The Toyota GR86 is one of the few cars out there that still provides a pure distillation of driving fun. Besides its Subaru BRZ twin and the Mazda MX-5 Miata, there's nothing out there that isn't overly complicated, heavy, or expensive. Despite many talking trash about the GR86, the buying public has made it a huge success, and as a result, Toyota is capitalizing with new special editions. The most recent of these was not intended for the American market, but Toyota has now addressed that oversight by giving us our very own, simply titled the 2023 Toyota GR86 Special Edition.

Based on the GR86 Premium Grade, this car gets an exclusive paint finish called Solar Shift, and this orange pops beautifully. Complementing it is a set of matte black 18-inch wheels with black center caps and black lug nuts, wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport 4 rubber. A black C-pillar graphic has been added too, looking similar to the graphics added to the GR Supra A91 Edition. The end result is a ton of black accents that look pretty smart. Another black highlight comes in the form of the black chrome tips affixed to the cat-back performance exhaust system, which has stainless steel pipes and is promised to "leave a deep, growling auditory signature in its wake."

Unfortunately, performance has not been enhanced. But that's okay because this isn't a car that's obsessed with more power. Toyota specifically says that it is "celebrating the pure fun of sports car driving," so adding more potential for hairy driving scenarios wouldn't be ideal. Besides, the 2.4-liter engine produces 228 horsepower and 184 lb-ft of torque, and this is delivered in a way that makes you want to engage with the car.

As for pricing and availability, we have no word on the former but are told that this will be limited to 860 units as a nod to the model name. For reference, the base GR86 starts at under $28,000, and the Premium (upon which the Special Edition is based) starts at $30,300. We expect this limited model to cost a touch more than $31,000.