2023 Nissan Z vs Toyota GR 86 | Sports Car Comparison | Driving.ca

#NissanZ #ToyotaGR86 #sportscar
What a time to be alive! For the first time since 2009 we have a new generation of Nissan Z, and the popular Toyota GR86 has received a refreshing refresh which greatly improves it over the previous generation. And now we have the enviable task of deciding which of these re-born affordable sports cars is best.
To determine which is best, we are going to answer three questions about these two cars: Which is the better value? Which is easier to live with every day? And most importantly, which is the most fun to drive?
Full article on Driving.ca: driving.ca/reviews/comparison...
Have you driven or cross-shopped the Nissan Z or Toyota GR86? Let us know what you thought of it in the comments below!
For Nissan Z reviews, pricing, photos, news and specs: driving.ca/nissan/z/
For Toyota GR86 reviews, pricing, photos, news and specs: driving.ca/toyota/gr86/
How does these sports cars compare to the competition? driving.ca/comparison-results...
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[@mickey2036]

The more I see of the GR86, the more I’m impressed by it.

[@TrojanRabbit521]

Own BRZ and I say go buy one. I’m completely happy after 18 months. My forever car.

[@alexandram9477]

put the back seat down in the 86 and it's a pretty good cargo space! way more practical than the Z imo.

[@WhatisaLee]

True. I've transported furniture with my BRZ. So long as the object can fit through the trunk opening or the passenger door, I can usually haul it.

[@trevormanley8531]

The Z deserves all the criticism it gets for handling like an old crown Vic, but I’m so tired of hearing it’s old because of it being based on the 370 which was based on the 350. That’s what all manufacturers do. Nobody drags Porsche for refreshing the same 911 chassis. New motor, new body Holdover front and rear subframes and switch gear. The problems with the z aren’t problems that the 370 had. That’s not the issue. Too much was carried over from the q60 to save money leading to the more luxurious floaty feel rather than a track focused car.

[@reynaldomartinez4291]

I'd take the Z. Great horsepower, beautiful design, swap the tires for better handling and enjoy the ride.

[@Unxpekted]

Zillaboost threw Z1 turbos on his Z, think he's making 650+ hp.

[@jameswillard1]

I thought Z (and Supra) until I drove all 3 of them and if you value driver engagement, handling, feedback, agility etc then there is no comparison. The new Z and Supra are numb devices in comparison to the GR86. If going fast and making lots of noise (Supra) is the priority then chose one of the more expensive, 6-cylinder cars

[@Andrew-zs5tc]

IF the local roads around me were straight and had a speed limit of 80 and the police agreed that those with excess horsepower were free to use it AND I had any faith in Nissan AND if they actually had any on dealer lots AND if they didn't have crazy markups, I would have bought a Nissan Z. The roads near me have speed limits of 35 to 55 and lots of curves and the highways have limits of 55 to 70. I bought a BRZ and have no regrets.

[@stms4411]

I daily the gr86 and have gone on a 500 mile round trip and it’s completely livable. I also live on the east coast of the US, where the roads are quite bad The lads here see the Z as the comfortable option with a good radio…..gosh, first two things I look for in a sports car.

[@alabdel1388]

Same, I own and daily the car and still can't wait to drive it every day.

[@deniscdyck]

@@alabdel1388 Same here. Have a MT 23 BRZ and love it. For comfort and good radio we have our 22 Odyssey.

[@tvtime2644]

Add me to that list. I daily a ‘22 BRZ MT Limited and have no issues whatsoever with doing so. My old ‘13 Cobalt POS was louder than my BRZ. Just because it’s not a sofa on wheels doesn’t make it unlivable for everyday use.

[@stms4411]

@@tvtime2644 preach brother!

[@2seep]

Just don’t do hard right corners. Don’t want your engine blowing up.

[@SoCalFreelance]

The Z has more of a presence on the road. It's the more mature car, more refined, and can deliver power when called upon. While the GR86 is for the enthusiast who is still in college or in the military.

[@girthydumpsterfire6920]

Me who’s in college working full time 🥸 so true, I’m fucking loving the car. Still tryna think of a name 🧐

[@user-uh5gt4bm2v]

Maybe also include for a 70 year old female who believes live is short! Love my 2023 Gr86.

[@snowflake4656]

Yea the Z is definitely the choice. The 86 is for broke teens going to high school. My lawn mower has more HP and T

[@ateam388]

I’m 45 years old. My house is paid off. Just test drove a G86 and I’m sold.

[@tanmay_6363]

What's the difference between GR86 and GT86?

[@MikeAngel06]

Nissan Z vs Supra, GR86 vs Miata... thats the fair comparison for price point. For fun, it depends but for me GR86 is the most fun one,

[@stms4411]

Actually the z and the Supra are at a significant difference in price between the gr86. The Miata is somewhere in between.

[@erniejoel1234]

At least the Z won’t destroy its engine at the track.

[@deniscdyck]

Barely any GR86/BRZ has. One has to keep in mind that the twins are purchased by kids and are at bigger risk of being abused (money shifts, pointless redlining, crappy maintenance, so on). Sure, the odd one will go boom in the hands of an experienced driver, but so will any other car.

[@carboydorifutoparty3976]

U act like the Z's engine isn't any better since they're known for overheating on track.

[@2seep]

@@carboydorifutoparty3976it’s not called overheating. It’s called heat soak, meaning power loss which can easily be fixed by upgrading the coolant pump, and a bigger heat exchanger. The Supra heat soaks too you know.

[@jaysuneakle]

I would love to have either car with additional effort to better the power to weight. Example: increase power on GR86 or decrease weight on the Z.

[@michaelbenfer6031]

Thanks for this great review. Greetings from germany 😊

[@jawzblaze]

You know the GR86 Is a great car when it beats a car in many ways. And it's the Baby brother to the Supra. I don't think I could ever part with my Gr86. Funnest pound for pound Car I've ever driven.

[@Soravia]

Tires and suspension are cheapest to upgrade... 😂 try putting turbo and extra 2 cylinders on Subaru, along with double wishbone suspension. Or reduce weight on Z.

[@TrojanRabbit521]

I’m telling everyone unless you’re actually racing go get the 86/BRZ. I’ve had a BRZ 18 months & 1000% happy. Dynamics are perfect she communicates with you. Enough power for fun without losing life or license. So far avg 29.5 mpg while still driving it like I stole it. Just needed brake pads, exhaust & subwoofer after that is up to you.

[@willyhwang1059]

before you buy the z think about how it's being compared to a corolla then decide if you want to overpay

[@constantinedimopoulos1110]

A better comparison would be Miata, GR86 or the BRZ, the Nissan is not a proper comparison.

[@stms4411]

That’s because the z is not a sports car. It’s a heavy GT

[@snowflake4656]

Z has more HP, more refined and a long legacy , 86 is for broke teens to go to highscool.

[@constantinedimopoulos1110]

@@snowflake4656 I would agree. The Z is a beautiful ride.

[@Geor_546]

@@snowflake4656na foreal🤦🏻‍♂️the z is a real sports car by being the ordinary two seater, dude over there probably in a budget or something

[@shining_buddha]

Love to see Japan sports cars are back 🥰🥰

[@BlackNAVYAmericanVET]

The MX5 shift box is buttery SMOOTH, PLUS Quality …..and Engine History .

[@NathanDean79]

I would take the Z over that 86. Anyway. Yea get you some good Continental, Michelin, or Dunlop tires. And I would get either a 285 or 295 in back. I would also get it lowered by about 0.4-0.5 inches.

[@gshaw7477]

Picked up my new GTS GR 86 just recently. One big let down was no satellite navigation. Apple car play is great but listen Toyota engineers…..phone maps don’t work when out of mobile range which is very frequent where I drive. I had sat nav in my previous 2017 86 so very disappointed that this one very handy feature was left off the list in the upgrade. Also no spare wheel.

[@revaholic]

Still waiting for someone to review the base model Nissan Z without LSD

[@subiesnacks8446]

One tire fire is a waste of time

[@beexiong2995]

One wheel burnouts suck.

[@revaholic]

@@beexiong2995 It's also over 10K cheaper than the performance model.

[@alexceni377]

1.5 nismo lsd is under 2k from z1, so relatively easy fix.

[@robertpeet8880]

This is the second review where the GR86 was knocked for its rough road feel. I would be interested in comparing the Nissan Z with the BRZ. I'm going to bet that the ride quality for that match up would be about the same.

[@andreichichak5242]

Zed. Please. Zed. I took our 2020 86 on a 2700km long long weekend trip. It's not a great highway GT car. A few extra creature comforts would be good, but the biggest issue was its lack of grunt when you just need to pass someone. Pulling out to pass a semi, punch the throttle, nothing, shift, punch, not much, shift, wait wait wait. Ugg this sucks. It's great around town though. It took a while to get the seats into a position where you're not worried about being crippled after a 12 hour drive. The fuel consumption was ... fine. Cabin noise was fine. The engine was buzzy, but the bigger deal was the analog speedo being utterly useless. Sound system had very little bottom end, but CarPlay IS AWESOME. It certainly would be useful if it came with radar for the cruise control, km to empty, and the reversing camera being displayed on the head unit rather than the mirror.

[@andreichichak5242]

@@brzo. Really? I never noticed. Oh, wait, my watch must have stopped. Odd, my findings were basically echoed in the video. Damn watch.

[@ima8533]

Z it’s Zee it’s how it’s pronounced get That faggyy’ British way of talking outta here

[@shinatoIV]

I've had my '23 GR86 for a little over 10 months now and I don't regret buying it at all. Both the GR86 and Z are so quiet on stock exhausts even on cold start lol

[@randallboone9375]

I think I would rather take the Z , fix the suspension, and do downpipes and a tune. I love almost everything about the 86, but I drove an automatic and it was VERY underwhelming when I went to take it to redline. I understand its not supposed to be fast and all that, but I didn’t think it would feel, slow. I’ve heard the manual is different, so I’m gonna try that before I write it off completely.

[@randallboone9375]

@@brzo. yeah I think it being auto is the problem lol. Hell I had a 240sx 5 speed back in the day and it was a blast, even before I did the SR swap, and it only had 155 hp

[@brzo.]

@@randallboone9375 yep. i think you'd like the manual. definitely not a fast car, but it looks pretty quick and fun around town and around corners.

[@jameswillard1]

I had a BRZ 6-speed on with an indefinite time frame and a GR86 Premium Auto popped up locally so I ended up buying that one and I have to say the automatic was HORRIBLE in terms of neutering all the fun out if the car. It was so bad that I second guessed if I’d even like the manual. I’m happy to report after waiting 10 months the BRZ did finally come in and luckily as a result of these cars having incredible resale I traded the GR86 for virtually what I paid for it and am in love with the 6-speed version. It is a completely different driving experience

[@Xaevryn]

I'm really looking at a Z Sport. I'll be coming from a Challenger R/T so I'm sure even though you're saying it handles terribly, it'l still feel like a vast improvement over the Challenger's handling. Plus it'l have more power, and weight less than the R/T. Somewhere around 600lbs of difference. And since I'm used to the R/T I'm very used to handling a Hammer everywhere. Add to that ALL of the roads here are straight and if I have to go anywhere its a long highway trip and the Z just makes more sense.

[@odinikita4821]

Lol the z feels scary? I think you should get a Yaris. Nice n safe for you princess.

[@touayaaj84]

True story: the 86 is faster than the Z on the track. 😂

[@2seep]

Not faster, just had the better driver

[@NathanDean79]

The Nismo Z is the Perfect Z. It’s an absolute dream and worth the extra money. It’s 420 hp 384 lb ft and the automatic transmission has been gone through and shuts 50% faster up and down and the suspension has been gone through too. It’s a little more rough riding but that’s the point. And the Nismo has 285’s in back and 265’s up front.

[@kgthegreatone943]

Nice

[@sutats]

Both desirable BFYB sports cars.

[@pushslice]

"Lightness is its own reward"

[@DustinTavo]

Gd the orange makes me want a gr. so bad. If they gave you an option to just buy a premium orange GR I wouldn’t even consider buying a first GEN, which I may do.

[@fearsmasher1299]

Toyota should have named the 86 the Celica...

[@BlackNAVYAmericanVET]

86 Gasket issues, if 86 production fixes it and I will buy it . Z -Nissan historical engine problems, must wait out 👍🏽

[@greapsoho]

I would take the Z over the Subie. I'm a big fan of racing and regularly go to SCCA and NASA events. The GT class is filled with mustangs 350/370z and Porsche. I have heard that for short trips the BRZ is much more fun to rip around without breaking the law though.

[@lekooky2877]

Yeah, this is a very tough decision. So, I bought both.

[@Santu1939]

Gosh... that background music was so annoying.

[@jnagime]

I don’t think the GR86 can take the hard daily drive without blowing up.

[@danielmb007]

I've had both of these vehicles, this is not an equivalent comparison! The Toyota GR 86 should be compared to the Mazda at best. The poor power plant will ALWAYS be its downfall no matter how you try to convince yourself otherwise... Nissan 400Z all day!

[@tp.]

Give me the girls car that not so fast. "in fact I think we need to give it props for basically being the middle space between something like the 86 or you know a Corvette or a Porsche 718. This is legitimatley fast car it is a fast car and for them money a great bargain" but it's so scary....

[@NathanDean79]

If someone gave me a GR86 I would trade it in for a Z. Or sell it and buy a Z

[@snowflake4656]

100%

[@kentwong3818]

the nissan is 800lbs + more... For people getting into track, the Z is a bad idea as a first track car. If I'm going to spend another $20K CAD, I'll get a Mustang GT or cough up the $ for a GR Supra

[@alexceni377]

Full fuel Z performance was actually weighed at 3274 lbs

[@BlackNAVYAmericanVET]

Which is GOING TO BE “””””””””Reliable ,Hummmmmm .

[@backnu]

The best chassis until Porsche ? Are you guys delusional? What's about the C8 chassis, the alpha chassis in the Camaro 1le? I should have known. It seems like an Import /JDM channel. One car is woefully underpowered and the other ancient.

[@alabdel1388]

I think if you're going to spend the type of money you would for a Z, you might as well get a Supra or Type R instead. Both of those are better than the Z. As a side note, I own an 86 and daily it....its perfectly fine. Have taken it on road trips also, there is obviously a difference since this is a very stiff car that does like to rev....but it's not enough that should prevent someone from getting it if they want a fun daily.

[@widebodyryloken1417]

Type r is fwd tho

[@Nismo1983]

U can not Compare z vs 86 not even fair it like man vs little boy not same class!

[@brianreardon7700]

Oh someone has a small hoohoo

[@Nismo1983]

@@brianreardon7700 yea Toyota 86!!!!

[@stms4411]

You’re right, it’s not fair, the 86 is far superior to the face lifted 350z

[@Nismo1983]

@@stms4411not even close 86 is a good Four banger lol come on now it half price of a z that good Bargain 86 but not close on Performance wise vs a z!

[@stms4411]

@@Nismo1983 - the Z is a fast straight line machine that isn’t nimble or capable of providing drivers feel. If a numb, heavy and powerful GT is what you want, save your pennies. Not for me. I’ll happily switch between my 86 and my boxster

[@snowflake4656]

If you’re a broke teenager G86 if you’re a true enthusiast and know about cars, get the Z.

[@ranger_1472]

Dude where do you live where broke teens buy 30 thousand dollar cars? When I was in highschool at 16, the entry level sports cars that I could get with a summer job was a miata or a 240sx. My first and only car is still my 2018 GT86. I've driven my Dad's Audi A6, and its BMW equivalent, yet I still prefer how my GT86 feels even though it still has the torque dip. A real car enthusiast would buy the car that they love and have fun with. Also if I wanted to spend 45-60 thousand on a sports car I would get an alpine A110, not a Z.

[@georgecupac1202]

my 2005 BA XR8 is better than both of those cars.

[@bobby3914]

I would take a 370z over that slug 86

[@Themis187]

Yes yes😂

[@yootoobed]

Good video - however..... Like comparing a go-kart to a car. The differences between those two are vast. The Z is an entirely different league. The engineering of the Z is incredible, especially all the new improvements of suspension, braking, etc. And who doesn't want an awesome sound system? Is awesome high-end audio important? Most definitely. Would take the Z hands down, no comparison, no questions asked. The Z is made for the STICK people like myself - zero auto. The scary truth of GR86 is the getting-more-attention RTV in the oil problem, which is getting more and more publicity. Google it. KZbin it. Find out. I am actually seriously considering the new 24 GR86 for many reasons, especially the price difference...BUT....will find out if Toyota or Subaru makes the motor. The RTV problem is a deal breaker - so if the 24 isn't 100% Toyota, guess my decision.

[@jayczyzyk9707]

boxer engine is highly not reliable

[@alexiagordon6389]

😪 *promo sm*

[@odinikita4821]

I would take the Z over the 86 any day and this is coming from a guy that owns a convertible f type and a 981 Porsche Boxster s I know my cars

[@rakhsiprayogo82]

Toyota GR86 is Good 👍🏻 Nissan Z is Suck 👎🏻

[@eugenux]

I don't think it is that bad... you just need to do some small mods/upgrades to it.

[@rakhsiprayogo82]

@@eugenux blah Blah Blah

[@billyrock8305]

Totally illogical and useless automotive transportation devices. 👎🏼

[@deniscdyck]

Illogical? Yes. Pointless? Nah.

[@billyrock8305]

@@deniscdyck Cool vehicles if your 12. Dumb if you’re an intelligent adult. ✅

[@deniscdyck]

@@billyrock8305 please enlighten me on what is an intelligent adult's car then. With examples if that isn't asking too much.

[@billyrock8305]

@@deniscdyck Not these two that’s for sure. Toyota, Honda and Subaru will be logical starting points. What’s your age, family size, vehicle needs, distance travelled and budget?

[@deniscdyck]

@@billyrock8305 So, BRZ is fine as it is a Subaru?