i hope this isn't a waste of time or anything... let's find out!!

91blackeye

The Unrequited Song
Jan 18, 2009
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so, i am selling my current car, which is a 73 celica. found a nother supra. its a 91, pearl white, 5 spd turbo... but, i am assuming the guy did it as a conversion as in his ad he mentions it has a new engine, and now it needs a new ecu.. i am sorry i dont tell you all more info, but this is all i know.. i am calling him back tonight around 5:30 to learn more, but the purpose of me posting this is, which type of ecu do i need? if you can even tell by my insane lack of info. grey plug, i have seen some yellow? any ideas?
 

ForcedTorque

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I would question how he knows it needs an ECU, and then post the answer here. If you read the descriptions of all of the engine codes on cygnus, you will see that almost all of them suggest ECU as a possible source of the problem. It may or may not need an ECU. The answer he provides might provide insight to someone in here to help you save a little money.
 

91blackeye

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Jan 18, 2009
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alright, thanks man. i will post it up here as soon as i call the guy when he is off work. he did say however, that it doesnt drive... so i dunno... i am really thinking he did n/a-turbo swap.. but it has been all done, the engine, the r154, the rear end, spoiler, everything, it looks like a legit turbo...it's just wierd that he drove it home when he bought it, and now it needs an ecu you know? but ecu's aren't too expensive anyway..
 

Crazy_Tycoon

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Jan 29, 2009
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91blackeye;1305757 said:
alright, thanks man. i will post it up here as soon as i call the guy when he is off work. he did say however, that it doesnt drive... so i dunno... i am really thinking he did n/a-turbo swap.. but it has been all done, the engine, the r154, the rear end, spoiler, everything, it looks like a legit turbo...it's just wierd that he drove it home when he bought it, and now it needs an ecu you know? but ecu's aren't too expensive anyway..

I'll tell you from experience that taking over someone else's project car is a bit of a PIA....your gonna find out all the corners they cut and its gonna piss you off......but if you can get a sweet deal and have the time to go through all the problems it will feel really good the first time you smoke the tires out at 10:30pm and wake up all the neighbors cause you just had to see if you really fixed it :evil2:
 

ForcedTorque

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I'm just sayin that you shouldn't fall for major problems disguised as a bad ECU. You are right, an ECU can usually be found for $50 (+/-). It could be that he is trying to run a N/A AFM, or something along those lines.
 

91blackeye

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Jan 18, 2009
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alright guys, i just got off the phone with him and from what i gather, he did a 5spd swap, and has the a/t ecu still in there.. so he also said that he has had several people tell him it was the ecu...

so... he is really firm on the price, said 1400 was the lowest he would go, any input guys?

he also said, he bought it as a 5 spd, and when he bought it from the previous owner, they push started it, the guy drove it home, and there it has been sitting.

they by passed the ecu?? and it started fine, idles fine, and everything...

will anyone here please help me make some damn sense out of this nonsense?
 
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shaeff

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91blackeye;1305817 said:
alright guys, i just got off the phone with him and from what i gather, he did a 5spd swap, and has the a/t ecu still in there.. so he also said that he has had several people tell him it was the ecu...

so... he is really firm on the price, said 1400 was the lowest he would go, any input guys?

A manual car will run perfectly on an automatic ECU. I wouldn't trust what this guy says.
 

ForcedTorque

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Shaeff is correct........as usual. $1400 is not a bad price at all for a running 5-speed 91 in most conditions. The seller could genuinely be stupid, and not have a clue. I once lived in a world where everybody was not always trying to screw somebody. But, sadly, in this world, we must guard ourselves at all times. He very well could be trying to pawn off a problem.

Did he explain how the car acts that makes him believe what the people are telling him?
 

91blackeye

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no, and i think he just may not be so stupid, he told me that if the car was running, obviously, he would be selling it for like 3k.

he has an ad on craigslist in the los angeles, ca area...
maybe someone check it out?? i just miss the shite out of my older supra's and my 73 celica is a piece os crap... i need back in the super supra game naaaaoooo!!! lol.

the thing i dont get, is that he told me he bypassed the ecu? i am not even sure of that is possible... but he said that he and a mechanic bypassed the ecu and it started fine, idled fine...i asked him if he tried to push start it or anything since he got it to his house, and he said no.

the car is really clean, i want it, but i dont want a giant pain in the arse, not at this point in my life... i am just now getting all my ducks lined up in the rest of my life, i dont need a car crapping out on me the second i get it, you know? i am not stupid, i know from experience these cars are high maintenance, im fine with that.
also, the car still needs to be smogged...


i just want a running turbo 5spd supra. that's all...
 
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92TealSupra

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Sep 2, 2008
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bypassed the Ecu? Ha, Good luck having a running car, seems like this guy knows there is a major issue at hand.

If the car is mint, I would personally do it, but expect the worst. I mean engine rebuild, wiring issues.

Like I said 1400.00 great price for a shell with a 5-speed in it already. I bought a '88 with small amounts of upgrades for 500.00, I am now parting it out because that was the plan anyhow. It didn't run I spent 1 hour got it to run and rod knock O.O!

Good luck.
 

818Supra

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Feb 12, 2008
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I was just looking at the ad posted on craigslist, and the body looks to be in great shape, but he isn't providing enough pictures. And the picture of the engine look kinda sketchy. If you look where the 3000 pipe should be, there is nothing! Those rims are ugly, imo.