By now, it’s likely you’ve heard of the Project Zupra (is it too late to coin that?), the joint venture between BMW and Toyota to develop both the Z4 and Supra, respectively, from the same chassis. Drive both, though, and you’ll soon realize that they’re both more Bavarian than Japanese. That’s not such a bad thing, as the hardware underneath is quite good, but it does upset some Supra fans. Unfortunately for those same Supra fans, there might be more heartbreak on the horizon, as the Supra might be getting yet another BMW engine.
At the moment, the current Toyota Supra uses a BMW-sourced 3.0 liter turbocharged inline-six-cylinder engine, internally known as the “B58”. It’s a brilliant engine and one of the very best parts of the new Supra. However, it seems as if Toyota might be sourcing a different BMW engine for a more powerful, track-focused version of the Supra.
According to this recent report, Toyota will be borrowing BMW’s S58 engine, the same one used in the upcoming BMW M3, for a Supra GRMN (GRMN stands for “Gazoo Racing Meister of the Nurburgring”, which actually makes the German engine more fitting). This report claims that the boss of the Supra, Tetsuya Tada, made the arrangements with a very reluctant BMW M to fit this engine in a Supra. It’s said that it will make the same 510 horsepower as the BMW M3 Competition and it will power a very limited run sports car.
Apparently, the Toyota Supra GRMN won’t debut until 2023 and only 200 units will be made before the entire Supra model line dies in 2025, with no replacement planned. No pricing has been planned but it’s possible that the Supra GRMN could crest $100,000. That would be a lot of money unless it was some stripped-out, hardcore track car that could take on a Porsche 911 GT3. It would still be cool, though.
[Source: Motor1]
