traditional sales slide over the course of most sportscars' lives -- pricing will stay at launch levels for at least six months. Then, if increases are necessary, they will be minimal, the maker says.

As expected, the ground-breaking new coupe arrives in two specification grades, with both the sub-$30,000 entry-level GT and the flagship GTS variant ($35,490) coming as standard with a six-speed manual transmission. A six-speed automatic transmission adds $2500 to the cost of both models.

The 86, which officially becomes available on June 18, is covered by a capped-price servicing plan with up to four scheduled services costing $170 each.

Australia will not receive the stripped-out base model available in Japan and the base GT is expected to account for 60 per cent of sales. A host of aftermarket TRD accessories are expected to become indirectly available, including wheels, brakes, suspension components, wings and decals.

As it stands, the base 86 rides on 16 x 6.5-inch alloy wheels with relatively narrow 205/55-section tyres (and a full-size spare -- steel in the GT's case0. Cruise control, air-conditioning and a CD sound system with Bluetooth, voice recognition and USB/AUX inputs are also standard.

Also fitted across the range are halogen headlights, daytime running lamps (DRLs), a multi-information display, power windows/mirrors, a rear foglight, tilt and telescopic steering wheel adjustment, a folding rear seatback, analogue speedo, 'premium' three-spoke steering wheel, shift lever and shift knob, and a urethane-covered parking brake lever.

The top-shelf 86 GTS adds 17 x 7.0-inch alloys with 215/45 tyres, steering wheel paddle shifters (auto only), a 6.1-inch colour touch-screen and satellite-navigation with live traffic updates, 3D map display, RDS-TMC (SUNA) traffic information, speed camera warnings, SMS and email text to voice, FM radio text and SD card slot.

Buyers of the premium GTS also score auto-leveling high intensity discharge (HID) headlights, LED DRLs, front foglights, keyless entry/starting, a digital speedo, dual-zone climate-control, leather-accented Alcantara-trimmed front seats with heating, aluminium pedals and door sills, a 'premium' three-spoke steering wheel and park brake lever, 'carbon-look' instrument panel, a [claimed] world-first frameless interior rear-view mirror and red stitching interior highlights.

A range of unique styling cues highlight both the car's name and its maker, including a subtle T-mesh (for Toyota) pattern the front grille, door-switch base, instrument panel, meters, triangular central rear foglight and spare-wheel cover, and a conrod motif for the headlights, twin exhausts, instrument dials, air-vents and gear-lever base.

Designed to reflect the car's unique front boxer engine, rear-drive layout -- as well as the vehicle's tyres sliding in a four-wheel drift -- is an 86 boxer piston logo on the car's front wing, with red highlights for the GTS.

Australia's 86 will be available in seven exterior paint colours: Pegasus White, Tornado Grey, Mount Fuji Red, Sonic Blue, Thunder Silver, Storm Black and Velocity Orange.

MECHANICAL
>> Bankrolled by Toyota, engineered by Subaru
The first rear-drive Toyota passenger car since the MR2 ( discontinued here in 2006, the same year as the last Celica) is the result of a unique collaboration between Subaru and the world's biggest carmaker.

Based on a modified Impreza platform, the 86 gets a completely redesigned version of Subaru's trademark flat-four boxer engine fitted with Toyota's next-generation D-4S direct-injection system. What's not well-known is it returns Toyota to its sportscar roots -- the 1962 Sports 800 was the first car to feature a front-mounted boxer engine (in that case a 790cc twin-cylinder) driving the rear wheels.

Boxer-engined rear-drive cars aren't new -- Volkswagen's original four-cylinder 'Beetle' and Porsche's more recent line of similarly rear (and mid) engined models are the most obvious examples. But Toyota is quick to point out the 86 (and therefore its mechanical twin, Subaru's upcoming BRZ) is the the world's only production vehicle to feature a rear-drive front-mounted boxer powertrain configuration.

Less convincingly, it says 86 revives the compact rear-drive formula employed most famously by Toyota in the Corolla AE86 of the mid-1980s.

The 86's horizontally opposed 16-valve DOHC four-cylinder petrol engine displaces 1998cc via square bore and stroke dimensions of, yes, 86mm. Running on 98 RON premium unleaded with a high 12.5:1 compression ratio and fitted with Toyota's D-4S dual direct-injection system, it produces a relatively high 147kW at a heady 7000rpm and a modest 205Nm between an equally revvy 6400-6600rpm.

Maximum engine speed is a feisty 7450pm and, in another new benchmark for Toyota's first mass-production four-cylinder boxer, specific output is 100hp per litre. In another break with tradition, the boxer engine's sound is channelled directly into the cabin via a sound generator -- the first system of its type to be used in a Toyota.

Both the GT and GTS come with a 50-litre fuel tank and a relatively short 4.1:1 final drive, but both six-speed automatic versions (which come with taller internal gear ratios than the six-speed manual across the board, as well as steering wheel paddle shifters for the GTS and a throttle-blip function during downshifts) are more efficient. The conventional automatic, which Toyota says was inspired by the Lexus IS-F and can shift gears in just 0.2 seconds, returns combined fuel consumption of 7.1L/100km and emits 164 grams of CO2 per kilometre. The manual consumes 7.8L/100km and emits 181g/km.

Toyota has issued performance figures for the 86, the manual version of which is claimed to sprint to 100km/h in 7.6 seconds on its way to a 226km/h top speed. The auto is slower on both counts, at 8.2 seconds and 210km/h.

Toyota says the 86's 460mm centre of gravity is in fact some 18mm lower than Porsche's Cayman. Its kerb weight is also at least 100kg lower at 1222kg, resulting in an enviable power-to-weight ratio of 120kW/tonne.

The 86 also features the lowest driver hip-point of any Toyota production vehicle at 400mm, and its engine (which drives through a Torsen limited-slip differential in all but the GT auto variant) is mounted as low and far back as possible, resulting in 53/47 front/rear weight distribution.

Braking for the entry-level 86 is via 277x24mm ventilated front discs and 286x10mm rear rotors, while the GTS gains larger 294mm front discs and larger and thicker 290x18mm rear discs. The handbrake is a lightweight lever (not electric) type -- perfect for handbrake turns.

The sleek two-door body, which has a drag co-efficient of 0.27Cd, is suspended by MacPherson struts up front and double-wishbones at the rear, both supported by coil springs, gas dampers and rose-jointed anti-roll bars.

PACKAGING
>> Minimalist in every respect
Overall, the 86 measures 4240mm long, 1775mm wide and a low 1285mm high, making it 5mm shorter than a Corolla hatchback and some 225mm lower than a three-door Yaris hatch. Wheelbase is also shorter than the Corolla's, 2570mm, while wheel tracks a broad 1520 front and 1540mm rear.

The 86 returns an 11.4-metre turning circle via its electrically assisted rack-and-pinion steering system with a quick 13.1:1 steering ratio. Apart from being almost upright, the steering wheel itself is the smallest seen in any Toyota model, at 365mm. It is also adjustable for both reach and rake, albeit only over a range of 20mm and 16 degrees respectively.

Providing just enough room for four but no more, the 86 offers 1065mm of front legroom but just 759mm for rear passengers. Toyota says the twin rear bucket seats (which feature a one-piece folding seatback to save weight) can accommodate passengers up to 170cm tall, but they sit directly under the rear window and within fixed side windows.

The 86 is fitted with two ISO-Fix child seat mounting points and two child-restraint anchorages, but if transporting rear occupants is not the priority, with the rear seatback folded flat the 86 boot can carry four standard wheels for a track day, or two golf bags. Cargo height is 391mm but the rear aperture is high and narrow. Toyota has issued no total volume figure.

SAFETY
>> No skimping here either
Despite its super-low pricetag, both versions of the 86 come with a generous armoury of standard safety equipment, including seven airbags, a five-mode electronic stability control system (VSC), traction control (TCS) and an antilock braking system (ABS) with electronic brake-force distribution (EBD) and brake assist (BA).

It also says ultra-high strength steel was used extensively in the 86/BRZ's construction to maximise rollover and side-impact protection while reducing weight and lowering the centre of gravity.

The cabin structure includes reinforced roof side rails and a reinforced B-pillar, as well as a roof centre brace manufactured from 1500MPa hot-press steel, a roof header and roof side rail outer made from 980MPa steel, and B-pillar outers made from a combination of 980 and 590MPa high-tensile steel.

COMPETITORS
>> An all-new segment that should worry the established hot-hatch brigade
At $29,990, 86 pricing starts about $10,000 below a plethora of established hot-hatch models including Volkswagen's Golf GTI hatchbacks (priced from $38,990), the Mazda3 MPS hatch ($39,490), Subaru's Impreza WRX hatch and sedan ($39,990), the Renault Megane RS250 coupe ($41,990) and Mitsubishi's Lancer Ralliart hatch and sedan ($44,490).

That group will be joined by Ford's new Focus ST here by year's end, but in contrast to these front-wheel drive models (and the WRX and Ralliart all-wheel drives), the 86 also brings rear-wheel drive to the affordable sportscar arena. Mazda's evergreen MX-5 roadster ($44,265, or $47,200 in folding hard-top form) was previously Australia's cheapest rear-drive sportscar.

Therefore top-spec GTS versions of the 86, at less than $40K on the road, will could also tempt buyers looking at more expensive European coupe like the Mini Cooper S Coupe ($42,990), VW Scirocco R ($47,490), Peugeot RCZ ($54,990), Audi TT (from $65,450) and BMW 125i ($80,850).

The 2+2-seater 86 is also a full $5000 more accessible than Honda's CR-Z hybrid manual coupe (from $34,990), which is about what Hyundai is expected to charge for its upcoming Veloster Turbo coupe, both of which are front-drive.

At the other end of the scale, it is $6000 pricier than Hyundai's regular Veloster (from $23,990) and another front-drive compact from Korea, the Kia Cerato Koupe, which remains Australia's cheapest 'sporting' model from just $23,390.

ON THE ROAD
>> Believe everything you've read...
If you've read this far, chances are you've also read plenty about the 86 elsewhere, almost all of it positive. Well, believe the hype, because we're here to tell you the 86 is better than anything else at this price and, subjectively, better than many small front-drive hot-hatches priced about $10K higher.

Toyota, in its drive to reconnect with driving enthusiasts for the first time since the demise of the Celica and MR2 in 2006, is right to say its most anticipated model ever redefines the concept of the affordable sportscar. It literally creates an all-new vehicle segment beneath the established hot-hatch players.

Unlike the Celica and rear-drive MR2, however, the 86 is also a game-changing model not seen from Japan since the likes of Honda's NSX supercar, Nissan's original 'Godzilla' GT-R or the turbocharged all-wheel drive Mitsubishi Lancer GSR and Subaru Impreza WRX.

Even more so than all of those cars, the 86 brings pure, unadulterated driving fun to the masses, via a formula that's so simple yet effective that only two questions remain: why did nobody think of it before and what took Toyota and/or Subaru so long?

Indeed, from behind the tiny, near-upright steering wheel, the 86 feels far more than the sum of its parts. Some have criticised the 2.0-litre naturally-aspirated flat-four for a lack of performance, but the fact is that redesigned 86mm square cylinder dimensions and the fitment of direct-injection (which allows a high compression ratio and specific output) make the 86's boxer engine unlike any other.

More like a flat Porsche six than any Subaru boxer engine we've driven, the 86 mill is smooth, responsive and loves to rev -- well beyond the ceiling of any Subaru engine. As it approaches its near-7500rpm cut-out, it has an exhaust note all of its own.

The induction noise is similarly unique, transmitted directly into the cabin's footwells via a active sound pipe in just the right dosage without ever being overbearing.

No, the 147kW/205Nm boxer isn't as muscular in the midrange as a turbocharged 2.5-litre WRX, but it is smoother, more responsive and adequately beefy off the line. Its extended top-end power surge more than compensates.

Well matched to the broad powerband are both the close-ratio six-speed manual, which comes with a super-short-throw stubby gearshifter and a slightly notchy shift action, and the more widely spaced six-speed automatic, which scores tactile wheel-mounted paddle shifters (pull on the left one to downshift and the right one to upshift).

You could argue the 86 is under-tyred, especially at base level, so it's a good thing that, unlike some other Toyotas, the 86's five-stage stability control system (including a higher-threshold sport mode) is unobtrusive and progressive. But much like Mazda's MX-5, the 86 chassis is so neutral and adjustable mid-corner that wider tyres could well spoil its inherent balance.

Dive deep into corners using all of the its progressive stopping power, which is noticeably superior in the bigger-braked GTS, and the 86 will telegraph its intentions loud and clear, understeering predictably if there's too much speed to support any given steering lock.

Get on the power mid-corner, however, and the front-engined, rear-drive chassis hunkers down and drives hard out of corners with the sort of poise we've not seen before in a Toyota. Ask more of it and the 86 will easily generate power oversteer in the lowest three gears. Not that it ever feels anything but totally adjustable. Want more oversteer? Simply dial in more throttle and the level of opposite lock increases accordingly, until the stability control throws out its subtle anchors.

At launch five closed-road driving exercises -- including dirt track, motorkhana, skid pan, road course and hill climb -- were enough to explore all of the 86's considerable dynamic talents, including a parking brake lever that's perfectly positioned for handbrake turns and steering that is so precise, responsive and communicative that it's hard to believe it's all-electric.

And while an extensive public road drive on the bumpy, blind backroads surrounding Canberra showed ride quality is firm (but not out of character with the 86's sporting intent), at the same time the 86 is eminently stable and confidence-inspiring, even in the treacherously wet and foggy conditions we encountered on the morning of the launch program.

In keeping with the minimalist ethos, the 86 interior is simple and tight, although the necessary features are present and correct in both model grades and the soft-touch dash material break up what is otherwise an uninspiring cabin. The hip-hugging front sports seats offer plenty of lateral support and make up for the steering wheel's limited telescopic and angle adjustment (and the slightly offset pedals in both manual and automatic models) but for a clean-sheet design the 86 interior, like its exterior, could have been more special.

Toyota admits it went for a classic, long-bonnet design that recalls elements of the shapely 2000GT coupe in an effort to make the 86 timeless. Perhaps this is the only thing that might prevent the 86 achieving cult status.

The 86 isn't perfect. It runs on a diet of expensive 98 RON premium unleaded, rear-seat and boot space is typically coupe-tight (though rear vision is good), there's no sign of interior grab-handles and Toyota continues to deny its customers the now-common convenience of one-touch lane-change indicators. But these are relatively minor quibbles in a car that hits all of its key targets and is so much fun to drive.

Quite simply, it will easily corner the affordable coupe market in which it sets a new benchmark.