The Toyota Supra makes a lot more than its published 250kW

IT’S FAIR TO SAY there’s been quite a bit of hype around the launch of the new Toyota Supra. What’s also true is that after hype usually comes disappointment. Well, it seems that the Japanese have, to a certain extent, insured themselves against rampant buyer expectation by dramatically understating the power and torque figures of their flagship coupe.

UK-based performance tuners Litchfield have strapped an A90 Supra onto their Maha dynamometer; exactly the same unit that Magna-Steyr uses in the Graz factory where the Supra and its close cousin, the BMW Z4, is built.

The key reason for doing so was to establish a baseline figure for power and torque from which Litchfield can then develop an upgrade package for the Supra. Indeed, the company claims thatafter doing so, it will also be producing its own lowering spring kit, with both Bilstein and KW offering complete suspension products. Litchfield is also working on in-house suspension bush replacements which will improve grip and steering feel. The company is also scanning in components that will introduce cosmetic upgrades and functional carbon body parts.

But it seems that there’s a fair amount of headroom in the BMW B58 twin-turbo lump for the team at Deerhurst Walton to work with. What’s more, the vehicle wasn’t making anything like the manufacturer’s stated figures of 250kW and 500Nm. It was developing considerably more.

When the Maha dyno spat out the final numbers, it was clear that this customer-spec car was, to put it mildly, rather healthy. Litchfield reported that it was good for 280kW peak power and a chubby 529Nm. This means that the Supra is, in reality, delivering considerably more oomph than a Porsche 991 Carrera (272kW/450Nm) costing three times the price. That sounds like decent bang for your buck straight off the bat.

Litchfield claims that there’s more good news in that the Supra’s ECU can be programmed simply via the OBD port using BFlash’s MG1CS024 TC298 protocol, and are hopeful that some seriously big numbers can be extracted from the three-litre powerplant. We’ve contacted Litchfield for details on how Australian Supra owners can take advantage of any future upgrades, so stay tuned here for updates. In the meantime, those waiting on deliveries of their new Supra can bask in the warm glow that they’ll be getting even more than they originally signed up for.