The launch of the new Supra is definitely one of the highlights of the year, but Toyota’s long awaited sports car continues to split opinions.

There isn’t much left untold about the fifth-gen Supra. Chances are that, by now, you’ve probably made up your mind about the reborn Japanese performance icon, but Top Gear is here to give you its feedback nevertheless.

What Toyota has done is basically join forces with BMW in order to make the return of the Supra a financially sound move – and the same stands for Munich: without the Supra, a new Z4 was doubtful, so it is a win-win situation for both parties involved.

Toyota insists that, despite the common underpinnings, the Supra has its own personality and it most definitely isn’t a BMW wearing a JDM costume, which has been the main source of complaints from fans and a number of motoring journalists.

If your go past the fact that the new Supra is indeed using a great deal of German tech, what you’ll end up with is a nimble compact sports car with a very nice straight-six and the will to make its driver smile at almost every occasion. And that, in today’s automotive landscape, is something rare.

The turbocharged 3.0-liter six produces 335hp (340PS) and 368lb-ft (500Nm) of torque and is paired to a smooth and pretty responsive ZF eight-speed automatic transmission. According to official specs, the Supra sprints to 62 mph (100km/h) in 4.3 seconds and hits a top speed of 155mph (250km/h).

So, there are two ways to go about it: you can either scoff at the shared parts and blame Toyota for sullying the revered moniker, or celebrate the fact that the ever-shrinking sports car market is how offering a brand new Supra that’s a really enjoyable performer. The choice is yours.