2024 BMW M2 manual vs Toyota GR Supra manual comparison

Read the news and you’d think petrol is about to run out, everybody’s buying an electric SUV, replacing any overly bright and colourful clothes they own with varying shades of charcoal and slate, and that the rear-drive manual sports car is dead.

It couldn’t be further from the truth.

In 2024, those who love driving – with the unique feeling that only comes with a bit of power, rear-wheel drive and a limited-slip differential – are spoilt. Some of the best vehicles to ever apply this magic formula are on sale right now.

Today, we’re comparing two of them – BMW’s rip-snorting 338kW new M2 against Toyota’s updated 285kW GR Supra. Of course, the Toyota has more than a bit of Bavarian DNA; if it believed it was directly descended from older Supras, it might get a rude shock if it did an ancestry test.

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But while they both have 3.0 turbocharged straight sixes and, as parked before us, are both six-speed manuals, they are still very different cars.

One of the biggest differences, crucially, is price – the GR Supra at $97,000 to the M2’s $121,700, a sizeable $24,700 gap which blows out to more than $45,000 when factoring in on-road costs. Crikey.

The Supra’s BMW engine produces 285kW at 5800-6500rpm and 500Nm from 1800-5000rpm. The M2 makes significantly more power with 338kW at 6250rpm and more torque, 550Nm from 2650-5870rpm.

When comparing power-to-weight, they’re a bit closer. The Toyota’s 1503kg kerb mass gives it a power-to-weight ratio of 190kW/tonne, whereas the portlier 1700kg (DIN) M2 is 199kW/tonne.

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As well as being 197kg heavier, the two-plus-two-seat M2 is a much larger car – 201mm longer, 33mm wider and 109mm taller.

The M2 has drawn criticism for its Need For Speed styling – it sort of looks like it was designed by a 15-year-old – but it looks a lot better in the metal, its low-offset rear 20-inch wheels filling the pumped guards perfectly. The Smurf-like M Zandvoort Blue of our test car also looks ace. To my potentially defective eyes, anyway.

Lower and squatter, the Supra looks faster standing still. Its Japanese manga comic book styling has aged well, even if some of its numerous fake plastic vents are a bit regrettable.

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JUMP AHEAD

• Which is more fun to drive?
• Which is the better daily driver?
• Any other things to consider?
• The WhichCar verdict

Which is more fun to drive?

Both are great fun to drive – and seriously fast – but despite their on-paper similarities, feel very different.

First, the biggest similarity: engines. The 3.0-litre turbocharged inline-six is a beast in both cars, serving up lovely power and torque in a muscular yet beautifully smooth fashion. The Supra, for example, pulls hard from just 3000rpm all the way to 6500rpm and feels nothing but hungry to vaporise its rear tyres.

There’s a delightful turbo whistle as you get into the throttle, which makes up for what is quite a lot of artificial engine noise. BMW has done a much better job of the M2’s engine sound – it’s more believable, snarlier and more satisfying than the Supra’s.

Despite having nearly 20 per cent more power, in a drag race they claim to be about as fast as each other, the Supra at 4.4 seconds from zero to 100km/h against the M2's 4.3 seconds.

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The Supra uses wide 275-section rear Michelin Pilot Super Sports to transmit its power (255 fronts), not much narrower than the BMW’s rear 285s. Both use the same gear ratios and nearly identical final drives.

Launch control in the M2 is foolproof – pin the throttle and the revs raise to roughly 3250rpm, dump the clutch and let the computer manage the wheelspin. We didn’t get a chance to run numbers but they felt about as fast as each other.

In the corners, the Supra feels smaller, more agile and twitchier, like your hips are much closer to the rear axle. You have to push it hard to get the best out of it, and it can be a bit of a physical car to drive. “The more you drive it, the more you enjoy it,” smiled Wheels Editor Andy Enright.

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The Supra makes you feel like you’re going a bit faster than you are – which is how sports cars should be (rather than the other way around).

You have to dig deep for the Supra to show off its best chassis talents, making it more the car for experienced drivers. Its rear suspension also conceals a bit of a near-limit quirk, like it’s ‘corkscrewing’ ever so slightly over mid-corner bumps, which makes it a bit knife-edge and difficult to trust.

No such issue in the BMW. As well as making you feel more in control, the M2 is much faster and more serious than the Supra – a totally different animal. In fact, it’s a monster. With its 277mm-longer wheelbase, it’s more stable and planted, and is easier to exploit.

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Those who’ve done a few track days will find it almost shockingly fast up a winding road, especially on its sticky Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres – the fronts of which measure an extreme 275mm.

This is a car that demands exceptionally high levels of concentration and can carry enormous speed into corners, helped by suspension that is night-and-day better for mid-corner compliance than the Supra’s. It would undoubtedly be seconds quicker around a track, especially a bumpy one.

In both cars, it’s easy to tease out a bit of second-gear, corner-exit power oversteer but the BMW, whose snug seats almost bolt your hips to the rear end, is a lot friendlier. If you want a factory drift car, you can’t go wrong with either of these. The M2’s ferocity is such that you’re getting power oversteer in second gear at 95km/h.

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Comparing clutch pedal feels and manual gearboxes, the Supra’s six-speed manual has a slightly nicer shift and we like its small, ball-shaped leather shift knob more – falling to hand in a slightly nicer way.

However, its interior feels designed for an automatic gearbox, like they’ve had to make a manual gear selector ‘work’, as it’s possible to knuckle the air-conditioning controls if shifting from second to third too vigorously.

The Supra’s brakes feel better and its steering is more connected too. The M2’s brake-by-wire system – with no mechanical connection – provides minimal ABS feedback through the pedal which takes some serious getting used to.

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They’re very different for settings to play with, as well. If you miss the days of Nokia 3310s you’ll probably appreciate the Supra, which is old school in that it comes with a singular Sport mode that sharpens up the throttle and pumps in a bit more artificial engine noise, and that’s about it.

BMW, on the other hand, permits adjustability of throttle sensitivity, rev-matching, adaptive dampers, steering, brake pedal feel, electronic stability control and engine sound. Two red M1 and M2 toggles on the steering wheel – like little red Shrek ears – allow you to select two predetermined combinations of settings. There are 864 possible permutations (we added them up) and that’s not counting the adjustable traction control's 10 incremental settings.

Such is the possible mix of settings you almost get FOMO while driving the M2 that there’s a better combination for your given circumstances, tempting you to fiddle as you’re driving.

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Which is the better daily driver?

The M2. The ride quality is nicer, it’s easier to see out of and it’s more practical with a rear seat you might even put adults in.

A Supra wouldn't be a bad companion for daily life but it’s just that little bit trickier given the outward visibility of a closed-face helmet (with a much lower roof). Its suspension also feels firmer and sportier, constantly reminding you that you ‘lived a little’ and got the two-seat sports car instead of the anonymous white SUV (a very good decision, might we add).

The BMW’s interior also feels higher-tech with its curved horizontal screen – two screens in one, a 12.3-inch instrument display and a huge 14.9-inch infotainment touchscreen.

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The Supra’s 8.8-inch infotainment touchscreen might be smaller but feels more than big enough for its interior. There’s almost too much screen going on in the M2.

In contrast to how it drives, the Supra’s seats would be better for daily life, softer and a bit flatter.

The BMW’s M Sport seats are beautifully deep and supportive but come with a peculiar plastic crotch mound that can dig into your inner thighs occasionally – especially if you follow the strict nutritional, overly calorific regimen of this chunky-thighed road tester.

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Any other things to consider?

Both come with a five-year warranty and cost about the same to service over five years or five services – the Supra $2075, or $2210 for the BMW.

We didn’t get a chance to test fuel economy but the M2 claims 10.1L/100km on the WLTP cycle. We estimate the Supra would use slightly less. Both have 52-litre fuel tanks.

At 290 litres, the Supra’s boot is only 100 litres smaller than the M2’s – and is quite usable – but annoyingly Toyota hasn’t provided an external boot opening button meaning you always have to find the key fob. Credit to the BMW for its 40:20:40 split-fold rear seats, which make the boot extra usable.

Neither has a spare tyre, providing puncture repair kits only.

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The Wheels verdict

The M2 is the better vehicle for driving thrills and daily living. It’s a lot faster, more practical, more fun, easier to trust and with its myriad modes, there’s more to play with. “I’m amazed at the bandwidth of this car,” said Wheels road tester John Law.

However, if you have a rear-drive sports car itch to scratch, you’d be rapt with the Supra – especially given the $45,000 saving when comparing drive-away prices. Where the M2 feels like a hot-rodded 2 Series, the Supra has a more classic sports car feel, which will appeal to many.

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SCORING

2024 BMW M2

2024 Toyota Supra GTS