Auto Reviews: 2026 Toyota GR Supra MkV Final Edition
It’s inherently thrilling to test a car as perfectly engineered as the 2026 Toyota GR Supra MkV, and so it’s stunning how adding two simple words—final edition—can change that thrill into mourning. In its last incarnation, the GR Supra is that most wonderful of cars—a vehicle that exists for no other reason than to celebrate the joys of driving. It has the expected blend of infotainment features, but none of them intrude on the focused pleasure of operating the vehicle. It’s not made for economy or ecology. The two-seater coupe has a trunk, but it’s much too small to transport anything but happy people. The buyer invests $71,000 to own a track-worthy performance car that turns even the average daily commute into an adrenaline-fueled treat.
The MkV Final Edition is the highest trim level available for the Supra and the top-performing version since Toyota brought the car back to its lineup in 2019. This 21st-century build is the fifth generation of the iconic model that dates back to 1978 (hence MkV, or Mark 5, if you aren’t into Roman numerals or Speed Racer references). Since its birth, Toyota’s greatest sports car has come and gone as the brand’s racing technology underpinned and powered its development.
For the 21st-century entry, a special partnership between Toyota and BMW produced a 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six-cylinder engine capable of 382 horsepower and 368 lb-ft of torque. Since the car weighs only about 3,400 lbs., that’s enough to produce a 0-60 m.p.h. time of 3.9 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 155 m.p.h. The end result is a dream marriage of elegant Japanese styling and pinpoint German engineering. The car’s aggressive, forward-dipping lines and sweeping door scoops are immediately eye-catching and unmistakably aggressive. The car looks like it can’t wait to move while standing still. Most fellow drivers see that and know to get out of the way once wheels start turning—or they fail to keep up in a foolish race.
With the Bavarian engine taken care of, Toyota engineers added a carbon-fiber ducktail spoiler, 14.7-inch front brake rotors, adaptive suspension and a choice of a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission. Why anyone would opt away from a stick shift on the floor in a car like the Supra is beyond any experienced driver’s comprehension. The blessings of the few surviving manual gearboxes still out in the wild must not be taken for granted.
Behind the wheel of the GR Supra MkV Final Edition, it’s clear this sports car isn’t going quietly into that Tokyo night. You can even squeeze out a little more rage against the dying of the light by kicking on Sport driving mode, which tightens the suspension, sharpens acceleration and pours extra testosterone (or your gender-specific hormone of choice) into the exhaust note for extra barks and rumbling.
With a price tag that adds up to a mere fraction of a supercar’s cost, the GR Supra can achieve feats on the pavement that more powerful cars can’t manage. A small, well-powered, rear-wheel-drive car like this can certainly get off the line ahead of most competition, but it can’t match the 0-60 times or top speed of a mid-engined McLaren. It can easily cruise at an illegal 90 mph-plus if the driver isn’t paying attention, but it doesn’t fly the way a front-engined Aston Martin might.
What the Supra can do is dance. Light on its feet and tight in a corner, this MkV can flow and drift in and out of spaces other cars must avoid. So deft and responsive is the car that it needs very little time before it syncs up with the senses of its operator. It’s a rare sensation in this age of technologically
Of course, the test driver takes in all of that stimulation while knowing full well there will be no 2027 Toyota GR Supra. While driving it has elements of grief tinging every moment, it’s fair to note the end of the GR Supra MkV isn’t some heartless plot by Toyota to continue the modern trend of squeezing the fun out of life at every opportunity. The phaseout is much more likely a marketing move and a response to industry trends.
Beloved enthusiast models such as the Supra come and go to give their ancestors a chance to clear the field. When Toyota announced the Supra’s return in 2019, lovers of Japanese sports cars hit the roof. Once the cars were available for ordering, they sold like ramen. In the years since, everyone who wanted a Supra and had the disposable cash bought one. At some point on the balance sheets, the customer list finally rested, more or less satiated.
Perhaps 2026 is that point for this generation’s Supra. This wonderful car needs to retreat into hiding again for a few years until new technology demands that it resurface and bring ecstasy to a new legion of buyers who owned its ancestors or who stand ready to discover the style, speed and precision of a Supra.