Why The Toyota Supra Turbo Is Another 90s Hero Car

Image source: www.superstylings.com

Introduced in 1992, the Mk4 Toyota Supra was super high-tech, especially under the bonnet. Its 3.0-litre straight-six engine featured sequential turbocharging, where a smaller turbo reduced lag and improved throttle response low in the rev-range, while a bigger one gave a great big slug of power higher up. The result (in UK-spec cars) was 326bhp and 315lb ft of torque.

The engine was backed up by a 6-speed manual Getrag gearbox, though an automatic was a (common) option.

The Supra Turbo had a lightning fast turn of speed and was able to nail from 0-60mph in just 4.9 seconds. Top speed was limited at 155mph, but without the it, well beyond 170mph was achievable.

The performance easily matched that of the Porsche 928 GTS. The big Bavarian bruiser was more powerful but quite a lot heavier than the Supra, so it was a few tenths slower to 60mph. Equally, it was a couple of mph slower at the top end, assuming you’d knocked out the Supra’s limiter.

The two cars had similar handling as well. While neither was an out-and-out sports car, they could cover ground monstrously fast. Ultimately though the Supra would tend to understeer where the Porsche would be more neutral (helped by its four-wheel steering.)

Image source: www.turbomagazine.com

So here were two technically sophisticated super-coupe GTs with the same sort of performance and handling. But as is so often the way, the Japanese car was far cheaper than the German one; by a good 30 grand as it happens.

You could see where the money had been saved, though. The Supra’s styling wasn’t as well resolved as the 928’s. It certainly didn’t hide the sheer size of the thing. And the gigantic spoiler didn’t help, either.

Image source: caranddriver

The Supra’s interior couldn’t match the quality of the Porsche’s either, even if the driver-focused dashboard was very well laid out. And the back seats really only worked if you took off your legs. As for the steering wheel? One of the ugliest ever made...

The Supra Turbo existed in an awkward sort of no-man’s land. It easily matched the 928 GTS for speed and handling, but would never be on the same shopping list as a car that cost nearly twice as much.

On price, the Supra’s main rival was another Porsche, the 968. With only 240bhp from its 3-litre ‘four’, the baby German wasn’t anything like as fast as the Toyota. But the handling was arguably better and it would always be the badge snob’s choice.

The Supra Turbo never sold well before it was withdrawn from the UK market in 1996, one of many victims of stricter EU emissions rules. There are probably only a couple of hundred genuine UK cars left, but it has become hugely popular in its afterlife, thanks to the grey import trade.

The Supra was built in Japan until 2002. Around the turn of the century, the emerging market for so-called ‘grey imports’ saw hundreds of Supra Turbos arrive in the UK. No doubt this was fuelled by tales from Japan about the frankly silly amounts of power you can get from the 2JZ-GTE motor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPCWHHdOFjQ#t=1m25s

Around 600bhp seems to little more than an afternoon’s work. 1000bhp is a bit more involved and probably enough, but these days you really need 1200-1500bhp in your Supra to get noticed. A couple of thousand would do for drag racing.

The Supra got a huge boost in 2001 when it had a starring role in The Fast & The Furious. It's a car popular with drifters, too. And let’s not forget its four titles in the Japanese Super GT series.

The Toyota Supra Turbo tried to take on the best European super-coupes and, at the time, it lost. But thanks to its huge tuner/drifter/TF&TF-fan/BHP-junkie following, its very much having the last laugh.

Specs

Built: 1992-2002 (UK sales: 1993-1996)Engine: 2997cc twin-turbo in-line sixPower: 326bhpTorque: 315lb ft0-60mph: 4.9secTop speed: 155mph (limited)Gearbox: 6-speed manual, 4-speed automaticWeight: 1550kg

Image source: www.mrwallpaper.com

Bet you didn’t know...

1. During the ‘90s, the SuperGT racers used a 4-cylinder engine, similar to the Corolla WRC’s.
2. American magazine Car and Driver recorded a best-ever 70-0mph stopping distance of 149ft in 1997. That wasn’t beaten until 2004 when the Porsche Carrera GT did it in 145ft.

Read about a British 90s hero, the Ford Escort Cosworth