Actually, let's be honest here, they are most likely the worst Toyota ever built.
These are my top 10 reasons for hating the mk3 supra. How do I know them so well? I worked on them for nearly 2 years, I drove both RHD and LHD mk3's with all sorts of different engines, stock and modified. I've spent a lot of time wrenching on them, and man do they suck badly. Let's begin:
10. Racing History: Let's be honest, there's really nothing special here, Bjorn Waldergard won one event with the MK3 supra in a Beijing Rally, and a few British fellows ran it in BTCC for a while. No real pedigree here.
9. Steering Angle: This is straight up a joke, it can't be real, no way it's even considered safe or functional to have so little steering lock for daily use. You think I'm kidding, but that's full lock below.
8. Weight: This really should be the #1 reason why there's no point in driving an mk3 Supra for any sort of 'sporting' purposes. What's that? you've never known what the weight of a mk3 supra was? Pictured below is a vehicle that weighs nearly identical, and actually produces more power.
(Note: 3800lbs, that's right, the CK short bed, short cab, not only weighed 3800lbs, but it actually produced 230hp and 300ft/lb of torque. Although the 1JZ variant is comparable)
7. Aftermarket Styling: Yes it's a slick looking exterior, simply put, it's the only selling point of the car. However, the aftermarket stuff? yeah, look below...
6.Targa Top: So you have an oval, pretty strong shape, egg's are 3d ovals and resist deformation pretty well. Then you cut a huge chunk out of it. Now you've got an easily crushable "C" shape. Thus is the Targa roof. How bad is it for chassis flex? Toyota actually had high grade, long threaded allen bolts to hold it square when in. When out, people started putting in targa supports to help reduce the horrible flex.
5. Steering Stablizer: The whole Geometry of the MK3 Supra suspension is fucked, and to help reduce bump steer, and ultimately any sort of driver feedback that's left after the hefty power steering, was a shock, bolted to the steering rack to help reduce...something. Road feel mostly, or resist the horrible bumper steer associated with #4. This Stablizer, much like the Cressidas (Although they had different front suspensions and shared the rear) resists and sometimes completely removes the affects of caster during cornering. It reduces the speed of turn by adding a dramatic amount of resistance.
4.Suspension Dynamics: These are just plain FUCKED. For some reason, Toyota decided that going from a single lower control arm McPherson strut setup, that had proven extremely well in the Corolla's, Celica's, and Celica Supras of the past, had to go, and in place a needlessly complex, and albeit poorly designed multi-link/double wishbone setup in it's place. You want to know how bad it is? Camber actually becomes positive on compression and negative on extension. Seriously look vvv.
3. Cock Riders: This isn't about the owners. The amount of people floating around the internet praising the mk3, simply because of it's loose relation to that of an mk4 Supra most of them having never owned a Supra in their lives. Although this makes me curious of the dynamic of buying and polishing a turd.
2. 7M/1G: Pretty weak sauce. So you buy a 3800lb driveway ornament and want to go fast. In North America, your faced with the 7M, and Japan, luckily enough got the 1jz, however, they too got the 7M and even worse, the 1G. Every other M series engine was decent, the 7M screwed that right up. It's head design is the fault. People will tell you it was a bad factory gasket, or under torqued bolts. However, even with those factors coverd, the real core of the issue was a bad head design. Getting past the common, and often debilitating issue of 7m's blowing gaskets (try pushing that thing!) The power of a 7m is a joke. Remember that Toyota publishes not the wheel horse power, but the crank. By the time that inline 6 delivers it's 200hp N/a to the rear, it's about 160hp, got a turbo? Roughly 190hp. Brutal for that amount of weight, but look out! There's even a worse motor: the 1GGTE. Although not plagued with head gasket failures and people thinking they can build the ultimate 7m, only to fail like the next guy, the 1ggte had it's own issues, spinning bearings, and well, being 2 liters! Such a tiny inline 6, and it needed twin turbo's just to make the 210hp. Unless your supra screwed and end up with an n/a 1GGE at 150hp.
And the Number 1 reason MK3 supra's are garbage! *Drum Roll*
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1. Burgandy:
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Yeah mostly true, think he may be angry at them right now tho, maybe a rusty exhaust bolt has him upset
Jeez, why don’t you get over yourself; not everything is about the damn MKIV! Don’t get me wrong I like the MKIV, but I also like the MKIII; and no it has absolutely NOTHING to do with the fact that they share a name, buying these cars as a watered down version of a “real” Supra; because you can’t afford a MKIV is just stupid! I personally like them because despite what the op thinks; these cars are grossly underated! Where as the MKIV is the opposite; and heck to be honest, people buy MKIV’s mainly to serve as a status symbol; which is just pathetic, look no matter how hard you try, someone is always going to have a better car than you; get over it! Get a car because you like it, not because everyone else does! Both cars were very good cars for their time; and any older car is going to have it’s fair share of problems, if you don’t want to deal with them; then don’t! This little write up is stupid and pointless; if you know what you’re getting into, don’t bitch about how shitty something is because you couldn’t handle the problems; it makes you look bad, NOT the car.
Oh btw OP, the worst Toyota ever made is a Tercel, or Echo?? Lol, anyway; yeah there are much worse Toyota’s out there, just visit a junkyard and see! And if you think any those two are cool, well.. That goes back to that statement about “the dynamic of polishing a TURD!!” Oh boy, anyway that’s my 0.02.
I own a Supra Mk3. Prefer it over a mkiv… Simply because mine isn’t generic. It’s my Japanese corvette.
Its all about preference. Mine is upgraded with a lot more ponies, as a stock GT (it’s not a sports car) it was a very nice driver, far superior to the newer cars I have driven. After tossing on the basic performance upgrades the car is fast enough for street while still being an excellent driver.
Have never had anyone comment negatively about it… But sure have had a lots of people wish they owned this antique.
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I want an MK3 because race car lol JK no I like it in fact I’m thinking about buying one because I like all of the Supras and one day ill get an MK4 as well so I can have both you see you guys are probably a bunch of rednecks that only think certain JDM cars are gay unless you get “mk4’s”. Not true sometimes people drive sleepers or little 4 banger rockets modified or perhaps mildly modified dude i had an “1989 240sx with a ka24e-t kit it was a fucking single cam turbo with webbers 296hp rwd, trust me she would have loved to say hi to certain Supras if they were bigger and stronger than by all means fuck me up as much as you want but am i going to cry about it um no lol what is this the Fast And The Furious haha.” but you know people like you don’t have what i call experience because every man has to be bigger and better what ever go ahead no one cares and people like me will just respect JDM because it is what it is.