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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Damn. Fuck the haters. Mk3 4 lyfe nukkas
So much retard up in this bitch.
This is a general reply to all those who have posted comments.
I know these cars VERY well. Having done major work on almost all models except a GA70. The issue is, I have deep experience with plenty of other cars as well, not just the Mk3 supra. I also spend a majority of my days doing research, driving or building cars. Is it an incorrect observation that the majority of A70 owners, modify and drive these cars as a pass time or hobby?
Your very much welcome to like your MK3 Supra, it’s your car. The responses posted below have no evidence, proof or even convincing concept to challenge what I originally posted. Please take the time to address the points provided in the post with something of value, even if it is an opinion with a thick, strong feel.
The fact of the matter is, the MK3 is a large boat of a ‘touring’ car that, even in Touring racing series did poorly, and really provides little in the way of strong performance for the price. I do not disagree that it cannot be a fun car to drive, however, there is much more fun cars to drive.
I will agree on a few things with you who continue to read this post.
#1: Yes, there are a few people in the world who have provided A70’s with one or combinations of the follow: Good looks, fast acceleration, reliability, good handling. However, it is a strong minority, and very few of even this minority really provide a strong combination of all those qualities.
#2: It is a pretty car. I will agree, the shape, the appearance in stock trim is very sleek silhouette of a vehicle.
The problem is that even the best of builders in the world struggle to make the 7m reliable power, struggle to shed weight, struggle to keep the car through the corners. The following for the MK3 Supra is strictly at best, an affair of the eyes and wallet, with few people chasing the A70 for it’s performance potential in actual racing use. Rolling start street ‘racing’ is not racing at all. Please do not read this as a hate for Supras, I am a great fan of the A40, A60, and A80 Chassis’s and their many combinations and configurations around the world. I’m sorry to say, but the Cock Roach is a better car than the A70.
I offer this as an idea: If you were to build a vehicle for road racing, rally, drag racing, drifting, auto cross, or any other form of motorsport. Would you truly chose the A70 without any sort of doubt at all? Please do not answer this question with a yes or no, but a reason, a validity. “yes, here’s why”. Think carefully and clearly, if your planning on stripping the entire shell down to nothing, swapping a completely different engine and drive train into it and hacking it to nearly nothing, is it really an A70 anymore?
I am very open to opposing opinions, I am innocent until proven guilty, a well constructed argument is correct until proven wrong. Please take some time to read the post fully, I noticed some of you skipped sections, as your replies address issues already discussed, as well as miss the point entirely. I’m very much willing to admit I am wrong if someone actually manages to prove it.
He’s right in many ways.
I’m a certified mechanic, i’ve owned my supra for 4 years now and have done all the restoration and upgrading stuff myself.
It’s turned into a nice car now and cost me over 22k so far to get it where it is.
I’ve owned 12 cars myself so far and i must say this one in stock for would be ranked as the least reliable rust bucked i’ve had.
There is bad design all over the place on the car and even compared to other cars of it’s age it ranks down there.
Still, i love it somehow as it was an icon when i was a kid. More expensive than a porsche and high in taxes, which is why nobody bought it :-)
“You obviously dont know shit,are a terrible mechanic, and like to take it in the rear.”
Yeah, that comment is helping your case.
Jeff