As great as the new Toyota Supra is, there’s no denying that some enthusiasts will never warm up to the BMW engine that sits underneath its elongated hood. When it debuted a couple of years ago, the Supra got a lot of flak for its German underpinnings and had every Supra fan wondering where the legendary 2JZ engine from the Mk4 Supra was. That made us wonder, can you even put an older 2JZ engine into a new Supra?

Out with the new Supra engine, in with the old 2JZ engine

As it turns out, yes, you can stuff an older 2JZ engine into a new Supra chassis. However, that doesn’t mean that you can mosey on down to your local tuner shop and buy mounts and a wiring harness to make the swap happen. Instead, it’s evident that this type of swap should be left to the pros as the only new Supra with a 2JZ currently in existence is driven by professional drifter Daigo Saito.

That’s right, it’s solely a racecar – or more accurately, a drift car – application as there it looks like there was a lot of custom work to make the older engine fit. But if for whatever reason you want a new Supra with an older Supra engine, don’t fret, CX Racing has you covered. Car Buzz reported that the California-based company will soon offer a swap kit that will allow anyone to do the engine swap.

Why would anyone want to stick a 2JZ engine into a new Supra?

To be honest, we’re not too sure why. Mainly because we can’t imagine anyone purchasing a $55,000 car with a brand-new turbocharged 3.0-liter BMW engine only to throw it out in favor of one that’s nearly 30 years old. On top of that, the eight-speed automatic transmission would need to be swapped out for the six-speed manual transmission, which seems like a complete waste of time and money.

Don’t get us wrong, the 2JZ-GTE inline-six-cylinder engine is an amazing engine that produces 320 hp and 315 lb-ft of torque and has a cast-iron block that can withstand almost anything you can throw at it. Many tuners and Supra enthusiasts in the past have easily made 800 to 1,000 hp by upgrading the turbocharger, fuel system, and engine internals, so it’s no wonder it’s such a highly regarded mill.

However, spending all of the money, time, and effort to throw an older engine into a newer car just doesn’t make sense. Especially since the new Supra is a powerhouse in its own right.

How much power does the new Supra make?

The new Mk5 Toyota Supra makes 382 hp and 368 lb-ft of torque out of its BMW-sourced inline-six engine. That’s why it doesn’t make sense to do the engine swap considering the new engine makes more power than the old one right out of the box. And while it is connected to an automatic transmission, at least it’s made by ZF, which means it’s a good one.

Additionally, if you’re the type that needs to shift the gears themselves but wants a new Supra, then you can wait and see if Toyota really makes one for 2023. Until then, you can live with the fantasy of having an old 2JZ in a new Supra. Just remember that it’s probably not worth the time and money.