I agree that you should keep it. When you get your check put some money in to it and slowly build it back up. I wouldn't worry about making faster as to just getting it reliable then upgrading from there. Once everything is in good working order then start your add ons. You know what you have with this car, you don't know what your getting if you buy something else. Either way good luck. my .02
Is it even worth fixing?
- Thread starter miss_ali_j
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The question is... Is is worth it to you? Becasue to me, without a DD, not really. It will take loads of money, (that you will NEVER recover), loads of time, and in the end you have to be commited to the finish. If you have all of these things, and money and time is no object, then buy one that is in better condition now! Most of these cars are a rolling work in progress. IMO, I would take the $7500, sit on it until a nice Lexus GS300 came along in that price range. You need a DD, and one of these are the next best thing to a Supra, again IMO.... they have a 2J under the hood. Heck, you could even turbo charge it and have a nice little sleeper that is reliable as can be, and easy to work on when things happen. I picked up a 2001 GS300 for my son for $5500. One owner and clean as can be. They are out there! You just have to be ready to pounce when the deal comes along. Good luck...and remember, there are people like me that have MKIII's in really great shape that will eventually sell them without parting them out. Again, you have to be ready to buy when deal is presented....
Thanks for all the advice, guys! As it turns out, the 88 Supra project has failed miserably lol. The VIN number showed that my 88 was not an original turbo, just a horrible swap. It has the n/a tranny (which also needs to be rebuilt), plus the n/a rear diff, which I was told would also need to be changed to the LSD if I'm going to rebuild the motor anyways. So, my fiance is parting it out 
Since I already have an 05 Cavalier as a DD, I'm just going to wait until another 5 speed GTE pops up. I found one on here that I am hoping will still be for sale in 2 weeks when my check clears, so I hopefully will be back soon.
Since I already have an 05 Cavalier as a DD, I'm just going to wait until another 5 speed GTE pops up. I found one on here that I am hoping will still be for sale in 2 weeks when my check clears, so I hopefully will be back soon.
miss_ali_j;1595439 said:
Some people go to college to learn things, I bought a Supra. Learned a lot of useful stuff, and spent about as much as most people do before dropping out anyway. Wonder who had more fun though?
It's been said before, and I'll also toss my hat in on this one, that if you have cash set aside for rare/nice parts that you might want (or even whole cars), it's really nice to be able to pounce on them.
miss_ali_j;1595787 said:Thanks for all the advice, guys! As it turns out, the 88 Supra project has failed miserably lol. The VIN number showed that my 88 was not an original turbo, just a horrible swap. It has the n/a tranny (which also needs to be rebuilt), plus the n/a rear diff, which I was told would also need to be changed to the LSD if I'm going to rebuild the motor anyways. So, my fiance is parting it out
what's so bad about that..? My 89 was Na when I bought it, swapped in a 7MGTE, kept the W58 (NA 5 speed), and the NA LSD (wasn't an open), and I couldn't be happier..
unless you're going for over 400hp, the W58 is fine...
also how did you find out it was an NA..? The VIN will tell you right away, JT2MA70 = NA, JT2MA71 = Turbo
also, that 92 is incredible, there were only 1,153 sold in the US, that car alone is a collectors item..
miss_ali_j;1595787 said:Thanks for all the advice, guys! As it turns out, the 88 Supra project has failed miserably lol. The VIN number showed that my 88 was not an original turbo, just a horrible swap. It has the n/a tranny (which also needs to be rebuilt), plus the n/a rear diff, which I was told would also need to be changed to the LSD if I'm going to rebuild the motor anyways. So, my fiance is parting it out
I think you doing the right thing, I didn't know about the n/a chassie. I suggest you do what you planning on doing, I think thats a much better, wiser decsion. In my opinion: I think people end up sending more money trying to make a turbo from a n/a than having a turbo car to begin with. If a turbo car was "ground zero" (your starting point), And you have a n/a car, it would cost hundreds of dollars just to get it back up to "ground zero" Level. (Did I lose you?) I think if you keep comunicating to your seller that your interested, I bet you'll get that car. See you when get your car,.. Good luck,!!!!:biglaugh:
Seriously I'd consider that "92" Supra on ebay, but again that's me. Also, as you've mentioned, it has just one more day, the price will go a lot higher. I'd keep my eye on that car, and palce a bid, (if the price is comfortable).
Ali, if the sheetmetal is straight and there's no rust, pretty much nothing else matters a whole lot. People sell turbo subframes all the time from part-outs, and it gives you a chance to redo the bushings and drop in a new subframe. The W58 is a smooth as silk transmission... just don't drag launch it and it'll be fine.
As for you wiring issues, the grass is always greener on the other side. Your next chassis could be worse... so, if you're putting in a new engine, I don't think it's that big of a deal to fix the wiring at the time. Realistically, it's a project, and must be treated as such.
As for you wiring issues, the grass is always greener on the other side. Your next chassis could be worse... so, if you're putting in a new engine, I don't think it's that big of a deal to fix the wiring at the time. Realistically, it's a project, and must be treated as such.
I have a 5speed turbo you could buy... But the trip out here and the drive home might be a bit much, not to mention getting it over the border!
Really it comes down to what you want to do with the car.
I always advise folks to buy someone else's project. You'll never get your money back out of a hot rod... so why not let someone else not get their money back? Put together 12-15k, and wait for the next guy on http://gtepowered.com/ to decide he's selling the car. My 2J car is way further along the path of 'mint' than my 7M car, and it cost me less. A lot less. The difference? I built the 7M car, and I bought the 2J car from someone else already complete. I've seen 5 or 6 high end cars sell over the years, so one comes up every year or so.
If you decide to go the other route, and buy and build your own, get a digital camera, an AAA membership, and post here with detailed pictures before you do anything. (Including buying the car in the first place!) The AAA group will do a detailed inspection for you prior to purchasing the car for cheap. We can tell you how to fix pretty much anything, and what to look out for. Just for example, you should get any head checked for hardness before spending a dime on it. They tend to anneal over time, and if a used head isn't hard anymore, it's worthless.
There's nothing wrong with the NA chassis - there's been a few folks that do full turbo swaps over the years. DrJonez was one such, and he's based out of Detroit, although I don't know if he still does these or not. Actually, there's no difference between the actual chassis - only the engine, transmission, electronics, and sometimes the rear end. In many places in the US, the NA chassis means cheaper insurance, too.
But the trip out here and the drive home might be a bit much, not to mention getting it over the border!Really it comes down to what you want to do with the car.
I always advise folks to buy someone else's project. You'll never get your money back out of a hot rod... so why not let someone else not get their money back? Put together 12-15k, and wait for the next guy on http://gtepowered.com/ to decide he's selling the car. My 2J car is way further along the path of 'mint' than my 7M car, and it cost me less. A lot less. The difference? I built the 7M car, and I bought the 2J car from someone else already complete. I've seen 5 or 6 high end cars sell over the years, so one comes up every year or so.
If you decide to go the other route, and buy and build your own, get a digital camera, an AAA membership, and post here with detailed pictures before you do anything. (Including buying the car in the first place!) The AAA group will do a detailed inspection for you prior to purchasing the car for cheap. We can tell you how to fix pretty much anything, and what to look out for. Just for example, you should get any head checked for hardness before spending a dime on it. They tend to anneal over time, and if a used head isn't hard anymore, it's worthless.
There's nothing wrong with the NA chassis - there's been a few folks that do full turbo swaps over the years. DrJonez was one such, and he's based out of Detroit, although I don't know if he still does these or not. Actually, there's no difference between the actual chassis - only the engine, transmission, electronics, and sometimes the rear end. In many places in the US, the NA chassis means cheaper insurance, too.
The car I really want is the green one for sale here that's in Dayton. I have family in both Dayton and Cincinnati, so I could go buy a car and make a trip out of it at the same time. My fiance says that the set-up on that car is EXACTLY what I was going for, soooo fingers crossed that he still has it in two weeks....
In the meantime, I'm gonna hang around here, read up on everything "Supra" and then hope to be back in the game very very soon. Now that I've gotten my hands on one Supra, I'm determined to get my hands on another...it's my new obsession lol. Have a nice night everyone!!
In the meantime, I'm gonna hang around here, read up on everything "Supra" and then hope to be back in the game very very soon. Now that I've gotten my hands on one Supra, I'm determined to get my hands on another...it's my new obsession lol. Have a nice night everyone!!
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