n00b. Should i buy?

[530transam]

ok, im 25 now. Since i was 8 i have wanted a red twin turbo Supra. I kind of gave up on owning one because people want to much money for them and i am always busy with school and work etc etc. Well recently i found one at a Toyota dealership, a red 1993 twin turbo targa with NO spoiler!!!! My dream car!!! whats even better is they are only asking $17k. They sold the car new, and maintained it all its life. It was owned by a doctor and received impeccable care. I commute so much that i started thinking wow i would just garage this car and still have to have a daily driver-probably not worth it. Then things get interesting. I find out it has 191,000 miles!!! This is great but bad. Bad because of all the questions of a 200k miles car, but great because i would never be afraid of driving it. Should i buy it? Why or why not? Will it be reliable with that many miles given the service history and ownership of the car? Should i just shell out the cash and buy it and have the engine rebuilt (i plan on making a 600-800hp beast anyway)? Should i buy it and drive it till it breaks? Only thing is work is 84 miles one way and school is 125 miles one way, i don't want to get stranded. Thoughts?

[pwpanas]

Originally Posted by 530transam

ok, im 25 now. Since i was 8 i have wanted a red twin turbo Supra. I kind of gave up on owning one because people want too much money for them...

Compared with what? A used Honda Civic? A used Mazda Miata? An old Mustang? An old and busted 'smokey and the bandit' trans am? ...compared with a brand-new Bugatti Veyron-16.4, a used Toyota Supra Turbo is much, much cheaper. ...and upgraded, it can be even faster. Please don't say the Mkiv Supra Turbo is "too much money". Personally, I believe the market for this car has them undervalued, not overvalued.

Originally Posted by 530transam

...and i am always busy with school and work etc etc. Well recently i found one at a Toyota dealership, a red 1993 twin turbo targa with NO spoiler!!!! My dream car!!! whats even better is they are only asking $17k. They sold the car new, and maintained it all its life. It was owned by a doctor and received impeccable care. I commute so much that i started thinking wow i would just garage this car and still have to have a daily driver-probably not worth it. Then things get interesting. I find out it has 191,000 miles!!! This is great but bad. Bad because of all the questions of a 200k miles car, but great because i would never be afraid of driving it. Should i buy it? Why or why not?...

It depends on your goals. If you want something you will be able to drive and upgrade with very little other maintenance for several years, then I'd say no. However, if you're willing to take on a project car that may need some maintenance to get it into shape, then maybe yes.

Originally Posted by 530transam

...Will it be reliable with that many miles given the service history and ownership of the car?...

It depends - what is its service history, how hard was it driven, and was it ever upgraded? All of these questions play into its reliability.

Originally Posted by 530transam

...Should i just shell out the cash and buy it and have the engine rebuilt (i plan on making a 600-800hp beast anyway)?...

You must not read this forum very much. Why in the hell would you want to rebuild the engine? I'm getting soooooo tired of telling people this!!! If the engine was well maintained, and the car was never modified, the engine is probably just fine...and the mighty 2jz-gte will make 600rwhp and much more, bone-stock with no modifications or rebuilding - that's one of the things that makes the Mkiv Supra Turbo so special!!! PLEASE don't even waste one more millisecond thinking the engine needs to be rebuilt UNTIL YOU KNOW FOR SURE ITS BROKEN!!!

Originally Posted by 530transam

...Should i buy it and drive it till it breaks? Only thing is work is 84 miles one way and school is 125 miles one way, i don't want to get stranded. Thoughts?

If you're depending on this to be a reliable daily driver, why are you also thinking of upgrading it to 800hp? Unless you have a huge bankroll, that sounds like a pretty bad plan. However, if you want to keep it bone-stock and you can afford a few thousand and a few weeks to do all of the maintenance on it (even if it was perfectly maintained and baby'd, 18 year old plastic and rubber components typically start needing some attention), then you could likely make it all come together (if the car is verifiably ship-shape). Well-maintained, a '93 Mkiv Supra Turbo with 191K miles is very reliable...it truly does have Toyota/Lexus quality in the design. However, there are still a LOT of variables in the decision. Among many other things, be sure to get the Supra checked out by an INDEPENDENT mechanic that has proven expertise in dealing with the Mkiv Supra Turbo specifically. Note: Toyota mechanics don't understand this car (they're mainly good at Camrys and 4-Runners)...and anyone the seller suggests may be a biased source of information. You'll need to do some work to find an independent Supra mechanic or an independent Supra owner in the area.

[530transam]

lol they want too much money for the age and mileage etc usually. I mean i have seen many 93-98 turbs in the $50,000 range! which yea, the car may be worth it, but for the same money you can get an almost new Z06 or an NSX-t or even a used ferrari f355.

The car seems to be in perfect shape. No signs of wear anywear on the car, clean shiny paint, no dings. Leather looks its age but no cracks or even wear spots. Maintenance is one thing, having to replace major components every month and wondering if i'll make it to work or not is another.

Service history-the Toyota dealership who is selling is has maintained it since it was new, it has had every service and oil change up to date since it was new in late 92. The guy who owned it is 63 now and traded it in for a brand new car because he couldnt get in and out anymore. But he was a doctor and from what i hear kept it in perfect condition and never raced it etc etc.

No, i dont read the forum much never been here in fact. I know these blocks are iron-clad i was mainly questioning it from a reliability stand point but i think you're right on all ponts.

I'm depending on it to be a reliable daily driver for the next year to two years and i plan in that time to start upgrading things, leading up to more power. When i get my new car, a Chevy Volt, this car can stay in the garage and get some heavy mods. But you never know, i may be perfectly happy with 400hp. I just enjoy the car for the car, i dont actually NEED 800hp, its just fun to build cars you know? I think i will get a propper suspension set up, some nice rims like BBS LM's or something like that, get an engine re-map, upgrade the down pipe, inter cooler, exhaust, a few other smaller things, and still daily drive it.

Oh and another thing, the car is entirely 100% certified bone factroy stock, no mods ever whatsoever! Thats basically why i want it, it was bought new and has had one owner and he is an older doctor who kept the car up to service. Check it out; looks great!!

[pwpanas]

Originally Posted by 530transam

Service history-the Toyota dealership who is selling is has maintained it since it was new, it has had every service and oil change up to date since it was new in late 92...

Sorry, but those maintenance records are fake. The Mkiv Supra Turbo was released in 93.5...there were no Mkiv Supra Turbos sold in '92.

Originally Posted by 530transam

...I think i will get a propper suspension set up...

??? It comes with dual wishbone coilovers. What do you mean by "proper"???

Originally Posted by 530transam

...an engine re-map...

What do you mean by an "engine re-map"? The Mkiv Supra Toyota's ecu is not easily modifiable ... a piggyback board has to be added, and there are very few sources for it.

Originally Posted by 530transam

...Check it out; looks great!!

I agree it looks in great condition. If it checks out with your independent Supra expert, I'd recommend it based on those pictures. Again, you need it inspected by a mechanic familiar with the Mkiv Toyota Supra Turbo, and you need it test driven by someone that knows exactly how an Mkiv Toyota Supra Turbo should sound and perform. Oh, and of course be sure to figure out what's up with those fake maintenance records.

[530transam]

He has owned it since 92, there werent any on the road til 93 but you could order and pay for them in 92 correct? My uncle managed a toyota dealership i remember him saying you could order them in 92. Anyway, i just meant since he has owned it. And i think a car speaks for itself, im not going to swear by service records alone. I'll trust the independent supra specialist like you recommended.

by "proper" i mean that when i go to lower it or modify its suspension, i will take my time and decide on a proper set of coil overs or springs and shocks. Im not going to buy some $60 coil overs or some cheaply made Chinese springs.

By engine re-map i meant i would have it custom tuned or buy a mail order tune, but i didn't know that was hard to do. I just figured with a turbo engine its one of the best places to start, but see, im here to learn these things .


I'll start researching a Supra mechanic. And again, i don't think those records are fake, it was my mistake. But even still if a mechanic who is familiar with it is looking it over, the car will speak for itself and the service history should be obvious. Thanks for all your help so far.

[pwpanas]

Originally Posted by 530transam

He has owned it since 92, there werent any on the road til 93 but you could order and pay for them in 92 correct? My uncle managed a toyota dealership i remember him saying you could order them in 92. Anyway, i just meant since he has owned it. And i think a car speaks for itself, im not going to swear by service records alone. I'll trust the independent supra specialist like you recommended.

by "proper" i mean that when i go to lower it or modify its suspension, i will take my time and decide on a proper set of coil overs or springs and shocks. Im not going to buy some $60 coil overs or some cheaply made Chinese springs.

By engine re-map i meant i would have it custom tuned or buy a mail order tune, but i didn't know that was hard to do. I just figured with a turbo engine its one of the best places to start, but see, im here to learn these things .

I'll start researching a Supra mechanic. And again, i don't think those records are fake, it was my mistake. But even still if a mechanic who is familiar with it is looking it over, the car will speak for itself and the service history should be obvious. Thanks for all your help so far.

There weren't any on the road till MID '93 (AFTER JUNE). You could order one early '93, but NOT '92. In '92, they were still selling the MKIII. If you see maintenance records for an Mkiv Supra from '92, they're fake. Period.

Agreed you shouldn't get "cheap...springs". They'd most likely be WORSE than the oem coilovers. Again, the Mkiv Supra Turbo already comes with "proper" suspension, that's proven itself in several roadracing events including One Lap of America and Pike's Peak. The great oem suspension is one of the other really special things about this car.

Yep, a "re-tune" is really hard to do. After you've triple-checked and corrected all maintenance issues (yes, there will be some! Be diligent!), the first upgrade is to go BPU:
http://www.mkiv.com/faq/faqtt.html#bpu1
http://www.mkiv.com/techarticles/index.html#bpu

Lastly, that paint on that Supra. looks too good for a '93 with 191K miles. Even without seeing it up close and in person, I'm already almost 100% sure that it's been repainted. Be sure to check the CarFax.

[530transam]

Wow this website you provided the link to is awesome. So much really great info. I'll check the carfax, although i dont trust it much. when i bought my last Trans Am i checked the carfax and it was clean. Then this girl hit me and through DMV and insurance i found out the car had been wrecked twice before, not really sure how it was reported to both DMV and insurance, (or if it was just insurance and DMV was the one who told my dad), but i was kind of pissed. I was like wow really? What was the point in that carfax?

I'm reading and re-reading through that page now thank you so much.

[pwpanas]

Originally Posted by 530transam

Wow this website you provided the link to is awesome. So much really great info. I'll check the carfax, although i dont trust it much. when i bought my last Trans Am i checked the carfax and it was clean. Then this girl hit me and through DMV and insurance i found out the car had been wrecked twice before, not really sure how it was reported to both DMV and insurance, (or if it was just insurance and DMV was the one who told my dad), but i was kind of pissed. I was like wow really? What was the point in that carfax?

I'm reading and re-reading through that page now thank you so much.

You don't know how glad I am that I could help. The Mkiv Supra Turbo community really is a brotherhood. Good luck with this car - I hope it works out for you.