Toyota 86 - Raw Driving

If you’re reading this, chances are you've heard of the Toyota 86, this car has taken the world by storm, a sell out success in a number of markets and a car enthusiasts have been lusting after for years before it was even released. And now its finally here, and we cant seem to escape it, Toyota 86 advertisements are everywhere, the television, social media, magazines and newspapers and various other media forms.

The slogan Toyota has chosen to use in all its advertisements is ‘Raw Driving’ – sound familiar? And so I thought it quite appropriate to write about the famed 86 coupe on this very blog entitled ‘Raw Driving’

For me, raw driving can only occur when the driver is only given the things that make driving more enjoyable, things like, a normally aspirated engine, rear wheel drive, manual gearbox are essential. And the 86 certainly ticks these boxes. The 86 is powered by a naturally aspirated 2.0l Subaru boxer engine with Toyota direct injection which uses magic and wizardry to produce a pretty ordinary noise and power output of 147kw and 205nm, but maximum torque is all the way up at 6400rpm, so it makes the driver work. Power is sent to the rear wheels through a manual gearbox and a limited slip differential. The 86 uses the same tyres you might find on a Prius which probably sounds like a recipe for disaster. But its actually brilliant because it makes the 86 incredibly tail happy, but so balanced and easy to control once the rear lets go. This is what raw driving is about, no turbos, double clutch gearboxes or big fat grippy tyres. Just a small rev happy engine, manual gearbox, skinny tyres and a well balanced chassis.

Toyota FT-86 Concept 

Toyota FT-86 II Concept

Never has anyone made such a fuss about a new Toyota, so what’s the big deal? Well Toyota since the Celica and MR2 ended production in 2005 hasn’t had a sports car in its model range up until now, and the 86 must be pretty good since Toyota engineers benchmarked the 86 against the Porsche Cayman, a car that costs close to $100k more than the 86, and its not like the 86 came from nowhere either, it was apparently born back in 2006 and Toyota has been teasing the world with 86 concept cars since 2008. Since then the world has seen two different concepts plus the final production version. The first concept caused such a stir, and sent the automotive world into chaos – Ferraris started to spontaneously combust – the 458 in particular, Porsche made an ugly sedan and Peugeots started to become pretty, so Toyota understandably couldn’t resist the temptation to do it again and so unleashed the Toyota FT-86 II concept in 2010.

Finally, in the early months of 2012, Toyota obviously became overwhelmed with hate mail from motoring enthusiasts demanding they begin production of the 86 and stop teasing everyone, because finally at Fuji raceway Toyota showed the world what all the fuss was over, but then thought it might be fun to make people wait some more and didn't let consumers have their cars until the 8th of June or 8/6, get it?  

Obviously there was a reason for such fuss, violence and chaos, that reason being the promises Toyota made before producing the 86. Toyota promised the 86 would mark the return of the fun and affordable rear drive sports car, which had been missing from the marketplace since the demise of the MR2 and Nissan 200sx. Toyota Australia also made a statement saying the price tag would most likely begin with a three, although they could not guarantee anything, suggesting the price could be around the $40k mark. And then, a few weeks ago, when Toyota Australia announced the price would begin with a two, more specifically it would cost $29,990, the world went completely mad, Toyota dealers grabbed their money and fled the country knowing there was a limited supply of 86’s coming to our shores, and the violence would return once supplies dried up.

Toyota 86 

Now that people have settled down, and the insane ones are being given proper care, I had the chance to drive the 86. Would it live up to the hype and my ridiculously high expectations? You bet.  Generally in modern cars there is an overpowering element, whether that be an engine, a chassis or the steering wheel, but not in the 86. Everything works in complete harmony, the engines power is perfectly suited to its chassis, the steering is remarkable for an electric system, and is probably the best system currently used in any production car, its perfectly weighted, very direct and provides plenty of feel and feedback, more in fact than the new Porsche 911. Find a twisty mountain road, turn all the systems off and the 86 will reward you like no other car can, it puts a big grin on you’re face. Suddenly everything makes sense, the benchmarked Porsche Cayman,  the low driving position, the centrally mounted rev counter – unheard of in a Toyota, the fact that the maximum torque is all the way up at 6400rpm, the little bumps above the front wheels so you always know where the front wheels are, and of course those skinny Prius tyres. All of these things make the driver feel so much more involved in driving the car, it makes you work for its performance. Changing gear yourself to keep the engine in its sweet spot is such a joy, as is sitting low in the bucket seat and feeling the car rotating beneath you. The skinny tyres mean its very easy to slide and immensely fun, you’re not going very fast but who cares. The 86 is all about power to rubber ratio and enjoyment, not 0-100kph times, although its 6.8 seconds to 100kph is quite brisk.

Toyota 86 Interior

The Toyota 86 completely changes what defines a sports car, most of us probably think big tyres, big power and big speed are what’s most important in a sports car, but the problem with this combination is you have to be going ridiculously fast when the rear finally lets go. And driving only becomes interesting at the edge of grip and control, and chances are if you do that on the road in a seriously powerful sports car you need to have the reflexes of Mark Webber, or you’ll crash and definitely get caught speeding and have your car crushed. Either way you’re $100k sports car will be ruined, not to mention you’re ego.

Driving the 86, you feel all the sensations and pleasure of driving a sports car on the edge at a much lower speed that what you would normally in a more powerful animal. Don’t get me wrong, I love fast cars as much as anyone else, but in this day an age, where there’s a speed camera on every corner, the 86 renders them all pointless.

The only source for complaints comes from beneath the bonnet, many complain that the 86 doesn’t have enough power, I’m not one of them though, my problem is the noise that the boxer engine makes, it isn’t at all inspiring, it’s interesting, but it’s not a great sound. And the ride is a tad firm, but you wont care because its so damn good through the corners, trust me you will be wanting to find the longest and most twisty route to take to work, because it really will make you’re day. 

Toyota has done it, they’ve brought us the fun and affordable rear drive coupe as they promised, and I can tell you it was worth the wait, the violence, and the burnt to the ground Ferraris, because the 86 is even better than we thought it would be. We can even forgive Toyota for making the Prius now, because Toyota has brought us driving in its most purest and enjoyable form.

Toyota’s ‘raw driving’ slogan might be everywhere we look, but Toyota has every right to brag about its 86 coupe because it truly has captured all that is raw driving and what makes it special, and bottled it in the form of the Toyota 86.