10 Of The Best Toyota Sports Cars Ever Made, Ranked
Toyota remained the world's largest carmaker in 2022, selling 10.5 million cars despite ongoing supply chain shortages. It's no accident that the Japanese carmaker has claimed that crown for three years now. Over the decades, it's built up a rock-solid reputation for making reliable, economical cars that will put up with years of hard use without complaint. Its lineup spans everything from econoboxes to performance cars, but it's the latter that matters most to enthusiasts of the brand. Toyota has been responsible for some of the auto industry's most ubiquitous nameplates, alongside plenty of equally amazing cars that got forgotten along the way.
Thanks to the perseverance of former CEO Akio Toyoda, the brand's current lineup of sports cars is now better than it's been in decades, and the company has hinted that even more might be on the way soon. Toyoda has now stepped back from the CEO position but remains in charge of Gazoo Racing, the brand's performance division. He reportedly remains keen to push for even more enthusiast cars even as Toyota focuses its resources on the switch to electrification. Hopefully, that means more excellent Toyota sports cars are just around the corner, but for now, here are 10 of the brand's best so far.
10. Toyota GR Supra
The latest Supra is always going to be a controversial pick in any "best of" list, not least because of the impossibly high standards set by its predecessor. However, look past its German roots, and you'll find a solid driver's car, which, especially in manual form, is one of the most engaging new cars in its price bracket. The GR Supra delivers true sports car performance wrapped in a package sensible enough to make it feasible as an everyday driver and at a reasonable cost too.
It's far from perfect — some rivals boast more horsepower for less upfront cost or superior handling and badge prestige — but the 2023 GR Supra can still hold its own against what else is on the market right now. Whether it's a worthy successor to the MkIV Supra is a debate likely to be raging long after the last GR Supra rolls off the production line. But, in its own right, the car deserves its status as one of the brand's best enthusiast cars of recent years.
9. Toyota GR86
The GR86, alongside its twin, the Subaru BRZ, occupies a relatively unique space in the modern sports car market. Truly affordable sports cars are in short supply, with the Mazda Miata standing out as one of the GR86's closest rivals in price. An evolution of the first generation 86, the GR86 debuted for the 2022 model year and didn't mess with the formula much. It didn't need to: the 86 proved to be a hit over its decade or so, on sale, garnering a global fanbase and an extensive aftermarket.
The GR86 fixes a few of the most common criticisms leveled at the first-generation car, with a larger, more powerful 2.4-liter engine on offer; and new suspension and steering making the car sharper to drive than before. It's easy for carmakers to get caught up in the horsepower wars or obsess over lap times, but the GR86 focuses on making everyday driving as fun as possible. Drivers can get the most out of the car without needing to worry about reaching license-losing speeds, and as a result, its proverbial smiles per gallon rating is on par with cars that cost multiple times as much.
8. Toyota MR2 SW20
With the first generation Toyota MR2, Toyota filled a niche that remains mostly vacant in today's market — that of the affordable mid-engined roadster. The MkII (SW20) took all the core ingredients of the first gen and refined the recipe further, making the MR2 faster, comfier, and better looking.
Produced throughout the '90s, the SW20 came during a golden era for JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) cars in general, which means it can sometimes be overlooked. It shouldn't be — with top-spec cars making more than 200 horsepower and curb weight remaining low, it offers plenty of bang for the buck.
In addition to being a hoot to drive, the MR2 is also a looker with styling that is heavily borrowed from many of the supercars of the era. Prices are slowly rising as the supply of examples in clean, unmodified condition begins to dry up. But for now, they remain one of the most affordable '90s Japanese classics on the market.
7. Toyota Celica MkI
Toyota's early sports cars were small, lightweight affairs focused on performance over everyday practicality, so when the first generation Celica launched, it turned heads. This was a car built to rival America's pony cars, with plenty of room to fit adult Americans and a range of engines that offered up to 145 horsepower. It was built to be a global sports car and quickly became popular both at home in Japan and export markets like the U.S. and Europe.
Part of its appeal in Europe came from the fact that it proved to be very capable in motorsport, appearing in championships as varied as touring cars and rallying. It was these early sporting triumphs that would go on to influence later Celica race cars, most notably those that would dominate the World Rally Championship in the early '90s.
The MkI was replaced in 1977 after over a million had been sold, and today they remain a sought-after commodity among enthusiasts. Unlike many older Japanese cars, average prices have remained relatively stable in recent years.
6. Toyota Corolla GT-S AE86
It's since become immortalized in popular car culture thanks to "Initial D," but the AE86 is more than just a manga icon. It was the affordable car of choice for many real-life drifters in Japan during its production and has continued to be a regular sight at circuits and car meets in the decades since. Its stock power was modest even for the time, but its rear-wheel drive layout and light weight made it ideal for mastering the art of going sideways.
The AE86 was one of several variants of the Corolla offered at the time, most of which were front-wheel drive. The GT-S was the top-spec variant, with a significant horsepower bump over its lineup siblings that brought its total output to 112 horsepower. Still not much, but more than enough for Japan's tight mountain roads.
Today, so many have been crashed, neglected, or modified that any clean stock examples that come to market carry heavy premiums. The car has become a cult classic that remains one of the most instantly recognizable Toyotas ever made, albeit one that's now considerably more difficult to buy than it once was.
5. Toyota Sports 800
The genesis of Toyota's long line of sports cars, the Sports 800, was a gamble for Toyota at the time of its release. With Japan's economy rapidly growing and car buyers demanding higher performance models, the Sports 800 design was adapted from the economy-spec Publica and launched at the 1962 Tokyo Motor Show alongside Honda's similarly sized S500.
Although the response at the show was positive, that didn't translate into sales, and only a few thousand units were ever built. Most were right-hand drive, but a limited run of 300 left-hand drive examples were sold in America to test the waters for a potential wider launch of the car.
They're exceedingly rare to find today, as Toyota employed no rustproofing in a bid to keep costs as low as possible. Nonetheless, the car remains a very important chapter in the brand's history, as the first step into a segment that would ultimately go on to spawn some of Toyota's best-loved nameplates.
4. Toyota GR Yaris
It's easy to reminisce about the golden era of the World Rally Championship and how it spawned so many homologation specials, many of which are now considered collectors' grails. While it's no longer as influential as it was then, the modern WRC has still helped spawn some excellent hot hatches, the most notable of which is the GR Yaris. The road-going version is about as close to the WRC car as possible, with a high-revving 1.6-liter engine and a unique chassis.
The roofline is sloped at the rear for optimal aero, and the suspension setup helps give the car plenty of grip no matter what the conditions are. A six-speed manual is the sole option, along with all-wheel drive. There's even a proper handbrake — no electronic switches here. It's about as close as it's possible to get to a competition-spec rally car from the dealership. At least, from European or Japanese dealerships, the GR Yaris isn't available in America. Instead, Americans have to make do with the larger, although still supremely fun, GR Corolla.
3. Toyota Celica GT-Four (ST185)
The Celica GT-Four solidified Toyota as a dominant force in the World Rally Championship, with the first generation ST165 winning the brand its first drivers' title. The ST185 debuted for the 1992 season and quickly showed that it was even more capable than its predecessor. That year, Carlos Sainz won his second drivers' title, and the following year, Toyota claimed the manufacturers' title. In 1994, the ST185's last year of competition, it proved to be unbeatable, taking both the drivers' and manufacturers' titles.
Like all homologation specials at the time, the road-going ST185 was closely related to the race car. It packed a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine making over 200 horsepower alongside the signature four-wheel drive system that gave the car its name. It's a rare car to find for sale today, but examples have remained relatively affordable over the years compared to many other Japanese classics from the era.
2. Toyota Supra MkIV
The MkIV Supra is one of the most revered JDM cars of its era and for good reason. It rewrote the rulebook on what was possible for a tuner car thanks to its legendary 2JZ engine, and as a result, it remains hugely popular, with many hardcore fans of the car willing to pay eye-watering sums to get their hands on one. In 2022, one pristine example with only 13,000 miles on the clock sold for $232,000 on Bring a Trailer, setting a new auction record for the stock model in the process.
One of the Supra's most famous appearances is in the "Fast and Furious" franchise, and an example from the first movie holds the all-time Supra auction record. It sold for $555,000 in 2021, making it the first (and so far, only) Supra to cross the half-million mark. It remains to be seen whether auction prices for top-end units eventually plateau or keep rising, but no matter what happens, the Supra's place as one of the most iconic JDM tuner cars ever made is firmly sealed.
1. Toyota 2000GT
While it wasn't the first Toyota sports car, the 2000GT was the first proper Toyota halo model. It was built in response to the growing enthusiasm for performance cars and motorsport in Japan in the early '60s, and because Toyota's main production line wasn't equipped to build such a car, construction was outsourced to Yamaha. Each car was partly hand-built, helping to contribute to the car's high asking price.
Partly owing to that high price, the 2000GT had very limited production, with only 351 examples made over its production run. That rarity, and the fact that many are thought to have been lost over the decades, mean that the 2000GT is the most valuable Toyota road car today.
Examples sell for around $800,000–900,000 on average, with the most valuable, a one-off tuned by Carroll Shelby, selling for more than $2.5 million in 2022. Toyota's back catalog of sports cars is extensive and storied, but its first halo sports car remains arguably its greatest to date.