View Single Post
Old 04-06-2009, 01:38 AM   #2
mirage83
12psi boost
 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Georgia
Posts: 359
mirage83 is on a distinguished road
Default

First and foremost, unless you really luck out and buy one that's been really well taken care of be prepared to spend money on it above and well beyond what you paid for it.

BHG's (blown head gaskets) are probably what 7M's are most notorious for. Put it this way, people who've been around Supra's a while say there's two kinds of 7M's... those which have had a bhg, and those which are going to have a bhg. With machining and such, you'll be looking about $600 to replace a head gasket with an oem or equivalent and a set of ARP headbolts or head studs. The ARP's are HIGHLY recommended.

The CT26 is a good turbo, but they definately have a limited lifetime, more so if they've really been beaten up on. Check for both radial and axial play in the shaft of any Supra turbo you consider buying. Chances are that unless it's a recent rebuilt/upgrade it'll have one or both problems. There are some good places to rebuild/upgrade it if it needs it.

The stock exhaust on the MkIII is pretty restrictive. If you want your Supra to breathe properly plan on going with a 3" turbo-back system, to include a divorced or recirculated downpipe. The difference between that setup and a stock exhaust is amazing.

Check for rust: rear wheel wells; in the spare tire well; around the edges of the doors; around the mountings for the radio antenna, hatch wiper arm, spoiler, tail lights, and hatch glass trim. These places are all susceptible to leaks and water accumulation and can rust out pretty badly.

MkIII's commonly have cooling issues. Check and/or be prepared to get a new radiator and fan clutch, making sure that whoever it is sells you the clutch for a turbo model. Having the splash guard for the engine is a good thing also, as it will help with air-flow through the radiator and engine bay.

As I think of other things I'll post them for you.
mirage83 is offline   Reply With Quote