See the legend, meet the engineer.

You can see from the pictures that this latest incarnation is every inch a Supra. Of course, the pictures only tell half the story, its figures do the rest. The new model has a perfect 50:50 weight distribution for sublime handling. Also the 3.0-litre engine benefits from a twin-scroll turbocharger and produces 250kW and 500Nm of torque. Coupled to an eight-speed automatic transmission, it is characterised by smooth and powerful acceleration, with large amounts of torque available across the full range of engine speeds.

Chief engineer Tetsuya Tada and his team from Japan recently put the Supra through its paces on Australian roads, to confirm its final suspension tuning and dynamics are suitable for the local and world markets.

Tada-san said he had been keen to use Australia’s roads to confirm global performance targets for Supra and ensure it would satisfy the dynamic preferences of Australian drivers. He said Australia offered surfaces that replicated 80 per cent of the world’s roads, including some of the toughest that would be experienced by customers anywhere.

“Working on aspects of handling and other details here in Australia allows us to make refinements that will result in a better car right up until production starts in the first part of next year.”

The new Toyota GR Supra will launch in Australia in late 2019, with roughly 300 cars available in the first year.