Toyota GT86

We mean ‘we’ in a broader sense, as in the wait that every car enthusiast with modest resources has had to tolerate before a manufacturer summoned up the necessary gumption to build an authentic, low-weight, low-cost, compact sports car.

The front-engined, rear-drive 2+2 is powered by a 2.0-litre flat-four engine that churns out 197bhp and 151lb ft. A six-speed manual is standard; there's also a six-speed automatic on offer as well.

Despite boasting a heritage that contains the Celica, the Supra and the MR2, Toyota has passed through a period of recent history that has been so mundane that the GT86’s potential place close to our hearts seems almost to be a novelty.

However, the manufacturer’s three stated criteria for the GT86 (which has been developed in conjunction with the Subaru BRZ) read like a purist’s manifesto: rear-wheel drive, no turbocharging, ordinary tyres - much like the Mazda MX-5.

Delving into the detail typically reveals the devil in Toyota’s vast and intricate economies of scale, but in the case of the Toyota GT86, the use of common parts shrunk to just nine percent. If proof were required of the manufacturing giant’s enthusiasm for the project, it exists first and foremost in that figure.

The next number to consider is 86. Just a hat-tip to the AE86, yes? No. The ‘square’ 86mm dimension of both the bore and the stroke of the 197bhp 2.0-litre horizontally opposed four-cylinder engine previously featured in the in-line four that powered the Celica and MR2. Even the car’s prominent, chrome-tipped exhausts are 86mm in diameter.

Toyota’s anally retentive pursuit of numeral significance may seem somewhat trivial, but it’s indicative of a wider effort to get everything on the car just so.

Subaru’s boxer engine was selected because its configuration meant that it was compact and light, and could be mounted closer to the ground (and further back) for an ultra-low 460mm centre of gravity.

A high-revving unit was specified, so the boxer was modified to allow it to spin to 7400rpm. Desperate to get the flick-of-the-wrist changes right on its reworked six-speed manual gearbox, Toyota went through five separate prototypes.

Underneath, nothing was permitted to muddy the virtues of the classic front-engined, rear-drive layout. Thinner, lighter body panels were used to keep the GT86’s burden under 1300kg.

The weight has been distributed 53 percent front, 47 percent rear – not because it’s physically perfect, but because the engineers found that the slight front bias was ideal for the car’s handling balance.

Likewise, the suspension components, split between MacPherson struts at the front and double wishbones at the rear, have been mounted to take further advantage of the low centre of gravity, and were tuned to allow an intuitive degree of roll on turn-in.

Finally, and encouragingly, there is a Torsen limited-slip differential to help apply a gung-ho degree of throttle on exit.

For 2017, the GT86 was given a facelift before its final hurrah, with Toyota revising the intake and exhaust system, while tweaking the shock absorbers for greater stability chief among the mechanical changes. The rest of the car was given aerodynamic adjustments and more premium look inside. Soon after the announcement of the facelift, was news that a second generation GT86 was in the pipeline for launch in 2018-2019, with the next model set to sit below the reborn Supra developed in collaboration with BMW.

A cursory, showroom-floor introduction to the Toyota GT86 will likely reveal that the car’s cabin, while offering a concerted step up from the BRZ’s positively skeletal innards, still lacks the plush, polished look that has come to define a European expectation of what sports cars should feel like inside, even though its recent facelift has aimed to rectify this issue.

The Toyota is hard-edged and flinty to the touch, and it looks it, too. But there is a wonderful schematic rigour to the interior that only really becomes apparent once the model is in motion.

Most manufacturers talk a fine game when it comes to focusing their cockpits on the driver, but the GT86 is as nakedly purposeful as the tail-gunner seat in a B-52.

Characterised by a sublime seating position — offering the lowest hip-point of any Toyota production vehicle — the car trades gun sights for a large tachometer, and then brilliantly orbits every other facet of the architecture around that eye line.

The attention to a functional, instinctive level of detail — so often the subject of empty marketing rhetoric — is comprehensive and remarkably effective. The steering wheel is the smallest ever attached to a Toyota and a horizontal dashboard design has been used to help better communicate mid-bend roll posture.

Soft knee pads have been built into the door trim and centre console to offer support under high lateral loads and there’s a centre line mark on the upper edge of the dashboard that can be seen reflected in the windscreen… The list goes on and on.

Not every facet is a success. The pedals have been positioned straight on but are too splayed to allow every size of right foot to heel and toe, but the overall effect is so intoxicating that an enthusiastic driver will likely feel compelled to keep his or her jaw clenched in unconscious tribute to the ardent and impeccable nature of it all.

Nevertheless, the GT86 has an awful lot going for it. Further reinforcing its case is a decent list of kit across its two trims - GT86 and GT86 Pro. The entry-level trim equips the sports coupé with 17in alloy wheels, LED headlights, front foglights, folding door mirrors, cruise control and keyless entry on the outside as standard, while inside there is dual-zone climate control and Toyota's Touch 2 infotainment system complete with Bluetooth, DAB radio and USB connectivity.

Those who opt for the Pro will get a revised aerodynamic bodykit, a rear spoiler, a suede dashboard, a part-leather and part-Alcantara upholstery and heated front seats thrown into the package.