You'll probably know by now that the Toyota GR86 is even greater than we hoped it might be. Faster, better to drive and more stylish than the model it replaced. Which, despite some flaws, was a very good sports car in its own right. It was absolutely no surprise to find that a small UK allocation sold out very quickly, especially at such a tempting £29,995 asking price. The bigger shock was that no further cars were sent our way, given the enormous demand.
Now that’s all changed, appropriately enough on the eighth day of the sixth month, otherwise known as 86 day to those of us that do the calendar correctly. An email to those on the waiting list for a car (of course PH was on that; what’s Matt’s old Mini if not a deposit?) has been sent stating that Toyota has ‘recently received limited stock of GR86 in the UK’. However many that is - we're not quite sure - more GRs over here must be good news.
The bad news is that Toyota will choose who get one, as that’s the point we’ve reached in 2023 with vaguely attainable petrol-burning performance cars. ‘Orders can only be made online via personal email invitation’ reads the rest of the message, adding soon after (and rather amusingly): ‘contacting us will not impact your waitlist position’. So don’t go pleading, people.
Additionally, a note at the bottom of the email said the featured car, an Ignition Red manual, costs £33,460. As if those who got a £30k one weren’t smug enough.
Sadly, ours was not one of the golden ticket emails. ‘Based on your position on the waitlist we won't be inviting you to request a GR86 at this time, but within the next few months we'll let you know if there's a chance for you to make a purchase.’ Which is all the more galling because it means you’ll cling to the vague hope of an opportunity in a few months’ time.
A Toyota GB spokesperson added that "we're pushing for as many as we can", which is encouraging, and hopefully means that a decent chunk more can be added to the original batch of 430. We’ll endeavour to keep you updated once more is known. For now, check your inboxes people!
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