Mountain build!

[Seeker]

So here I am. New to Toyota and a 87 N/A with a W58 in hand. Ive already done one mild street build on an Eclipse GSX before, so I'm hoping that some of those lessons carry over to this car.

I got the car in April once I got to my new unit for 600 bucks with new struts to be installed. The car had a tore up clutch and a knock form inside the bellhousing being caused by the clutch ( I presumed). Well I got the clutch out and installed a Fidenza aluminium flywheel and an Exedy stage 2 clutch. The transmission has yet to be installed due to my crazy schedule and some parts thieves. So my new stuff is on the way....again.

For me to be able to work on this car, I can ONLY do work on it on Saturday from 1100 till 1900 which in all honesty isn't that much time, especially when I'm still learning the ins and outs of this car. While RWD is easier to work on then AWD, its still not my normal operational area. So with that said, please be patient with this build, because odds are itll be a while as long as I need a lift.

My end goal for this car is to stay N/A, reach about 250-270hp and 230-245tq. Whats really going to be important to me is response and handling since I want this to be a touge style car. My last car was more of a street build and that scene bored me because I raced dirt bikes for most of my life and all of there racing was in a straight line....and illegal. It will definitely have a standalone ECU, probably MS3, lightened, widened, new wheels and some street slicks. ( I can make this possible as I work where I sleep and don't need a car for day to day living.) Now before you go and shake your head saying oh god another ricer, butcher, moronic kid wanting to be an F1 driver, just know that Ill be doing it all the right way, getting help from professional shops when needed and maintaining as much original stuff as possible. I want the car to be for me, but to be looked at by the community as a job well done, not a cringe moment.

Now that you have the main story behind this build so far, I'll fill in the details

Got the car in April from a guy who drove it like an asshole and was PCS. He wanted 1500, so I gave him 600 for the car, the detachable steering wheel, 18x9.5in XXR 500s, an upgraded muffler, and brand new OEM struts (that I wont be using). The car has some body damage on the left side front fender, some paint issues on the back left hand side quarter panel, and a bad clutch; I think I still got the better end of this deal to be honest. I ordered the parts the same weekend I got the car and they came in about a week later. I installed them and couldn't install the tranny due to time constraint and forgot to get new hardware (the old bolts where chewed to hell). I went to Toyota and bought ALL the hardware ill need to get the job done 100% for the following weekend.
Following weekend rolls around and I get it back on a lift and start to install the tranny and I snapped the left engine plate stiffener somehow. I guess this will be how this whole build goes; I get 1 step forward and 2 steps back; but thats okay, as I don't mind waiting to do it 100%. I take it off the lift and back to the parking area.
I leave all my parts in my car which is in a secure area, behind a fence, on a military base. I figure nobody will mess with my stuff because of those reasons. Well, I was wrong. Someone broke into my car and took my shifter assembly, hardware, old clutch parts, my Lucas oils and lubricants ( all my synthetic stuff gone!!! :: angry :: ) and some misc shit laying around as well, oh and my registration. Really. Who the hell steals registration to a car they don't own! But, thanks to those Soldiers, Sailers, Marines, or Airmen who took my shit because you've given me the initiative and drive to build a real car and not just a rush hour neck snapper.
After this I ordered all new hardware again, Short shifter from SupraSport and a one piece driveshaft from them as well. Thats all in the mail and will be here shortly! Ill be keeping you updated on this.

I hear you like the photos :naughty: Oh, also the dude chilling in my car in a majority of my photos is a buddy of mine I taught how to drive manual. He left and will not be in any more photos though.

 

[ask92]

If the transmission support snapped like that then most likely the transmission was not fully mated to the engine properly and was not lined up putting stress on that mount as you tightened it. Seems like an interesting idea for the car, however I will say right off the bat the MKIII is not the best starting point for an Auto-X type car. Even after spending thousands and thousands of dollars and cutting this and stiffening that a MKIII still will not be nimble as even a stock Miata or even a 240sx. These cars were built as Grand Touring cars, IE they are fat but comfortable.

 

[supraguy@aol]

A good looking car.
Ask92 makes a good point about the heft of these cars.
If I might make a suggestion: perhaps drop the 7M, and go with a 1UZFE.
Now I'm a diehard 7M guy, but for you power goals and planned car mission, I really think a 1UZ would make a lot of sense:
You get extra down-low torque to get out of corners, you can already expect 300+hp from a stock motor, and they're a dime a dozen.

Just something to consider.

 

[Seeker]

If the transmission support snapped like that then most likely the transmission was not fully mated to the engine properly and was not lined up putting stress on that mount as you tightened it. Seems like an interesting idea for the car, however I will say right off the bat the MKIII is not the best starting point for an Auto-X type car. Even after spending thousands and thousands of dollars and cutting this and stiffening that a MKIII still will not be nimble as even a stock Miata or even a 240sx. These cars were built as Grand Touring cars, IE they are fat but comfortable.

Yea I know these cars are a bit of a bear to move, and not nessicarily the best choice for this style of build. I'm doing it because I've always enjoyed the MKIII body style. I know it wont be a record setter by any means, but I think itll be a fun build and I'm hoping people enjoy the end result as much as I will.

A good looking car.
Ask92 makes a good point about the heft of these cars.
If I might make a suggestion: perhaps drop the 7M, and go with a 1UZFE.
Now I'm a diehard 7M guy, but for you power goals and planned car mission, I really think a 1UZ would make a lot of sense:
You get extra down-low torque to get out of corners, you can already expect 300+hp from a stock motor, and they're a dime a dozen.

Maybe in the future I will, but for now I would really like to make a little bit of a showcase out of the assigned motor and transmission. If I do a swap though it'll probably be a 1jz since it was an offered motor and I would like the keep the lineage of the car somewhat clean. After this car is all said and done and I've had my fun with it, I might do another supra with a 1uz :icon_razz

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Progress: SupraSport emailed me and said that my parts should be here in about a week or two! Hopefully life stays calm so I can install them as soon as they hit my barrack door.

 

[Atlas]

Ehh, these cars are not so bad on the autox course. I originally built my N/A to do some light competition in STX. Good luck with your build, looks like you're definitely gonna have fun with it!

 

[Seeker]

Well, now that work has calmed down for the past week, I was able to finish up the supra stuff finally. Only took like 6 months to actually do some serious basic stuff. Thats the glory of only getting 1 or 2 days a month to be able to work on the car, and rarely things go smoothly.

So now I have the car all back together with a Fidenza aluminum flywheel, stage 2 Exedy clutch, Exedy throwout bearing, Suprasport short shifter, One piece driveshaft, with Lucas oils all around. I also did other general maitnece stuff as well like new fasteners and transmission mount. After the theft of my stuff, I'm not really rushing to get it done since I'm putting it in a shed back home where people cant mess with it anymore.

After I got it all put back together, my buddy and I took it for a light spin. Not beating on it or anything, but just cruising. About 15min into this cruise i start hearing a knocking sound and I immediatly take it back to base. I pop the hood and grab a stethoscope and try to locate the sound of the knock. To my bewildermint, it seems to be comming from cylinder number 6 in the block, not the head. Seems like I know have a bent rod. Ill do further diagnosis to see if its a bearing or if its a rod. All that I know is that its loud and doesnt not sound good. Well I guess this is my initiative to do a rebuild. Thank goodness this car is only a toy and not ever going to be a DD!

I'm an optimist, so I see this as more then an oppertunity to build the engine, but as a time to get to know the vehicle better, clean the engine bay (maybe paint it), delete some things to make it look cleaner (I'll have to research this more), clean the belly of the car, maybe do suspension stuff since I wont have the engine in the way, paint the engine and transmission, build the engine for whatever I desire or just get a turbo block and go NA-T, and keep my busy in the barracks hahaha! I refuse to think of it as a bad situation since it only gives me something to do in my free time. I hope my sergeants don't mind a short block in my room.

The shitty thing about this situation is, is that I am going to my next duty assignment this upcomming weekend and I was hoping to drive the car. Now it looks like I'll be towing it. Good thing tow dollys are only like 120 bucks from U-haul and I get reimbursed for all travel expenditures getting to my next duty assignment.

I'll be trying to keep all of you more up to date on what happens with the car I promise! Let me know what you guys think I should do with the car once the engine is pulled. I'll be happy to hear the ideas!

 

[Seeker]

So today I got a new battery since mine was totally garbage. I also got it into the shop to have them do a diagnosis of what they think the knock is. I suspect a bearing as the previous owner never retorqued the head gasket and never had it replaced while in his possession. Probably had a head gasket leak allowing the coolant into the oil and in turn frying my bearings. Its cool though as it gives me the incentive to get my rebuild done. All I need this shop to do is sign a paper saying is inoperable so the Army will pay me to tow the vehicle. Since the Army pays by the weight of whats moved and this car is 3400 pounds, I'll make money this way. My buddy already said I can borrow his truck and U-haul has dollys. Thank goodness the car isnt lowered for that!

I'm taking 10 days of leave. I hope to get the Supra to my next duty station, get the motor and tranny pulled, deconstruct the engine to find the culprit to this problem, send the block and head to a machine shop for a good go over and cleaning along with shaving the crankshaft. While that is happening I will be ordering new internals (Im going Eagle rods and 9:1 Wiseco pistons), new oil pump, new water pump, full gasket kit with metal headgasket, and ARP fasteners. Not taking any chances with this build. I figure if I pony up now and do it 100% the right way that the car will last me forever. While the block and head are away, Ill be cleaning the engine bay, possibly deleting things, and clean the belly pan. I figure that if I do it 100% the right way now that the Supra will run beautifully for a long long time. So now is the time where I pony up and get the show rolling.

Im dedicated to going MegaSquirt 3X and further down the road, once everything else is going smoothly, doing a NA-T conversion. The MS3X will be coming soon (probably at the same time I finish up my suspension work and brake work), and then the body work, followed finally by the turbo. This is what I want to get done to the vehicle as it is now.

I forgot to get pictures of the car when I dropped it off! Ill get some when I pick it up Friday and try to get those posted.