Toyota 86 GTS 2017 Review

Every sports car goes through the same market trajectory – an initial burst of consumer enthusiasm followed by a steady drift into the doldrums. So it is for the Toyota 86, which sold over 6700 cars in 2013 – its first full year on sale – but last year sold just over 2000 units. Toyota does have a fix for the 86 – a facelift, a power hike for the manual variant and improved running gear. Is it enough?

Until you spend some time with the 86, it's easy to shrug off the vocal demands from 86 fans for higher engine output.

The changes to the 86 for 2017 enhance the car's ride without detriment to cornering, which begs a new comparison with the Mazda MX-5 in 2.0-litre form (watch this space). Without even setting foot in the Mazda, however, I'm sure it remains easier to exploit performance in the MX-5 than the 86.

In manual form the Toyota has to be worked harder, but is a better option for enthusiasts than the automatic 86. The boxer engine delivers linear acceleration across the rev range, but lacks power to pull the automatic's taller ratios. This is blindingly obvious accelerating out of a hairpin bend into a long, climbing straight. The engine runs out of revs above 7000rpm, but third gear is too high for the engine’s torque curve in the automatic variant.

However, the automatic 86 makes more sense than the manual in an urban context. There's no juggling clutch and accelerator, no grappling with the clunky manual box and no need for the handbrake on even the slightest incline.

I expected the 86 with automatic transmission would be harder to drive quickly than the manual version; the softer power delivery through the automatic compels the driver to fling the car a bit harder into corners, relying more on inertia to make up for the performance deficit out the other side.

But it's not like the manual 86 is an effortless drive either. By all means slam the lever through the gates at the track, but it takes real finesse to find the right balance for smooth but quick shifts around town.

While the manual transmission's shift is light and precise, there's a modicum of engine flare and the clutch take-up is in a narrow band near the top of the pedal's arc. Setting the seat back further, with the backrest closer to upright allowed me to remain the right distance from both the wheel and the pedals for optimal shifting.

In typical Subaru fashion [Ed: the 86 and Subaru BRZ are a shared design], the manual variant is low geared. At 60km/h you can slot into fifth without revs falling below 2000rpm. At 100km/h in sixth the tacho needle is sitting at roughly 2700rpm. Yet the shorter gearing doesn't translate to neck-snapping acceleration.

For maximum enjoyment it's best to have the engine hitting at least 6000rpm before shifting up. As the output display in the trip computer revealed, the manual variant's torque reaches its peak at 3000rpm and then dips before steadily climbing again from 4000rpm. Presumably that's the transitional point where the car's port fuel injection hands over to the direct injection system. Revving the manual 86 to 6000rpm for an upshift will leave you at this sweet spot in the next gear.

The first thing to do at the track is switch off the manual 86's traction control. It's quite intrusive, particularly when launching from standstill, and is out of place in a car like this.

The 86’s engine sounds like someone ripping up corrugated cardboard in a wine vat – a very hollow, buzzing note that may not be to everyone’s liking. That said, I prefer the 86's engine note to that of the 2.0-litre MX-5's.

The auto 86 GTS posted a fuel consumption figure of 9.5L/100km, which included about 40km of freeway travel and very little commuting. During school holidays in January the manual version used slightly less than the auto, just 9.4L/100km. Both cars undertook short trips of less than 10 minutes’ duration from a cold start. And the manual spent more time in commuter traffic.

Highly agile, the 86 exhibits better turn-in and more measured steering response than the MX-5, due to the Toyota’s firmer front springs and softer rears. The Toyota’s tyres begin to wail eventually as cornering speeds rise, but the stability control system's calibration complements the car’s passive dynamics.

In handling terms, the 86 offers tenacious front-end grip and a flatter stance than the Mazda, but lift off mid corner and the Toyota steers in towards the apex without the tail threatening to break loose. It’s neutral and vice-free, in other words.

You can provoke oversteer on a trailing throttle with a flick, but the stability control does whatever is necessary to keep the 86 tracking true. Power oversteer can be induced also, but once again, the electronic safety aid will step in. There’s a brief sensation of reduced torque and a flashing light in the dash, but little in the way of lost momentum or clumsy course correction.

Ride comfort is not bad, given the nature of the 86. It’s firmer than I recall of the MX-5; that’s the price paid for cornering prowess. Nevertheless, the 86 is not a punishing ride, until you’re on really unforgiving road surfaces.

Braking is strong and the pedal is quite firm, but provides respectable feedback when you’re standing hard on the pedal. It is more like a race braking system in feel, although it’s also balanced enough for daily road use.

In so many ways the 86 is a very practical and surprisingly comfy sports car for daily driving. It doesn’t scrape over high-angle approaches like the writer’s driveway, for instance. With its fixed roof the 86 is quieter inside than the MX-5. The engine rumbles lightly at cruising speeds, but tyre roar and wind noise are more prevalent, in that order.

I found the seats to be exceptionally comfortable and snug for high-speed motoring. The +2 seats behind driver and front passenger are unexpectedly accommodating; given the 86 is such a small car. All the same, six-foot passengers need not apply. Even those shorter than 180cm will likely find their heads brushing the glass of the rear window. There’s little in the way of legroom back there either, unless you’re willing to rob Peter and pay Paul, by squeezing the front-seat passenger for space.

The new LED headlights are great on low-beam. But the field of vision to the rear is poor when parking. Toyota (Subaru, in fact) fits a reversing camera, but it comes with no guidelines and no ultrasonic sensors or acoustic guidance. The 86 is a car that forces you to become very reliant on mirrors when parking.

Instruments are easy to read and the interior is enhanced beyond the poverty-pack presentation of the 86 GTS we drove for ABDC in 2015. The controls felt nicely damped and were where they should be, particularly the handbrake lever. I could wish for a single-tap/lane-change indicator facility, but it's hardly a deal breaker.

A dainty little infotainment touchscreen is best suited to those with delicate little fingers. Not me, in other words. Other touchscreen systems we’ve tried in recent times work much more responsively to touch. And direct sun-glare will render it practically impossible to read.

The centre console offers plenty of space to throw knick-knacks, and there are two cup-holders behind the open receptacle, complemented by two decent-sized bottle-holders in the doors.

When it comes to luggage capacity, the 86 is not the sort of car you purchase for a week in the country. Yet the boot space is commendable in a car boasting such small external dimensions.

There's much to like in the 86. More power would be great, but for those who have made their peace with Toyota on that score there's just one real conundrum – auto or manual?

One for weekdays, one for weekends perhaps?