new guy with a quick question

[keaser06]

hey guys i hope im not bothering anyone cuz im looking to get a supra that im going to look at this weekend.. i would love to be able to have an idea of what to look for to fix this car so i can get it.. seeing as how it doesnt run right now and i really need it to run.. so heres the thread for the guy selling me the car.. from what he says it starts but wont idle or run right.. i think its because of the few vacuum lines and the plug thats unplugged in the engine bay pic down in the bottom left..

http://www.tamparacing.com/forums/cars-sale-wanted/395318-fs-ft-87-turbo-toyota-supra-5pd.html

any help or just ideas of what to look for would be greatly appreciated.. i want a supra bad and to get a 5spd turbo mk3 would be just amazing.. thanks again guys sorry for being a noob

 

[starscream5000]

Judging by your age only (flame suit on) you probably don't have a very high income job, BE WARNED: this car is a money pit and will take you for everything that you have ESPECIALLY one that's already non-running from the start .

 

[Piratetip]

That one has seen better days. Have $$ sure, otherwise no.

 

[keaser06]

yeah i dont have a very high income job but i am married my wife and i make more than enough money together to pay bills and have plenty of money on the side for the car.. and i didnt take offense to your post at all i do understand that most 19 year old kids cant find jobs making money.. just dont have the experience.. but as far as the car goes im trading my 93 240sx for it.. this car is worse off for a money pit than a supra would be as far as i think but thats why im asking you these questions because i dont have experience with these cars yet i have just always been in love with/wanted one.. and nows my chance lol.. but i do want something faster than my 240 that i can leave basically stock and hope to enjoy driving it.. so back to the question as to what may be wrong with it.. what do you all think? and if you really think i should just not bother then when i go look at it ill decide.. but like i said i have no experience with these cars.. i do on the other hand have lots of mechanical experience.. i do all the work on mine and my wifes vehicles myself.. and i do have experience with toyotas as i owned an 89 pickup with the 22re which i managed to blow and replace the motor in my moms garage with nothing but hand tools and an engine hoist.. this car does need to run but i work across the street from my house so i dont need it that bad as i can drive my wifes car wherever i need to go untill it runs.. i just wa hoping to find out some common things to look for on the car so i dont go look at it and think its ok then get home and have headgasket and tranny and other high cost problems like this.. (i know the headgasket is prone to go on the 7m motors)

 

[hellraiser456]

supras aren't that much of a "money pit". they just aren't cars you should take shortcuts on...which in almost all cases is where you will run into trouble and thus it starts to get pricey.

my supra has been excellent to me and i bought it not running....mind you all it needed was a starter. i will however say that this is a good car to be a backyard mechanic. that will save you some money let alone it will hopefully insure that the job will get done right as these cars need a somewhat special care.

don't let these guys scare you....if you just plan to leave it stock and keep it running it will be a great car for you. that is what i want to do with my car and it regular maintenance and common sense it will be good....i have owned for more expensive cars to run (DSM's come to mind) then this....sure its not a lowest but far from the highest.


that said...the link won't open for me. so your particular car i can't speak on. i would be very interested as to know exactly why it isn't running. 7m's were terrible for blowing head gaskets unless slightly modified so it won't do so. due to this problem which would usually quickly lead to other problems such as rod knock...it deemed the 7m unreliable. which in my opinion is very untrue. it is a very good motor aside from that.

be smart about the purchase and do not rush into it as alot of people try to dump off these cars with bad head gaskets (or the commonly abbreviated BHG) and play dumb and say the thing won't run. as said for your for mentioned analysis and you are able to here the car run. that is a good start. many things could cause it to die out though like that however none of them are what i would consider a serious problem.

that is just my 2 cents.

 

[keaser06]

thanks a lot man.. thats the kind of answer i was looking for.. i am very mechanically inclined and being a backyard mechanic i would love something to work on but not something thats unreliable.. ill try to post the pics here.. i am however going to post what the guy said word for word

I'm putting my 1987 Turbo Toyota Supra up for sale. Has 122,914 on body not sure on the engine cause it was swapped by the previous owned. Interior is like a 9 out of 10. I bought it about 3 months ago planning to fix it up but just don't have the time or money to fix it. When I bought it, it didn't even run. Now it starts but the idle is all crazy. I have replaced the injectors(440cc stock), hood shocks, tps, wiring harness, afm, and vacuum lines. Still won't work. It has an hks downpipe, hks ssqv knock-off bov, spearco intercooler(cost $600 new, good for 700hp), momo shift knob, rps clutch, ngk wires and spark plugs, speedhut indiglo gauges(need to be hooked up). Its a targa top too. Needs the engine worked on, new paint, has dent in driver side quarter panel, someone unhooked the ac system(just needs the pipes and needs to be hooked up to work) and also needs windshield replaced(cost about $200). Looking for $2500 obo trying to get my money back.

 

[hellraiser456]

ok...not bad....first red flag though is he mentioned nothing about any proper head gasket fixes. i would ask him about that and also check around to see any quick signs (burning coolant....overflowing coolant resivoir, water in oil).

next red flag is the car is slightly modified. i have never been for buying modified cars simply because that is a sign that they could have been bagged on further more...unless proven...the proper precautions( head gasket) may have not been taken to make it reliable. though they are basic mods and i don't see anything of raised boost...all the mods are there for it.

if this is going to be a project car i would say it could be a good start but i would try to quickly test the health of that engine. maybe see if he will let you run a quick compression test. From what i can see the body looks good rust wise. trim looks good and the interior looks dirty but otherwise in nice shape. how are things like tires, shocks, and things like that. its a shame you don't know any history about the swapped engine that would have been good to see.

also i think you should talk him down a bit on the price as 2500 seems to be a bit much when you can get a near mint supra for 4500 if you know where to look.

but once again be smart....don't jump into it as these cars do have there issues and if left unattenend or a possible bad buy they can become money pits...but so can any other sport turbo car.

 

[keaser06]

yeah im gonna go look at it this weekend.. he lives about an hour north of me.. also im not buying the car.. rather trading my 93 240sx for it.. im going to do a compression check on the car and see why it runs rough im not sure about the supsension and all that.. in the picture it does look like it has the TEMS system.. and i know all cars have there downfalls but the supra seems like a much better platform than my 240 specially for reliability vs speed.. to get my 240 into the mid to low 13 second range is a lot of work and results in much less reliability.. so far as the research i have been doing on this and other supra forums the mk3 is easily into the mid to low 13 second range by very limited car mods but lots of driver mods.. and i believe getting used to the car would allow me to drive it well enough to get a few good times.. i will definately get as much info about the car as possible when i look at it this weekend im trying to be very educated about this process of aquiring the car because it isnt running and i dont know much about it.. but i do love supras and have loved them since i was like 10 and i tried to get one from the day i turned 16 untill now.. so the fact that this opportunity arrose made me happy and i believe that hopefully with a little TLC and a few mods this car can be what i want which is a nice DD in the mid to low 13 second range

 

[Dunckel]

Hellraiser said everything I was thinking. And thankfully too, I didn't feel like typing all of that.

The next time you see the car, do a quick check for codes. It might clue you in on the poor idle problem. It may also give you a heads up on other problems lurking within. If you do buy it, hopefully it will turn out to be a good investment.

This will be your best friend if you do buy the car....http://www.cygnusx1.net/Supra/techtips.aspx

 

[supraman7mgte]

run away screaming from that car

 

[keaser06]

run away screaming from that car

just wondering, not trying to be an ass, but why? this car is fairly clean for an 87 its a turbo and 5 speed, and i know i can find a really clean running supra for like 4500 but if i was going to spend that much why not just save up a little more and get an mkiv? thats just my opinion

 

[7Mboost]

It looks like the doors back have been painted but not the front some time ago. I'd try to talk him down to like $1800-$2000, it looks pretty good for its age and mods look well installed. I'd scan it for codes before you buy and if its something you may be able to fix, I'd go for it, and you could always part it out if you needed to.

 

[keaser06]

see the problem with me getting this car is im not buying it.. im trading my daily for it.. when fixed this car will be my daily.. im taking a compression tester with me when i look at it.. whats the compression supposed to be like on these motors?? im gonna check it for codes also..

 

[Dunckel]

^ According to the TSRM, 142 psi or more. A minimum of 128 psi. The difference between each cylinder should be 14 psi or less.
http://www.cygnusx1.net/Supra/Library/TSRM/MK3/manual.aspx?Section=EM&Page=21

EDIT: Hmm, I thought my sig was only supposed to show up once per thread.

 

[keaser06]

lol sorry i didnt even notice your sig... im on sooo many forums i dont check peoples sigs anymore i just read the info posted lol

 

[Dunckel]

It's cool. My edit was just me typing my own thoughts. I wasn't trying to point it out or anything. :biglaugh:

EDIT: Weird, now it's gone....whatever.
EDIT: WTF...Now it's back??

 

[IJ.]

Price up some of the missing plastics in the engine bay before buying that car....

 

[510supramacy]

honestly bro, i think you should just wait a little bit coz this car's condition is a P.O.S. (supra or not) and it looks like the owner was hooked on the mods thinking he could fix it and have it running... beware though, straight up reconditioning the car alone to stock specs is already expensive and youre not sure how much torment this modified car has gone thru...

if you can manage to get it to start then theres still plenty of problems awaiting you...

 

[keaser06]

ok well i think i have decided not to get this car.. i may just build my 240 and have fun with that untill i can afford to straight up buy a supra later... thanks for the help guys

 

[starscream5000]

Check out the for sale section around here, you'll be more able to find a better car that someone can tell you the history of it on, and have others attest to the credibility of the member who is selling it.