Hey all, I'm new to the Supra scene so please forgive any stupidity. I'm going to check out a 87 supra turbo tomorrow and I was wondering what I should be looking for, as far as common problems. I know blown head gaskets are a major problem with this car, so how would I know if the head gasket was good or not? Also, I was wondering if these cars have stock boost gauges in them. If so, how accurate are these gauges? The turbo should produde 5-7.5 pounds of pressure, correct? Besides checking for shaft play in the compressor wheel of the turbo, how can I reassure this turbo is healthy? What is the easiest way to check for turbo health? Are there any other common problems I should be looking for? Please help me choose the right supra!!

Regards,
Tanner

well as far as the head gasket goes you could do a block check (little bottle filled with fluid, bung it in the radiator with car warm, if fluid changes colour you have exhaust gasses present which = bhg)
another really good thing to do would be a compression check on it... usually about the 150-180 mark depending on wear bla bla bla... make sure they're basically even... toyota manual suggests any more than 14psi difference between any cylinders requires a rebuild and anything lower than 128 requires a rebuild... but in my opinion 150 mark is a good one to shoot for

turbo... well all you can really do is check for shaft play and once the car is warmed up you could give it a rev then see if smoke comes out on deceleration.. this is generally when they blow smoke

boost... yep 5sp usually bout 6.8psi, auto bout 5.8-6.0ish

take it for a run see how it goes
they do have a stock boost gauge... generally accurate but slow to react from memory on analogue

also check the water bottle, are there any old water stains down it... usually a sign of previous overheating etc

also check for rust in the spare wheel well... they like to leak in the tailight areas

that's all i can think of contributing at 2am hehe

good luck on the supra ;)

is it standard or auto?? either one, i'd listen also listen for worn out u-joints, look undercar for frame damage/repair and all electrical options. how many miles does it have on it?