2023 Toyota GR86 Reviews, Pricing & Specs

The GR86 was redesigned for the 2022 model year, which coincided with a name change from Toyota 86 to GR86. For the 2023 model year, Toyota has introduced a 10th Anniversary Special Edition. Otherwise, the GR86 hardly changes from its 2022 redesign. It features angular, menacing headlights and a large grille. Were this 10 years ago, this would be a bold head-turning design, but in 2023, even the common family sedan has louder styling like this. And if you’re trying to maintain a low profile while carving up back roads, this is perfectly fine.

The rear wheels are pushed to the extreme rear corners, as they should be on any good rear-wheel-drive (RWD) car. The rear window falls back into a lovely teardrop design, and our test model featured a “duckbill” rear spoiler. This spoiler brought some visual balance to the GR86, but at the expense of its low profile.

Inside, the GR86 is the epitome of no-nonsense with straight lines, simple instruments, and a driver-focused aesthetic. The list of trim levels is just as simple, including just Base and Premium models. Standard features on the Base trim include manually adjustable front seats, dual-zone automatic climate control, Ultrasuede upholstery accents, cloth seating, push-button start, power doors and windows, a digital speedometer, and a leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob. It also comes with two USB ports, Bluetooth connectivity, and an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The base trim comes with 17-inch alloy wheels.

Moving up to the Premium trim adds 18-inch alloy wheels wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport 4 all-season performance tires. It also adds that duckbill rear spoiler, adaptive front headlights, and larger brakes. It also adds aluminum sport pedals, a leather gearshift boot with red or silver contrast stitching, and a leather parking brake boot with either red or silver contrast stitching. The Premium trim comes with heated sport bucket seats with side bolsters… but they are still manually adjustable. The premium trim swaps out cloth upholstery for a combination of leather and Ultrasuede upholstery.

The 10th Anniversary Special Edition features forged matte 18-inch alloy wheels, black paint for the C-pillar and duckbill rear spoiler, a Gazoo Racing cat-back performance exhaust system with chrome tips, and exclusive Solar Shift (orange) paint scheme. Inside, the 10th Anniversary Special Edition features orange stitching on the shift boot and parking-brake cover. It also features black and orange trim on the heated sport bucket seats.

We spent a week testign a GR86 in Premium trim. Those bucket seats were supportive through hard cornering but also comfortable enough for long drives. In fact, we were surprised by just how comfortable the GR86 was over a multiple-hour drive on the highway and back roads. Despite its handling prowess, it does not punish you, and we have to think the upgraded seats are part of that. The duckbill spoiler on the GR86 Premium really completes the curb appeal of the GR86. Without that spoiler, the rear end feels a bit elongated. No matter which trim you select, the front-end design is straightforward. It makes for a strong presence but one that is never overstated. The GR86 is the type of vehicle that lets its performance do the talking.

The 2023 Toyota GR86 comes equipped with a 2.4-liter horizontally-opposed ("Boxer") four-cylinder engine sourced from Subaru. “Boxer” means two banks of two cylinders that “punch” at one another. The whole setup lays flat in the engine bay, ensuring a low center of gravity which results in heightened cornering abilities. The engine makes 228 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque.

Power is routed to the rear wheels through a standard six-speed manual transmission or available six-speed automatic transmission, with a limited-slip differential included regardless of gearbox choice. Our car came with the six-speed manual as well as the available upgraded exhaust system. It makes a wonderfully throaty exhaust note, but it does fill up the cabin with sound. If you are trying to be mindful of your neighbors or want to have phone conversations inside the car on trips, you may want to skip the optional exhaust upgrade.

A big criticism of the previous-generation Toyota 86 is that it could have used a bit more power. The current GR86 does not want for power. Sure, the GR86 might seem a bit anemic if you’re a Dodge Challenger Hellcat customer, but this car is not meant for burnouts and drag strips. It’s meant for carving up winding back roads. And in this intent, the GR86 executes perfectly. The steering is well-weighted and direct. The brakes are not overly powerful, forcing the driver to rely often on downshifts for braking. In fact, the accelerator pedal is angled towards the brake and clutch pedal as if to encourage the driver to partake in heel-toe driving. That’s when the driver blips the throttle with the heel of their right foot while pressing the brake pedal with their toes to execute smooth gear changes.

Good pedal placement is necessary because the GR86 lacks the fancy rev-matching systems that you might find in the likes of the Acura Integra Type S, Honda Civic Type R, and Nissan Z. The boxer engine has some throttle float, which is when the revs stay up if you take your foot off the throttle. The opposite is an engine that revs up and down quickly, like that of a motorcycle.

It should be noted that the GR in GR86 stands for Gazoo Racing, Toyota’s in-house motorsport and performance division. It participates in all manner of racing, including rallying and even the vaunted 24 Hours of Le Mans. The GR lettering is now Toyota’s pedigree racing nomenclature, and the designated badge for performance road cars, including not only the GR86, but also the GR Supra and GR Corolla. Toyota enthusiasts might also remember the Toyota Racing Development (TRD) designation, but that’s reserved for off-road pickup trucks and SUVs.

GR is for the road and track, and the GR86 is at home on both. Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tires are a perfect pairing, as they are designed for year-round hard driving, but they are not so aggressive that you can get yourself into trouble. With tires like these, you will start to feel when you’re approaching the limit of the car’s abilities, which is part of what makes it so great—you can learn the envelope of both car and driver.

For a compact sports car, the GR86 has a surprisingly spacious interior. There’s plenty of legroom, and as long as you recline the front seats a bit, there’s also plenty of headroom as well. The controls are simple and easy to use, and there are large cupholders in the door as well as in the center console. This gives the driver and front passenger plenty of options for water bottles, coffee, etc.

The GR86 provides a paltry 6.2 cubic feet of cargo space. It’s enough for two weekend bags. If you need any more space than that, you can use the rear seats for added storage. It’s a better use for that back row versus cramming an adult back there. If you are in a pinch, you can slide both of the front seats forward and the GR86 will be able to hold up to four passengers. These seats are fine for small children as well. If you have large items, the rear seatback folds down, allowing for expanded storage space. You could theoretically store two golf bags in the GR86.

At the center of the dash, the GR86 features a standard 8-inch touchscreen display that runs a dated yet intuitive infotainment system. Some more tech-savvy car shoppers might deride the GR86’s touchscreen as being old and clunky, but it’s perfect for a driving enthusiast who just wants the bare-bones modern infotainment system and to be able to focus on the road ahead.

The infotainment system comes with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and it integrates seamlessly. There’s a Home button to jump you out of CarPlay, as well as hard buttons for Phone, Apps, and Radio. Perhaps most importantly, there are real dials for volume and tuning. Automakers have gone out of their way to go well beyond this level of technology because they think that’s what consumers want. Some do. But for many more, this is the ideal mix of technology and tactile controls.

The GR86 comes standard with a fully digital instrument panel and a six-speaker stereo. The Premium trim upgrades the stereo to an eight-speaker unit.

So long as you select the automatic transmission and not the manual, the Toyota GR86 comes with a number of advanced driver assistance features, including pre-collision braking, adaptive cruise control, pre-collision throttle management, lane-departure warning, a lead-vehicle alert system, and high-beam assist. Stepping up to the Premium trim adds blind-spot monitoring and adaptive headlights that turn with the steering wheel.

The GR86 has not been crash-tested by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), but it has been evaluated by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). In these evaluations, the GR86 earned top marks across the board, including a best score of Superior for its crash-prevention technology.

The most efficient version of the 2023 Toyota GR86 is the automatic transmission-equipped model. It returns EPA-estimated fuel economy of 21 mpg city, 31 mpg highway, and 25 mpg combined. The manual-equipped GR86 returns fuel economy of 20 mpg city, 27 mpg highway, and 22 mpg combined. In our week of combined city and highway driving, we observed an average fuel economy of 29.9 mpg. Toyota recommends premium fuel for the GR86.

Base MSRP of the 2023 Toyota GR86 is $28,400 for the Base trim. The Premium trim starts at $31,000. The 10th Anniversary Edition starts at $34,360. For the performance and drivability of the GR86, this pricing represents an absolute steal—especially in today’s car market. Perhaps the only true rival (besides the identical Subaru BRZ) is the 2023 Mazda MX-5 Miata, which starts at $28,050 for the base convertible or up to $38,950 for the Club trim of the RF retractable hardtop coupe.

The 2023 Toyota GR86 is an enthusiast’s dream, but automakers don’t make as much money on gearheads as they do families (and their healthy appetite for ever-larger trucks and SUVs). Perhaps that’s why Toyota has given this sports car the corporate shuffle through the years—originally selling it as the Scion FR-S and then as the 86 before settling on the GR86 name—as well as why it partnered with Subaru on development, allowing that brand to sell its BRZ alongside the GR86.

But the result of this constant hedging is a marriage of Subaru powertrain and Toyota chassis precision. Sports cars may always have a place in the market, but just as likely, they may be headed for extinction. So for now, appreciate the fact that a car like this exists, as automakers have very little incentive to produce such a vehicle, despite the fact that the exact people who buy cars like the GR86 are the ones who care about cars the most.