Several problems with 1986.5 Mk3

[trd_brad]

did you check the transmission fluid level?(not trying to be a smart a$$, its usually the last place people look for tranny issues)

[essial]

Transmission fluid looks good

Here's some shots to show what I'm working with (note: That run down trailer is on my neighbor's property, he used it to store boxes until a tree finally fell right into it!):




I did notice something a bit odd under the hood. A device that seems to have some sort of cotton plug, but also seems to be designed to fit a hose of some sort:

Edit: Apparently this is the "VTV" which is an emissions thing dealing with opening the throttle valve slightly more at idle causing air-fuel mixture to burn completely (I'm assuming this has to do with the fact that toyota supras are supposed to run a tad 'rich')

And lastly, I'm assuming this is the acuator:

What is it supposed to do when it 'activates'?

Sorry for the newbie questions, I'm just now getting into cars (I'm a software engineer by trade). And apparently I have the Supra/Celica Haynes manual, I'll look for the proper supra repair manual online (ebay or whatever) in a few weeks.

Thanks so much for the info thus far!

[trd_brad]

bad tranny then? maybe when cre is on he can elaborate more for you.

but definatly take a good look at your fan belts as far as the squeeling goes. they do that when thier loose/ garbage

[cre]

The second to last item (the thing with the cotton) is the restrictor for the "dashpot"; Air enters freely from the open end and exits slowly from the side with the hose. The rubber thing on the end with the nylon filter medium is a... wait for it... filter.

The dashpot slows the rate at which the throttle body closes at any RPM below 2200RPM. It is on most cars of this vintage; It's not Supra specific and has nothing to do with the Supra's running rich as the Supra doesn't run rich except during open-loop operation (When it's warming up from a cold start or at >70% throttle)... Also, when decelerating the ECU stops injecting fuel until the RPM are below ~1200RPM.

The last item is the cruise control actuator; Should be obvious when that's active. It works by pulling on that second throttle cable which runs to the linkage assembly.