New MKIII Turbo Supra owner w/pics

[johnnyddn]

I just purchased a 91 Turbo Supra for $4100. It only got 89k miles on it and its completely stock. The guy didn't even have tags or insurance on it. It was just sitting.

This is the first time I've ever owned a car with a Turbo so I just had a couple questions. I noticed after driving the car normally without pushing it hard, when I open the hood, the engine bay is really hot. The temprature gauge stays in the middle it just seems alot hotter to me than my other cars. I wonder if this heat is why all the clear coating on the hood has worn off.

I don't plan on modding it anytime soon. First thing I wanna do is change the spark plugs, oil, transmission and brake fluid. I've heard these cars have a head gasket problem so I think I wanna change it out to a metal head gasket as some people in the forum have suggested. Also maybe change out all the vaccum lines to silicone, but all the stock lines seem to be in good condition. Another thing I noticed is the transmission is notchy when shifting into second, especially if I'm reved high. I was wondering if this is normal because I've owned a 91 celica and the transmission in that car seemed alot smoother. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks

[johnnyddn]

Here are some more pics of it

[theWeezL]

Nice find!

First of all dont trust the temp gauge. It doesnt actually tell you anything other than if its within normal range. Basically, its an idiot light with a needle instead of a light. I am not sure at what temp it changes to "hot" but I would guess at around 240. If your running even 10 degrees less than that the gauge will register in the middle.

Secondly Turbo engines do tend to build heat, and after you stop driving they will radiate alot of that heat away. Its really hard to say if your running hot or not, but make sure your fluid looks good and the overflow bottle is up to the full mark. You might want to get yourself a real temp gauge if your still concerned.

Anyways, welcome to the world of the Mk3...I understand boosting is an addiction, thats why Im N/A...lol

[newbsupra]

very nice i think its a great find.. and i love the black! those MKIV rims dont look to bad on it either have fun, i wish i had boost lol ohh.. and did you ask or check for a blown headgasket? or are you just replacing it in advance? i think im gonna get a GReddy Metal Head Gasket.

[johnnyddn]

Well from what I read it doesn't have any evidence of a blown head gasket. It doesn't spew any coolant from the overflow or anything like that or smoke. I just thought I should change to a metal head gasket for preventative mantainance. I think i'm gonna take it in tomorrow for an oil change and flush the coolant system, just because I don't know when the last time it was done with the previous owner.

[burton51m]

looking good...take care of it and she'll take care of you (by not breaking down ofcourse!)



by the way...i like your neighborhood's yards

[suprra_girl]

that is a beautiful car

[SupraSaver87]

You have a great car, looks really clean on the outside. I do have a question though. My badge at the front is just a red "Toyota Supra" badge, and he has one that looks like it was off of a 1994-1998 ( I don't know roman numerals...but its an MK4). Is that something the previous owner did? (Anyone can answer this though)

Yeah, the turbo's run hot, well compared to most other engines. Here is a thing to keep in mind. If you are driving it, and then want to work on it...it takes about 1 1\2 hours to cool to a "touchable" state. I have noticed that your arm rest/ cubby is worn away....welcome to my hell. That foam in there is messy, I would clean that up by covering with some fabric, or you could use a heat gun and melt the top layer. That will seal it, and hopefully cause it to no longer flake off. (However I do not know if yours flakes)

The thing however like you said that you have to watch out for is HG, if you arn't bagging the royal shit out of it, then you hopefully won't be blowing it before you can replace it. (Remember, you bought this car, with your hard earned cash, don't abuse it!)

And in closing I would like to welcome you on behalf of all of us here to the Supra Forum, and more importantly to the (maybe eventual) love in the Toyota Supra!!!

[johnnyddn]

Yeah that arm rest sucks, is there a way to buy a replacement for it? The foam has hardened over the years so when I touch it it kind of crumples to a dust and collects in the little tray.

I just took it in to get an oil change and got the coolant flushed also. I have no idea how long those fluids have been in it so I'm in the process of freshening everything up. Is the transmission fluid hard to change on these cars or should I just take it into a shop and get that flushed too? I've read that people recommend Redline MT-90. I'm used to working on trucks and you don't have to jack them up work on them. Probably need to head to Sam's Club and buy that floor jack they got for about 70 bucks.

[SupraSaver87]

Ok. Here is my temp fix for that arm rest. Use a heat gun, like I said before, be careful, old foam really likes to shrink, and sometimes will just burn.

(P.S. Take the top off, open the windows, and open the trunk...foam usually WREAKS when it starts burning)

After that you could use some paint (However its really ugly), if you want to do a good job... here is what you do.

First, remove that lid, and take all that fabric/whatever is on there...foam too, rip it all off.

Second, go buy some hard foam, and some of the soft stuff. I don't know where to find that stuff, I just had some in my garage for some reason...go figure :S

Third, use the harder stuff at the bottom, cut it to fit, and make sure your eyes arn't too big for your arms....lol....don't use too much.

Fourth, use the soft stuff, and do the same as the harder stuff

Finally, go get some fabric, leather, WHATEVER you want to cover it with, and cover the whole thing back up.

Now go for a cruise, see how you like the feel and level of it. If it isn't right, just take off the fabric (Hopefully you just didn't glue it on or nothing), and adjust how much of the harder stuff you got, and how much of the softer stuff.

Go for a cruise again, and see how it feels....it its perfect....keep cruising...hell if it isn't perfect...KEEP CRUISING...lol.

Hopefully this will help you out.