Don’t dismiss the 2020 Toyota Supra just because of the BMW bits
The 2020 Toyota Supra will put a smile on your face, especially if you can take it to a track day. [credit: Toyota ]
Let's get one thing out of the way right off the bat: there's more mechanical stuff in the Supra with BMW logos stamped on it than bits originating from Toyota. And that's not a value judgment-it just is.
In the giant, formal ball that is global manufacturing, companies often look for partners that bring components to the table that fit the job description of the future car in question. So, the drivetrain, most of the suspension, the in-car technology-all of this is a made-in-Munich equation. The door plate and even the underhood components like the coil packs atop the spark plugs all state "BMW." Hey, at least give car points for honesty. But the market has been awaiting the new Supra since the FT-1 concept car debuted way back in 2014, so the new Supra has been a long time coming.
Could Toyota have engineered a great follow-up to the vaunted 2JZ inline-6 from Supras past? Of course. Could it have done its own suspension architecture and platform? You bet. But for a very low-volume car, it's a boardroom fight you're assured to lose when partnering with BMW could cover virtually all the product's needs. Whether that's right for the fans and consumers attracted to the new Supra is another thing entirely, but car companies must live and work in the real world where R&D costs for a single platform are in the billions of dollars. Bean counters often make the decisions, and if a new platform and its costs cannot be spread across more than one product line, it's nearly impossible to justify. If Toyota hadn't partnered with BMW on the Supra, this car wouldn't exist at all.
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