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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I own an mk3 and id have to disagree with a lot of these faults. yes it is heavy but it handles its weight very well and with the positive negative camber thing, that not an issue with daily driving or most sporty driving for that matter. you act like the 7m makes no power, but even my na with almost no mods, and in need of a tune up feels decently powerful. the steering lock issue? what are you on about? it has too little steering lock for daily use? no it doesn’t. and you show that by having a drifting car? stupid. oh no it comes in burgundy! just get it in blue, grey or beige, youre not stuck with that color. the power steering does kinda suck, there is very little to no steering feel, so ill give you that one.
Holy shit. So many people still like these useless pickups with no box.
I agree only reason people pretend they are awesome is because that’s the only supra they can afford so they try to make other people think they are awsome with a few after market parts, just save money and get the good supra, or at least don’t waste the money on your trash car. Every body who gets offended by this article needs to stop and think, is their another supra(or any other car)you would rather have over your mk3 then shut up
This seems really bias, there are tons of cars that are like this, but with modification they can be on par with some of the rally/motorsports cars of it’s time.
I had a neighbor who had one of these, full stripped/ caged, welded steering knuckles, lowered, and used lightweight accessories and wheels complete with a mk4 2jz swap. Regardless if you like the car or not, it was a pretty time intensive build.
I think that’s why people like these, you need to create so many work arounds to run things such as wider wheels and more steering angles, that before long, you’ve invested a lot of time and money into something that it just, you know, grew on you. No one likes to have their car put down, especially in a tuner/motorsports scene, and I believe that’s why people get more defensive.
Ty, well said… right on point.
Really don’t have much to add to what you said…
Let’s go to the Corvette, best bang for the buck and, has compromises for cost considerations… especially when it comes to consumers laying out the money to purchase. Sure they could make it tick tight with no work having to improve it but, at what cost?
Probably the closest to what the original poster is making his point on would be the Porsche GT3! But now you’re well into three figures!
Having owned, raced and still own an 89 MKIII w/54,000 original miles, I love the car. All original, just having done over a 5,000 mile trip to FL from WY, & back. What a joy/comfort to cruise that long of a distance in. The most comfortable GT Cruiser I have ever owned, and I have owned a BUNCH!
The original poster accomplished what he set out to do, congratulations, and that was to create a fire storm.
Also, he is wrong on some of his points, I’ll just address the camber change he says happens. Ehhhhhh, wrong! That’s why they went to the double wishbone set-up! When racing, I just change my camber to -3 degrees and that’s all that’s needed to be done. When the suspension’s compressed, while cornering, there’s very little change, IF ANY. I have yet to have someone hang out the window to verify with measurements while racing to prove the point but, I can speak with experience here. That’s verifiable with just having to look at your wear pattern on your tires after 30 minutes of hot lapping a 2.3 mile road course.
Not just being able to say I’ve worked on them, which I have since my first 87 Turbo Supra, but also with putting many miles on the MKIII’s I’ve owned and raced.
Poster, please post what you drive and, don’t B.S. anybody with your Porsche 918 Spyder with the Weissach Package!!!
We’ll take it from there Whiz-Bang…
With sincerity,
Aldo “Skip” Vassoler