You would probably never guess that the 2021 Toyota Supra is a sports car that you could drive every day, but it is. I was fortunate enough to test drive the Supra 2.0 for a week and came away impressed and surprised at the same time. Here is what it was like.

The Toyota Supra makes you feel special

After taking delivery of the 2021 Toyota Supra, it took a couple of days for the celebrity glow to wear off. During the first three days that I drove the car around the Denver, Colo., area, I couldn’t help but notice all of the different pedestrians, restaurant patrons, and drivers that stared, waved, and took pictures of the car as I drove by or parked it.

“Nice car! You ever take it to the track?” asked one man sitting at a patio table as I parked the Supra in the parking spot in front of him. “Nope,” I replied, as I walked away.

Attention like that could get annoying after a while, but I just soaked it up and smiled. You will, too, if you buy a Supra. Depending on where you live, be prepared to talk to random folks and feel like the most popular person in town, at least for a little while.

Remember to duck when getting in

One drawback about the 2021 Supra is that it has a very low-slung roofline that makes getting in and out of it a dodgy affair. I’m 5-feet, 8-inches tall, and was able to duck my head out of the way almost every time, but I did hit it a few times.

My taller friend, however, didn’t fare too well. He managed to hit his head so many times that I offered to have him wear my racing helmet for good measure, but he declined. The roofline is low, so if you plan to buy a Supra, you have been warned.

Once you get into the Supra, it’s comfortable

But once you’re in the car, it’s actually pretty comfortable. The Supra’s interior dimensions – as far as the head, leg, and hip room – are nearly identical to the current Corolla. As you can imagine, it feels tighter than it actually is. It’s strangely large enough to fit an average size person and maybe even someone taller and I was even able to fit a large suitcase in the trunk.

The forward visibility is really good as there is ample viewing room when looking out of the windshield and past the bulging hood. The side windows extend far enough back that you can see out the sides of the car and toward the blind spots with no issues, and the rearview is adequate. However, if you look over your right shoulder when backing out, you’ll be staring at the rear-quarter pillar. Fortunately, the Supra is equipped with a rearview camera and parking sensors to help you.

My test car came with leather and Alcantara sports seats that provided really good lateral bolstering. And what’s even better is that the bolsters are adjustable, as are the height and fore-aft adjustments. It’s too bad that the seats are manually powered, though, but you get used to it.

The turbocharged 2.0-liter engine is good enough

When I read that Toyota was putting a turbocharged 2.0-liter into the Supra, I thought it was blasphemous. “It’s bad enough that it’s a BMW engine,” I thought. But I was wrong.

After a week of driving the Supra 2.0, I can honestly say that the 255 hp and 295 lb-ft of torque that its engine puts out is enough to have fun on the street and possibly get you into trouble. According to Toyota, the peak torque comes on from 1,550 rpm to 4,400 rpm and you sure can feel it.

One major plus is that the engine is mated to an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission, which shifts really smoothly and responds quickly when you click the paddles behind the wheel. I’m glad that they didn’t put a dual-clutch transmission in this car. And, as weird as it is for me to say it, I’m kind of glad they went with a stout BMW engine, too.

If the 2.0-liter’s power doesn’t make you smile, its fuel efficiency will. The 2021 Toyota Supra is rated at an EPA-estimated 25 mpg in the city and 32 mpg on the highway, 28 combined. After my week of driving through the city streets of Denver and over many highways, I averaged 32 mpg. That’s impressive, especially considering I’m at a mile-high elevation.

I would buy one, you should too

By the end of the week, I was sad to see the Toyota Supra leave. To me, it was more than an attention magnet or a mere sports car that you could drive every day. Instead, I found that the Supra was a symbol of what two automakers could do if they put their collective thoughts in the right direction and built a car that was attainable by even the dreamiest of dreamers, or even the casual, starry-eyed pedestrian.