Just back from viewing Supra!

Well, I'm back home after a 6.5 hour round trip WITHOUT the damn Supra.

 

The seller said that it had been fully converted to UK spec and that it was all documented. Yeah, right, all that was documented was that the speedo had been changed from KM TO MILES :-(

 

All the rest of it was pure J-spec (apart from the rear spoiler, which was invisible :-) )

 

Now I've got nothing whatsoever against J-spec cars, in fact I'm 99% sure that if I get a Supra it will be J-spec, but, what pisses me off is all the misdescriptions. OK it had the bigger spec brakes, but I've seen a fair number of facelift models with that.

Nothing whatsoever had actually been converted.

 

On speaking to the seller he knew that it should have had a rear wing, but "forgot" to say" and said he thought it made them look like a boy racer car anyway!!!

 

I did drive it up the road, would have been rude not to use some of his petrol :-) and it drove OK, but just didn't hit the spot somehow.

The 2nd turbo came in at 4000 rpm but not really with a rush, and although it certainly was a quick car, the gearbox maybe felt a bit "flarey" and I just couldn't seem to get comfortable in it. (Unlike a GZ I drove last week,which seemed a lot better somehow)

 

Maybe it was the seat, I seem to remeber that the GZ (a'96) had 6 or 8 way adjustable seats, where this RZ-S only had 4 way seats (backwards and forwards and the back incline was adjustable) whichever way I moved it I just didn't feel supported and because of my size, 6'4" I seemed to be staring at the roof rather than through the screen. I've never had that problem driving a Supra before, but I have to say that this was the first facelift car that I've driven.

 

It did have Full Toyota service history (meaning the apprentices changed the oil & filters and the mechanics took some rubber off the tyres on a test run :-) and all for only £65 per hour!) and was low mileage (36000)

 

Both headlights were full of condensation and would have needed removing, drying and resealing at the very least and probably replacing if the truth was known.

 

The seller had changed the battery and lost the stereo code, but assured me that it worked. He said that he didn't know how to enter the code but he had the manual and just obviously couldn't be arsed to read it :-(

 

I tried to make him an insulting offer so I could make my leave, and he damn well nearly accepted it, phew that was too close! I definitely could have knocked 2 grand off the asking price but it just wasn't the car for me, I wasn't really too keen on the colour either but would have bought it if everthing else had been OK.

 

 

So I'm still in the market for a car

 

Twin turbo

getting more and more towards the idea that its got to be 6 speed.

probably facelift model and later (96-98)

Large brakes and 17" wheels a must

Completely standard inc wheels if poss, but NO other mods whatsoever

Low mileage (circa 40k or less)

Colour, black, silver, purple, blue etc but NOT red or white

Must be excellent condition or better (I'm VERY picky :-))

Probably J-spec, but I may look at a '96 low mileage 6 speed UK car :-)

 

Sensible viewing distance from Sutton, Surrey

 

Anyone got anything please email me

 

Geoff

Sorry to hear that but even with any amount knocked off it sounds like the walk away option was always going to be the better one. First impressions make a big difference and if the guy couldnt be arsed with the stereo then im sure much bigger (more important things) had probably been ignored. If it doesnt feel right then it probably isnt, good luck with your future searching

Just out of interest, what were you expecting to see converted?

Originally posted by Matt Harwood

Just out of interest, what were you expecting to see converted?

 

Hi Matt

 

Not necessarily anything in particular, but the guy said that it had leather rear seats and door panels (it didn't) and made such a point that it had ALL been officially converted when it first came into the country that I expected a bit more than the speedo :-(

Even that hadn't had the mileage corrected, just changed to carry on clocking up in miles from the import reading in Kms

 

I wasn't worried by the spec, just the misinformation. As long as it had the larger brakes I'd have been happy.

 

Geoff

Takes time finding a good one Geoff, I spent a good 2 months.

 

I bought mine from a member of the Supra forums, like most of the people on here, they look after their Supras.

 

Saw a lot of shit Supras in my travels looking for mine.

 

What price was this Supra up for?

 

I think also when they say full conversion, it means Speedo and Foglight.

Originally posted by Andrew

Takes time finding a good one Geoff, I spent a good 2 months.

 

What price was this Supra up for?

 

 

Hi Andrew

 

It was a '97 car and was up for 14 grand but I could have bought it for 12.

It probably wasn't a bad car but I just didn't fancy it. To me 14 grand is a lot of money, so its got to be the right one.

 

I might try contacting some importers directly, but don't really like the idea of giving them all my hard earned cash without seeing the car. They all seem to want the money up front. If I didn't fancy it then, I'd be stuck with it I suppose :-(

 

Geoff

Originally posted by geoffvalenti

 

Maybe it was the seat, I seem to remeber that the GZ (a'96) had 6 or 8 way adjustable seats, where this RZ-S only had 4 way seats (backwards and forwards and the back incline was adjustable) whichever way I moved it I just didn't feel supported and because of my size, 6'4" I seemed to be staring at the roof rather than through the screen. I've never had that problem driving a Supra before, but I have to say that this was the first facelift car that I've driven.

 

 

Not sure if this is a 'sucking eggs' point but you know that there is a seat height adjustment dial on the side of the seats? Just might reduce that looking at the roof problem slightly.

Originally posted by geoffvalenti

Maybe it was the seat, I seem to remeber that the GZ (a'96) had 6 or 8 way adjustable seats, where this RZ-S only had 4 way seats (backwards and forwards and the back incline was adjustable) whichever way I moved it I just didn't feel supported and because of my size, 6'4" I seemed to be staring at the roof rather than through the screen. I've never had that problem driving a Supra before, but I have to say that this was the first facelift car that I've driven.

 

 

I'm 6ft 4 ish and think its the best driving position i've had.

 

I know what you mean, when the seller doesn't tell the truth especially when you make a long journey to see the car. When I was looking all of the cars were along way away. so I always stressed that I needed to know of any problems before I set out. 1 car didn't even have a vin plate, which I think is quite important. and another you could see when the rear wing had been sanded down with about a 60grip paper through the paint.

 

Just keep looking the right car will turn up eventually.

Geoff, how aboutthis one?

Originally posted by mcanny

Geoff, how aboutthis one?

 

Thanks Mike,

 

I'll ring him in the morning, I'm sure I looked on that site yesterday and that wasn't there!

 

Geoff

That's what put me off about the importers, wanting the cash up front, deffinatly need to see and drive the car first.

 

I went on a long journey to see a Supra, not as long as yours though. The seller advertised it as Mint condition, had curbed alloys and a whacking great dent in side. Felt like chinning the ****

 

Eventually bought mine back from Blackburn, long old trip, except on the way back

 

Good luck, and just keep plugging away mate.

One thing to be said for JIC when they were trading and I was looking for a Supra,

they had a load of Cars in stock, different colours and specs and years and it was easy to decide which one to go for, even if in the end you didnt get one from them, at least you knew the exact one you wanted....

 

Most importers as everyone has said, seem to want you to look at 2 pics and a jap report and say "here you go mate, heres 14grand and i'll wait 8 weeks and hope its as good as the pics"

Paul Whiffin, and try http://www.neweraimports.com, they have some in stock also....

sorry the link should be http://www.neweraimports.com/stock.htm

 

happy hunting.

Like Andrew said, there ain't much to be converted. Speedo to read MPH, fog light, radio expander, alarm, I think that's it.

 

A "full leather interior" is very rare but the vinyl is fine in the back.

 

£14,500 looks like a good price for that car. Virtually the same as mine. Good luck with the hunt.

dont foget the delimit in the conversion...and...

the correct feed to the power steering and cruise control

and front active spoilter - they can all be a pain to change

later.....

 

its also important to know where the unit is that does all

this, cos if it fails its a bugger to trace without taking

off the dash panels......not that i've heard of many failing!

 

Hey - you can have mine for 7900 (no offers) with everything

already done - its a 93 though so preface lift

 

.......oh and jap brakes :looney:

Doh! How could I forget the speed limiter!

Thanks for all the helpful replies so far

 

I'm not really worried about what has or hasn't necessarily been converted, as its been said, all in all theres not that much really to do. It was just the seller made such a big thing about how the car had been "professionally" converted and certified with all the paperwork that I couldn't quite beleive that all had been done was the speedo changed to read in miles rather than Km!

 

Trooper

 

I think the price was OK, it was just that particular car, as I said before, not a bad car, if anyone on here buys it they'll probably love it to pieces, just not the right one for me. Maybe if the seller hadn't built it up so much over the phone I would have seen it in a different light.

 

It just didn't grab me for some reason.

 

I expected to come back from the test drive grinning from ear to ear, instead I was thinking how can I get out of buying this

 

I'm sure the seller thought that I was a timewaster but I really am not. I really thought that I was going to be a Supra owner yesterday and was getting quite excited at the thought

 

I looked at another couple from the outside, at McMinns in Hemel Hempstead, on the way home, but there was nothing there that appealed (1 facelift auto in white and a silver auto with small brakes, both TTs)

 

I know that I'm very particular when buying cars, and I think that as I've got older I've got worse, but that's only because whenever I've come to sell them, the buyers point out every little blemish that in the past I've just lived with.

 

Theres another couple I've got my eye on, one is really a bit out of my price range, which keeps spiraling up and up anyway (I started looking at £8-10000 and now I'm up to £14000 ) but if its the right car I'll suppose I'll have to come up with the money from somewhere, although I don't quite know where at the moment

 

Just my luck that JIC stopped trading about a month before I was ready to get a Supra. I had a few test drives about 3 years ago and thats what converted me to high perfomance Jap cars. Previously I'd run American muscle, but at 8 mpg and the non availability of leaded fuel, I couldn't see me returning down that road, no matter how much I wanted a Superbird Supras had the accelleration.............................and they went round corners

 

 

 

Anyway if I don't find a car soon, or at least find another topic of conversation, my long suffering wife reliably informs me that I'll end up in divorce court, and then I'll have half the house to spend on one

 

Geoff

mine will be for sale but it has been modded

 

94L, J spec TT

Originally posted by Snowman

mine will be for sale but it has been modded

 

94L, J spec TT

 

Thanks for the offer.

 

Looks a nice car, far better than most I've seen, but I'm really going to try and hold out for a low mileage, standard, facelift car with big brakes.

 

Geoff

Originally posted by Snowman

mine will be for sale but it has been modded

 

94L, J spec TT

Cool.

Would you take a bankers draft mate?

 

 

 

 

That was low Jake...But funny..

"THREAD HIJACK!!!"

 

Snowman... Where did you get that front Splitter/lip under your bumper? and how much was it?? I like:)

 

Ta,

Red.

Red,

 

The front splitter is a Bomex Type 2 and it came with the car when it was imported about 20 months ago.

 

Not sure who would be able to supply it for you, prop one of the traders, Envy, Whifbitz etc should be able to sort you out.

 

Jake, most people have moved with the times and now use mp3 or .wma, but you seem to still be on Vinyl and have a scratched record!!!!!!

 

:D

 

I went and turned the car over at the weekend and by God was it dangerous......... Girlfriend and I looked at eachother and thought it does sound lovely, and then we had the discussion about keeping it and working something out with the finances!

Jake, that was funny,

 

Snowman, great reply...

 

Game on!

Snowman that little Golf you've got suits you much better anyway

 

Dave