Just bought 1989 N/A supra *Need Help*

[hates_losing_to_talons]

Hey,
New to the supra world and just bought a stock 1989 with the non-turbo (n/a).

1.I raced my buddys Eagle Talon TSI AWD last night (stock) and got killed off the line...just learned to drive standard a week ago and i did fine shifting, but i was just wondering what RPM i should be shifting at, i cant hear it due to the Magnaflow muffler the guy before me put on. Also on the start i spun the tires alot, and didnt seem to hook up right...someone told me to have it at around 2000 rpm before i drop the clutch. Is this about right?

2.What should i do (performance wise)? Im a student so not alot of cash flow right now, but saving is an option...a step by step performance upgrade list would be nice.

THanks for the help,

[Chambers]

Well, first of all welcome to the money pit of your life, lol. A 5pd NA is a great car to start with, I my self have a 86.5 NA 5spd, I love it.

When your launching, first, don't do it on the street to much. There is a good chance you will lose your car and or license, its fun to do it every so often but its dangerous. What rpm to launch at really depends on a few things, the kind of tires your running, the humidity, how warm the tires are, and road conditions.

I have a set of Falken ZE512 tires on my car, they hook great when warm, last October I drove to the drag strip, It takes around a hour to get there so my tires really got nice and warm. I did a good burnout, then left the gate at around 4500 to 5000, the car hooked right up and I ran a 15.4 1/4 mile. The second time I went, I couldn't hook up at all, even at 2000 rpms I still spun tires.

I suggest you drive your car for at least a few more months to a year before messing with it, that way you can develop all of your senses for driving your Supra. I drove my car for six months before I hit wide open throttle, and now I have taken my car to the limit, right before the rear kicks out completely.

As for simple mods, I would start with a CAI (cold air intake), its simple and plentiful, then move onto a high flow exhaust system. Then you can get look into a high flow catalytic converter. I have the old school HKS exhaust on my car, its 2.75" and is nice and quiet at idol and cruising, but has a nice tone when running through the rpms. It also looks like the stock system so it fits in with the car perfectly.

For more advanced mods, as when you blow a head gasket, lol, you can do a port & polish, mild cams, A/F controller, and further intake mods.

Then for the top of the line NA upgrades, custom tuned headders, ITB (individual throttle bodies), aggressive cams, upgraded valve train, MAP system, injectors, high flow fuel pumps, larger radiator, and the list goes on. The problem is by the time you get all that stuff, you probably wont be making tons of power, and for power to cost ratio swapping a turbo engine and trans in would be cheaper in the long run, and the upgrade possibility's after a turbo engine are almost endless.

[SC Rydah]

As just about everyone will say on this forum: A turbo swap is the only way to go. I have a 90 N/A and i'm saving for 1JZ-GTE swap money. Don't try to put a turbo on the one you already have. You'll make your car more of a money pit than it has to be with the money you'll spend to add a turbo to an N/A motor. It'll be smarter and easier to just put a turbo motor in it. 7M-GTE(least to buy - replace the HG), 1JZ-GTE(mid price - make sure it's a good one) or 2JZ-GTE(most costly - make sure the seals are good). Your money, your choice.

[Moy]

More power = turbo swap. 7M-GTE is cheapest but you'll want to replace the HG (Stone or MHG) and use ARP studs. 1JZ-GTE is more costly and parts are harder to find as it was only available in Japan. 2JZ-GTE is most expensive.

Or you can do what I'll be doing as soon as I have all of the parts/money. 2JZ NA-T with 7M electronics. Need all of the electronics, turbo dash cluster, pre-89 harness/turbo ecu. Boost guage, intercooler/piping, turbo, (custom) exhaust manifold. Later on FFIM. If you go NA-T on the 2JZ, the NA and GTE have different intake/exhaust bolt patterns, so parts are not interchangeable

[EthanMKIII]

Mines a 88 turbo 5spd. I have low profile tires.
Launch at 3000~3800Rpm This is when i really want to go.
1st to second i shift around 3,800 not point of going higher in 1st u'll just spin the tires when u shift to second. you really need to keep the rpms up for faster shifts and better acceleration
2nd to third i shift at 5,200 any higher is just not worth it.
3rd to fourth around 5,000 by the time i hit fifth i'm already going 160-180km/h
4th to fifth around 4,800 got to keep the turbo spooling max boost.
That's what i shift at when I'm going hard and straight. The launch u need tweek i dk your car.
Check what RPM u spin at.

Remember Turbo lag is the moment the car beside u thinks there going to win lol.