Toyota Supra Sales Drop by 46% in 2023
In 2023, the Toyota GR Supra faced a challenging year in the United States market. Despite the much-anticipated addition of a six-speed manual transmission, the sports car experienced a sharp decline in sales, with Toyota reporting a 46.4% drop compared to the previous year. This surprising turn of events has prompted a closer examination of the factors contributing to the Supra's struggle, as well as its place in an evolving enthusiast market. In this article, we delve into the main points surrounding the Supra's sales performance, its competition, and the potential for a resurgence in the near future.
Manual Transmission Addition Fails to Boost Sales
In an effort to boost sales, Toyota introduced a six-speed manual transmission option for the Supra in 2023. While this enhancement was well-received by reviewers, including us, it failed to translate into increased sales.
Factors Contributing to the Decline
The decline in Supra sales raises questions about the factors contributing to this sharp drop. While Toyota expected that only one in four customers would opt for the manual model, the extent of the decline was unexpected. Speculation abounds regarding the reasons behind the decline, but concrete answers remain elusive.
Enthusiast Market Trends
Analyzing Toyota's overall 2023 sales chart provides context for the Supra's performance. The GR86, another enthusiast-oriented model, also saw a decline, albeit less steep at 7.7% with 11,078 units sold. This trend highlights a broader shift away from two-door sports cars in favor of pickup trucks and SUVs.
Competition and Future Prospects
In the realm of sports cars, competition remains tough. Although Toyota did move more Supras, at 2,652 units sold, Nissan's new Z sports car saw a significant sales increase for 2023. As well, the BMW Z4, which shares a platform with the Supra, also saw sales increase this year.
Looking Ahead
While the Supra faces challenges in the market, there is hope for its future. Toyota is rumored to be working on a new performance range-topper for the 2025 model year, potentially carrying a GRMN badge. This development could breathe new life into the Supra and offer enthusiasts more exciting options.
Still, the Toyota Supra's 2023 sales decline despite the addition of a manual transmission raises questions about the future of two-door sports cars. While competition remains fierce, fans are hopeful for a resurgence in the Supra's popularity in the coming years.
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This article was co-written using AI and was then heavily edited and optimized by our editorial team.
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Or perhaps this is just a repeat of what happened to the original Supra (and MR2). During the first few years, the vehicles were perceived as a slightly expensive, but still affordable, "everyman's" sports car. Then Toyota began to increase the price beyond the public's perceived value and sales crashed. Seems like the only automotive company to understand the consumer is Mazda, which to this day has managed to produce the Miata in a form and at a price in which the public finds value.
I believe it just took them too long to realize that if you’re going to offer a true sports car, give it multiple transmission options, ESPECIALLY if you’re bringing back a classic. Three years of sales data would’ve showed them if it was even going to be worth it to continue offering. Prices back then were cheaper as well, just before this big boom in inflation.