MotorFriend's video: Will the New Supra Succeed or Fail

http://twitter.com/Motor_Friend My favourite Supra is the Mark II, so you should probably take my opinion with a grain of salt. Also, I've now learned that the new Supra will probably be sharing its entire platform with the Z5, which means Toyota reeeeally doesn't care about making their own sports car, and it will probably make way less power than I was hoping. Transcript: For the past few years, Automakers have been taking a page out of the Nintendo Playbook, and cashing in on nostalgia, with varying degrees of success. You can take a decades old nameplate, slap it on something new, and rake in the cash, but is it really that easy? The next big revival planned is the Toyota Supra. The Mark 90’s Mark IV certainly leaves some big shoes to fill. I have no doubt that the new model will match or beat the old one in performance, but will it be profitable for Toyota? The way I see it. Toyota can go one of three routes with the new car. They can make an affordable sports car, akin to the base model Mustang, or a Miata. Toyota already has the GT-86 filling that slot, so it seems unlikely. They could be going for the mid-level GT market, to compete with the C7 and GT350, or they could make a balls to wall supercar in the price range of the GTR, Viper, or NSX. There’s a very big problem I see if the Supra goes upscale, and it’s the same one that the Viper currently faces. People who have 100 grand to drop on a new car don’t want to deal with driving a manual. Car enthusiasts may be a very vocal minority, but they are still a minority. The manual only Viper is going out of production soon, and exotic makers Like Ferrari stopped making stick shift cars years ago. Then there’s the problem the NSX faced when it went upscale. With its all wheel drive hybrid drivetrain, and paddle shifters, many complained that it didn’t stick to the roots of the original. Basically, if the Supra gets a manual, no one will buy it, and if it gets a dual clutch, internet fanboys will bitch about it. There is a segment where manuals are surviving, however, and that’s in 70 to $80,000 track toy market. This what I hope Toyota focuses in on. Any kid that watched The Fast in the Furious, and is now well off, could put one his garage. I doubt they would be in quite as high demand as the new GT350, but maybe I’m underestimating the nostalgia factor? My vision for the Supra would ideally be making around 500 horsepower, have a 3.5 0-60, and handle as well as other cars in that segment. One thing I’m unsure about is Toyota’s amount of faith in the new Supra. The GT-86 is powered by a Subaru Boxer, and the Supra will be getting a BMW straight 6. I think it’s safe to assume that Toyota has very little interest in building performance engines. They also have barely any marketing for the 86, and the sales reflect that. Maybe I’m too cynical, but I wouldn’t be shocked if this new Supra went the way of the Chevy SS. It will be met with a lot of excitement initially. A year later, they’ll be sitting on Toyota lots collecting dust, and three years after that. They’ll be quietly swept under the rug.