Bring up the revived Supra among either Toyota or BMW fans, I dare you. Immediately, arguments will explode about which company built in all the new model's best aspects and which should be blamed for all the car's flaws. Toyota should quell some of the concerns with a forthcoming (finally!) manual version but in the meantime, I recently got a chance to test the baseline performance of this extremely popular sports car.

Separating The Toyota From The BMW

From the moment a Supra rolls up, every single design and engineering decision seems to separate into a Venn diagram between Toyota and BMW. The fact that the two automakers even teamed up in the first place came as a bit of a surprise, apparently because Toyota didn't want to foot the whole bill for the development of a new inline-six engine to carry on the iconic 2JZ-GTE's legacy.

Enter BMW or, more accurately, Magna Steyr, which assembles the GR Supra alongside the Z4 in the same Austrian factory. Both Toyota and BMW enjoy long lineages of incredible automaking, however, and throughout my time in town and carving canyons, I could not get a clean read on the two-faced nature of the Supra.

Bring up the revived Supra among either Toyota or BMW fans, I dare you. Immediately, arguments will explode about which company built in all the new model's best aspects and which should be blamed for all the car's flaws. Toyota should quell some of the concerns with a forthcoming (finally!) manual version but in the meantime, I recently got a chance to test the baseline performance of this extremely popular sports car before the stick shift arrives.

From the moment a Supra rolls up, every single design and engineering decision seems to separate into a Venn diagram between Toyota and BMW. The fact that the two automakers even teamed up in the first place came as a bit of a surprise, apparently because Toyota didn't want to foot the whole bill for the development of a new inline-six engine to carry on the iconic 2JZ-GTE's legacy.

Separating The Toyota From The BMW

Enter BMW or, more accurately, Magna Steyr, which assembles the GR Supra alongside the Z4 in the same Austrian factory. Both Toyota and BMW enjoy long lineages of incredible automaking, however, and throughout my time in town and carving canyons, I could not get a clean read on the two-faced nature of the Supra. Of course, that inline-six emerges in any driving scenario as the heart and soul of the Supra. Known by BMW's internal code B58, the mill displaces 3.0 liters and employs a twin-scroll turbo to hammer out 382 horsepower and 368 lb-ft of torque.

BMW's Stellar B58 Engine

Toyota Supra 3.0 Premium Engine Bay Closeup
Michael Van Runkle/HotCars

In a car that weighs 3,400 pounds, those numbers sound pretty good—but dyno testing revealed that either BMW or Toyota massively understated the B58's output, and I believe the science. Though not quite as impressive as the S58 that BMW reserved for the M3 and M4, the B58 truly hums with gobs of torque available down low and a building sense of boost that blasts straight up to the 7,000-RPM redline.

Perhaps the best torque-converter automatic on the market, that popular ZF eight-speed, helps to provide plenty of gear ratios for low-end pulls and highway passing. A dual-clutch might have seemed like a better bet once upon a time, but the ZF's smooth shifts nails easily make up for potentially snappier action from a DCT.FOLLOW HERE: HotCars Official On Twitter

A Toyota-Specific Interior

Toyota Supra 3.0 Premium Interior front seats wide shot
via Michael Van Runkle / HotCars

Controlling the gearbox from the paddle shifters feel sporty, but in reality, the Supra's powerband sits so low that popping the console shift lever into D does the trick just fine. And adjustable drive modes can also help to nudge shift points up higher into the rev range during more aggressive driving.

Overall, the Supra 3.0 Premium arrives with a pretty nice interior, with a much simpler design than the Z4 despite a bit of piano-black plastic that fools absolutely no one into thinking this might be a premium car. Instead, this exact car's $56,910 sticker puts dollars to use where they matter most—in the drivetrain and suspension.

RELATED: 10 Things To Know Before Buying The 2022 Toyota Supra

The Classic Double Bubble

Toyota Supra 3.0 Premium Roof Closeup
via Michael Van Runkle / HotCars

Unlike the BMW Z4 sibling, the Supra gets a hardtop, which might further contribute to the sense of rigid tautness that an impressive suspension setup produces near the limits of traction. The chassis definitely feels more BMW than Toyota, while a nifty double-bubble roof also probably points to the German influence, if just to allow taller humans to fit a bit more comfortably.

RELATED: Why The Toyota GR Supra Manual Is A Great Deal At $52,500

Lexus Style With Boy Racer Bits

Toyota Supra 3.0 Premium Rear Side Closeup
via Michael Van Runkle / HotCars

The rest of the exterior design almost looks more Lexus than Toyota, however. From afar, the silhouette's futuristic swoops and angles combine best when not optioned in Renaissance Red paint—a metallic silver better hides some of the more bulbous flares. And getting up close, many of the air inlets are actually fake and closed off with plastic, a surprising detail that nobody ever likes on any car. And they come as something of a surprise, given the Supra's sportier aspirations, since the door strafe could possibly help cool rear brakes or the diff, while the front might feed the front brakes and improve downforce.

RELATED: Here's The Evolution Of The Toyota Supra

This Car Got Shredded

Toyota Supra 3.0 Premium Front Wheel Closeup
via Michael Van Runkle / HotCars

Still, the Supra delivers the driving experience of a scalpel, low and tight with a punchy engine and biting brakes. Steering input that borders on too sensitive manages to wrestle the little coupe through tight corners without breaking much of a sweat, though a lack of feel almost certainly arrives from BMW's side of things. And the Supra I drove delivered the goods despite absolutely toasted tires—apparently, Car and Driver used this very car for a month's worth of torture testing, which left the Michelin Pilot Sports raw and ragged. Knowing how much of a difference a fresh set of rubber can make on a car, I returned this Supra wondering just how much better it might have driven wearing some Pilot Sport 4S shoes.

RELATED: This Is Why The Toyota GR Supra Deserves More Respect

Nothing Quite Like It

Toyota Supra 3.0 Premium Rear Three Quarters
via Michael Van Runkle / HotCars

Throughout the week I spent testing, I wracked my brain trying to come up with a comparable competitor. Not the Z4, which simultaneously looks worse and comes in a convertible (all with BMW's apparently subpar reliability concerns in the mix, too, given that Toyota insisted on significant improvements for the Supra before giving the revival a greenlight). The Nissan Z, despite my initial excitement and a clutch pedal, seems to attract more and more disappointing reviews by the week. Perhaps the nearest equivalent actually comes from Lexus, though the Supra makes an RC F all the more baffling, really.

To get anywhere near this car's performance for the price, switching to a mid-engine layout seems necessary. Maybe a Boxster or Cayman? At least both come available with a stick shift as an option. Or, more in line with some of the boy-racer styling, an entry-level C8 Corvette might represent the nearest possible option. Neither is really my style, but the per-dollar all-around packaging somehow seems similar.

RELATED: Find Out If This Toyota Supra Mk4 Is Quicker Than A Ford Mustang

Some Supra Surprises

Toyota Supra 3.0 Premium Rear End Shot
via Michael Van Runkle / HotCars

A few surprises did emerge that bear mentioning. The trunk offers an impressive amount of storage. The Premium trim package comes with Brembo front brakes but only solid rotors, not even slotted or drilled (let alone both). And the exhaust is not particularly loud! Maybe everyone who buys one ends up bolting on aftermarket pipes or, equally likely, Toyota wants a bit of turbo spool to creep into the cabin. But I never found a boost gauge in the various infotainment and instrument clusters, either, which came as quite the disappointment.

Maybe on the manual Supra, Toyota will introduce a software update that adds a turbo PSI reading. Regardless, being able to row through a six-speed in a nimble, powerful little sports car like this will undoubtedly continue to spark sales for BMW and Toyota's group project.

Sources: toyota.com, youtube.com, michelinman.com, and brembo.com.