The two nameplate giants where heritage heets modern engineering.
The current generation Toyota Supra has lasted five years, surprising given it hasn't felt like five years since 2020. As for the Civic Type R, the FK8-generation lasted four years, ending during the pandemic that made time seemingly warp and disappear.
So, how did we get here? The FK8 Type R was the successor to the rather dismal generation that was the FK2, the least popular Type R with only roughly 8007 units sold throughout a two year production span. That isn't alot especially in a global scale.
The Toyota Supra returned after an 18-year hiatus, the legendary and coveted A80-generation closing its doors in 2002. It had a very high ceiling of expectations given the cult status the previous generation had.
With a heavily reworked BMW Z4 chassis, the Supra originally threw a lot of people off (still do probably) because of the BMW relation. It still has a 3.0-litre turbocharged inline-6 engine similar in paper specs as the 1JZ and 2JZ engines that powered the previous (and appreciated) Supra generations, but its an engine from BMW.
The numbers, specifications and provenance game is tiring and did plague the Supra lots, but the automotive industry has definitely pivoted focus to other models, if not itself as a whole, seeing where its going (electric vehicle galore!).
In any case, both cars seemed to have done their job of selling well enough worldwide. The FK8 can still be seen every now and then, alongside the Supra - both cars having good media presence from its respective owners online.
Back to the specification game, the Supra in RZ trim makes 387 PS (381 horsepower) and 500 Nm of torque. Toyota only released the 6-speed manual variant halfway in its production run, so most Supras tend to use a 8-speed ZF automatic transmission.
The B58 inline-6 engine is a solid powerhouse that is also popular in BMWs own models like the M240i. The Supra has managed to reclaim its stay in the tuning scene as the engine is also modifiable, picking up where the A80 Supra left off.
The Civic Type R on the other hand, is the second generation of Type R to use a turbocharger from the factory. The 2.0-litre VTEC turbo K20C1 makes 320 PS (316 horsepower) and 400 Nm of torque. The Type R remains manual only as is tradition across its six generations, so another 6-speed manual rests inside the car.
These are similar, but different. I mean, they're Japanese (depends on your stance about the Supra), are white, have black wheels, have bench tables parked on the boot. But one is front-wheel drive with a manual box, the other the enthusiast-favorite of front-engine, rear-wheel drive (FR) but likely an automatic. The Supra does the 0-100 km/h sprint in 4.1 seconds, while the Type R does it in 5.7 seconds.
To trade the FR layout for an extra two doors and a manual, is it well worth the change?
This is a subpost of the original entry, linked here: Penang: September 2025 Photos and stills
~Efini
Read more: A Ferrari F430's lonesome showcase
When are you getting your own Type R? 😏
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