- (1994)

special indeed. The heart of the forced induction A80 was the mighty ‘2JZ-GTE’ straight-six DOHC 3.0 litre engine boasting a ‘closed deck’ cylinder block, forged steel crankshaft and three-layer steel cylinder head gasket all of which meant that it was completely unstressed when developing 326bhp and 325lbft of torque in European specification. So strong was the unit that tuners were able to add hundreds of extra horsepower whilst still retaining stock internals. Outputs of over 1,000bhp were readily achievable and the most potent ‘2JZ-GTE’ was rated at 2,041bhp! Little wonder then that so many owners have succumbed to the lure of modification. The other boon of the ‘2JZ-GTE’ was its use of sequential turbochargers which flattened the torque curve to such an extent that ninety percent of its peak was available from 1,300rpm to 4,500rpm. Today, we take nigh-on ‘lag free’ forced induction for granted but in the early 1990s it was a revelation. Nor was it just the engine which marked the flagship A80 as a stand-out design. Inspired by contemporary F1 practice, the Supra utilised a four-channel ABS braking system which enabled Car & Driver magazine to decelerate one from 70-0mph in forty-five metres (a record only surpassed by the Porsche Carrera GT hypercar in 2004). The provision of all-round independent suspension and Bilstein dampers provided ample grip with the Toyota recording 0.98g on the skidpan. However, despite its excellence the A80 remained something of a left-field choice in the UK with many buyers plumping for a (slower) Porsche 911 or Ferrari 348 instead. Thus, just 623 Supras were UK supplied from 1993-1996 with less than half those thought to have survived. One of only 431, UK-supplied, A80-generation Toyota Supras to be fitted with four-speed plus