Is the Toyota 86 Sports Car Still Worth Buying in 2024?

The morning sun glinted off the polished hood as I watched my neighbor’s pristine white Toyota 86 pull out of his driveway. It was the same ritual every Saturday—a slow, deliberate exit followed by a throaty rumble as he reached the end of our quiet suburban street. That sound always made me pause whatever I was doing. There’s something about a sports car that feels like an unkept promise, a reminder that roads were meant for more than just getting from point A to point B. And it got me thinking, as we cruise deeper into 2024 with electric vehicles dominating headlines and autonomous features becoming standard, is the Toyota 86 sports car still worth buying?

I remember test driving one back in 2017. The cabin smelled of fresh leather and gasoline—a combination that’s becoming rarer these days. The seats hugged me in all the right places, and the steering wheel felt like an extension of my arms. But what struck me most wasn’t the acceleration or the sleek design; it was how connected I felt to the road. There were no fancy driver-assist systems beeping at me, no oversized touchscreen demanding my attention. Just me, six gears, and a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter boxer engine humming its distinctive tune. Toyota claimed it produced 205 horsepower back then, though dyno tests often showed it was closer to 190 at the wheels. Numbers aside, it was never about raw power. Driving the 86 was like having a conversation with the asphalt—every bump, every curve translated through the chassis into something you could feel in your bones.

This brings me to something my friend, a former semi-pro racing coach, once told me over coffee. He was explaining why he still recommended the 86 to his students despite newer, faster options available. "The players that we're bringing in, we believe, exemplify that. We think defense wins championships, and we're bringing in one of the best two-way players in the league." He wasn’t talking about basketball—he was using a sports analogy to describe what makes the 86 special. In his view, most modern sports cars are all offense—blistering straight-line speed, launch control, AWD systems that do the work for you. The 86, by contrast, is that rare two-way player. It’s not just about going fast; it’s about handling, balance, and teaching you how to be a better driver. The relatively modest power output forces you to maintain momentum through corners, to perfect your braking points, to actually drive the car rather than just point and shoot. It’s the automotive equivalent of a fundamentals coach.

Now, I’ll be honest—there are days when I question this philosophy. Last month, I found myself behind the wheel of a Tesla Model 3 Performance. The instant torque pushed me back into my seat with a force that felt almost violent. 0-60 mph in 3.1 seconds without so much as a gear change. For a moment, I understood why people are abandoning internal combustion engines. But that thrill faded quickly. There was no drama, no mechanical symphony, no sense of participation. It was like watching an action movie versus being the protagonist in one. The Toyota 86, even with its 6.1-second sprint to 60 mph (on a good day, with the wind at your back), makes you the star of your own driving story.

Let’s talk numbers for a second. A new 2024 Toyota 86 starts around $28,000—significantly less than its corporate cousin, the Subaru BRZ, and an absolute bargain in today’s inflated car market. For comparison, a base Porsche 718 Cayman will set you back nearly $60,000. Now, before you come at me with pitchforks, I’m not saying the 86 is as good as a Porsche. But for someone entering the sports car world, or for a driving enthusiast on a budget, it offers about 80% of the driving pleasure at less than half the price. The aftermarket support is massive too—I’ve seen owners squeeze an extra 50 horsepower with simple bolt-ons and a tune, though personally, I think the beauty is in keeping it pure.

The other evening, I saw my neighbor washing his 86, carefully wiping down those iconic frameless windows. I walked over, and we got to talking. He’d recently driven his friend’s new Supra—the one with the 382 horsepower BMW engine. "It’s incredible," he admitted, "but it almost feels too capable. Like it’s compensating for my shortcomings as a driver." His 86, he said, made him feel skilled even when he was just running errands. The slightly tail-happy nature of the rear-wheel-drive setup, the precise shift throws, the way you can balance the car on throttle through a corner—these are things you simply don’t get in most modern vehicles.

Still, I have to acknowledge the 86’s flaws. The infotainment system feels dated, the cabin noise at highway speeds will make you raise your voice, and the back seats are essentially decorative unless you’re transporting very small children or very large pizzas. The fuel economy isn’t terrible—I’ve seen owners report around 25 mpg combined—but it’s not hybrid territory either. Yet somehow, these imperfections contribute to its charm. In an era where cars are becoming homogenized, sanitized appliances, the 86 remains stubbornly, delightfully analog.

So, back to our original question: is the Toyota 86 sports car still worth buying in 2024? If you’re looking for the latest tech, the quickest quarter-mile times, or a comfortable daily commuter, probably not. But if you believe, as I do, that driving should be an engaging experience rather than just transportation, then the answer is an emphatic yes. The 86 represents something increasingly rare—a car designed not for specifications sheets, but for the sheer joy of driving. It’s the automotive equivalent of a handwritten letter in a world of text messages. And as I watch my neighbor pull back into his driveway, that boxer engine singing its familiar song, I can’t help but smile. Some things are worth preserving.