Suggestions for my mk3

[mk3patron]

Ok my name is ruben and im 18 years old. i live in RI but was born in Mexico. well i am a noob to cars and supras and i bought my 1st one in the end of 2006. i bought a good enough condition 5 speed white targa top 89 7mgte supra with 140k miles (damn) for $700 bucks (surprised it was that cheap). i found the car in some dirty ass place where they fix old cars and resell them. the people who owned the place had no clue what was wrong with the car and it has been sitting around for about 5 months. i have no knowleage of its history but i loved turbos so i thought it would be a nice car to get. i never thought i would get a turbo car for my 1st car. i bought the car and had it towed to my house. i looked for the reason it wasnt starting and i found out that the car had some switch that had to be pressed to turn it (is that stock?) and i guess the owners of the place didn't know about it cause its not really visible. Some how i found it. The car has been running nicely and i love it alot and i am hooked to supras now:icon_razz . i also have done some research about the mk3s and found out a few things about them. Well i just wanted suggestions on what to do with this car. i might be 18 and have a need for speed but 1st i have to be responsible and take good care of this beautiful car. and thats the end of my life story lol. and oh yeah its a daily driver and now im done.

What i currently have:
cheap bov
cheap exhaust
jvc cd player unit
2 1000 watt 12" kenwood subwoofers
1 1000 watt kenwood amp
kenwood speakers all around
17" rims

Wish list for performance:
RSR GT2 exhaust
headers
hose kit
AEM camgears
HKS ssqv
rebuild turbo
APEXI air intake
HKS mhg (need help with this one)
aftermakret intercooler (not sure which brand yet)
I would like to rebuild the engine but thats a wait for now
ANY SUGGESTIONS

Wish list for exterior of car:
bomex bodykit
black adr 18" or if possible 19" rims
coilovers (damn there expensive)
gun metal grey or midnight blue for the color
ANY SUGGESTIONS

:1zhelp: please help me with other problems i might encounter with this car so i wont waste my money on performance parts. this is my 1st car and i want to be looking and performing good.

PICTURES SOON!!

 

[suprarich]

Whoa, slow down, go back and read all the FAQ threads and say hi in the introdution thread. Come back and tell us all about it! Welcome!

 

[relax]

^^^^^ what he said

 

[1988SupraDreams]

If you actually have money laying around, I'd stick to the following mods

THAT IS IF YOUR CAR IS IN GOOD CONDITION WITH NO PROBLEMS!!!!!

For that I would suggest research.

3" Catback Exhaust
3" Downpipe
FMIC & Piping
550cc Injectors/Lexus 1UZFE AFM
Walbro 255LPH Fuel pump.
Wastegate shim with a Boost Controller
And an AFR Controller (Take your pick)
K&N 4" FIPK

Those mods should keep you busy, and most likely wont blow up your engine, if you are nice to it and do your homework.

 

[whenmunkysfly]

Sounds like you have the right mind set. You want to take care of your new baby so make sure the car is in good order. you said it runsd good but look under the hood at everything that is rubber or plastic and check for cracks or detirioration. if you find any replace that part with oem or performance. read everything you can before posting about "how much hp" or "how much boost" you will only make some people mad so search and learn alot before you ask any quetions because odds are it has been asked. that's all I have to say besides welcome and we hope you enjoy your time here

 

[hellraiser456]

before you start going nuts and buying parts...back up

you will hear the word maintenance alot. The 7m though a fun motor is like any other turbo motor (if not more so) and you should go throough and make sure what you add the engine can safely support

If you don't the 7m will not forgive and you will pay dearly for it. First thing i would check is your HG or head gasket. You are going to see the term BHG ALOT on any supra forum that uses a 7m. It stand for bad head gasket and if it isn't delt with right and asap you will end up with a nice bill to use that engine in anything more than a stock setup. if you bought it from people that couldn't figure out the key lock button (used on ALOT of older toyotas), i would be on that the moment it landed in my drive way. Also the 7m is not a good motor to take short cuts on. it will once again...return the favour..usually with a bhg or rod knock...another thing you will see alot on supra/7m fourms

Before all that (if you want to do the work yourself) research up and get to know the 7m. I had some flaws that will bite you in the ass if you don't attend to them...however there is tons of information that is very very usefull on these forums addressing these issues.

As for modifying, you need to sit down and set a goal...if you are just going to throw parts and money at it you won't get what you want. whether you want 350 to the wheels or 800....you need a goal. I say this because you can then..from there begin to set out what you actually need and thus figure out (the important part) what needs to be done to the engine to handle it. From there you can start getting parts that are needed to obtain your desired numbers.

Anyway i just wanted to say that and i am barely skimming the surface...but do your research. I can't express that enough. It will not only pay off...but will avoid problems in the future that bumm out alot of supra owners.

Now with that said...i don't mean to scare you at all...but the supra is a car of passion...and it needs it...you give it the love it needs and it will carry you around with class comfort and much much pleasure. I love mine to death...and the man (or women) that hits me while im driving it is going to have really really bad day....and i will make sure of it.

But yes i'll shut up now...do your reasearch

 

[swaq]

Here is a priority list on how I would suggest diverting your funds, as related to your Supra:

• Maintenance - Everything should be in great working condition. Don't cheap out here
• Budget money for gas and insurance. This could be a lot more than you think. I've spent $140 on gas in the last month. That's $1700 a year for about 9000 miles. You should run premium gas (91+ octane) always. My insurance is $900 a year and I'm 22 with no accidents on my record, good student, and no tickets. So total that up: $2600 a year.
• Head gasket. Before you do anything else to improve performance you need to address the possibility of blowing the head gasket. Search this forum and you'll find lots of great head gasket information. Read it.
• Still have money left over? Save it for a rainy day. Eventually something will break that you didn't anticipate and you'll need extra cash so that you can fix it the right way instead of doing some cheap temporary fix that will cause more problems in the future. Also, I assume there will be other things in your life besides the car that will need money.
• Feel loaded with cash? Ready to get your hands dirty? Okay, read this thread: http://www.supramania.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17

Other items of interest:

Forget the body kit. Won't help resale, won't help performance, and you'll have to pay to get it painted/installed/etc. (and in my opinion the stock body looks great)

I'd personally only paint the car if it needs it. Painting is expensive to get it done right. How's the paint?

Replace the word "headers" in your wish list with "downpipe". You get headers for a non-turbo.

For intercooler there is a good one on driftmotion.com that doesn't require you to relocate your oil cooler.


Best of luck!

 

[rs4rush]

Yes, replace anything that needs to be replaced. And dont drive it hard if their is somthing that needs replacing, Better yet if their is somthing it really needs dont drive it at all, Thats a great way to add another thing to the list of things to fix! Head gasket, should be your first mod if your power hungry! Research more about what things tend to go out on the mk3's, relize your car is 17 years old and their will be things you need to replace.

 

[JMDigital]

Still have money left over? Save it for a rainy day. Eventually something will break that you didn't anticipate and you'll need extra cash so that you can fix it the right way instead of doing some cheap temporary fix that will cause more problems in the future. Also, I assume there will be other things in your life besides the car that will need money.

Best of luck!

This is the best advice I have ever seen. You just don’t think of the thing that has not broken yet. These cars are getting to the 20year old mark. A large part of your car is 20 years old. Something will break its just the way it is. Save some money to fix it correctly. Find some local Supra guys and make some friends.

Spend ALOT of time here READING for every post you make you should read 50 posts. (so start reading) Learn how to search for answers; the search button is in the menu bar. This will help you learn and keep you from getting yelled at. Anyway Welcome!

 

[mk3patron]

alright i appreciate all the suggestions. i will do more research on the car and im currently working on the engine to find anything that i might find and need to fix it before i can start buying better mods for it. im ordering the mhg with a few other parts in about a months after i fix the oil spil next to the timing belt and get it new hoses to replace the old cheap ones. Ive been running the car for 2 months and it runs strong and it doesnt really seem like it has any major problems. i messed around with it about 3 times but not really hard because im worried something might happen. but yeah like i said thanks and i will take it as easy as i can. lets see what the future holds for my supra