Supras as day cars!

Hi everyone,

Im new here and thot id say hi and also a couple of questions for all u ethusiasts.

Firstly ive loved the look of the supra for so long, and really love the rear of it, even after 10yrs+, its timeless.

Anyway right now im 21, turgning 22 in march, and most likely going to get the car around march time next yr. I start a graduate job with a big accounts company in the august of next yr, hence the need for a car. It'll be auditing, so travel to clients now and again will be required.

Now i'e been driving for 2 yrs now, fiat bravo 1.6, nice car to drive, but looks wise, well wasnt great.

Now its time for a nice step up, and its definitely a supra im wanting. I must admit the looks of it excite me more than the performance of it, hence thats why im thinking of a NA rather than a TT. However not having driven one or even been in one etc, im worried if i buy a NA, then ill be like damn, i shud haf bought a TT.

In terms of a day car, my company wll give me 40p a mile wen i use the car to get to the clients. IM sure this will cover it, but generally, how much of a difference is there between fuel economy in a SZ and a TT. Like lets say a mixture of driving, wat wud a £45 tank get u in a TT and a SZ. (not sure if £45 is right, but u know what i mean)

I think that wud be one of my main factors. Also as nice sz's have been goin for reasonable prices recently, thinking that could be an option.

What would u say the pro's of the SZ are, i know the TT performance wise is a lot better, but apart form performance, is there any other difference.

ALso would u say its possible to use a supra as a day car, as i hear people who only drive them once or twice a month. Me would be most like every day.

I know toyota engines are very reliable, so im not too worried about the age of it.

However the fact it is RWD is a little worrying. Only being used to a 1.6 bravo, not sure what the difference is driving wise between a supra RWD and normal cars.

Are there any meets in Glasgow, so i can maybe have a look at supras more up close, as most of the time i see em driving by, and im like mmm lol

Or all the pics on this site,

Ps This seems liek a great site, full of real enthusiasts, with some really nice cars

Look forward to getting a supra soon, and joining this site, and maybe buying og someone off here as well.

Wud be a black or red supra, with a nice subtle bodykit, with nice alloys

anywya thias thread too long now, sorry

look forwrad to ur replies

Hello buddy, first of all

Right ill start with a couple of your Q's

40p a mile will cover your fuel, regardless off a TT or a NA. I think i roughly worked out it costs me 30p a mile in just fuel in the TT, so you dont really cover it if a nice big bill turns up thankfully i have to use the supe about twice a year as i have a van for work. As for mpg i get 20 if im lucky.....

Your age may help you decide what model to get......there bloody expensive to insure as a young un although saying that there are 19 year old members with TT and silly insurance. I know a 21 year old member paying £1600 FC on a TT but thats a uk spec one (there cheaper to insure)

Mines a daily driver whats the point of owning it if your not gonna use it?

Right thats all i can help with, hope that makes sence and is of some use to you

Hi mate and to the club.

Fuel economy really depends how you drive the car, you can get similar mileage out of a TT and NA, but if you're hooning around a lot, the TT will be a lot more thirsty.

If you've not driven a RWD car before, then the NA is the sensible choice, both have good performance, but the TT especially can catch the most experienced of drivers out at times if not given enough respect.

PS. Can I suggest you audit your posts too, txt spk is very difficult to read and very annoying to some

hya ,ive had my Supra 6 weeks and honestly totaly love it

ive used it everday for work - in traffic jams, rain,sleet and lots of cold,frost etc

i cant fault the car in any way.

mine is a SZ and there is plenty of power - still go`s like a demon bat from hell and looks stunning,. honest mate - everywhere i go i get stared and pointed at,and thumbs up and shouts like "top car mate" etc

my insurance is very cheap,. £700 , thats with 6 years no claims bonus tho.,

i wll be selling this car tho in 18 mnths to 2 years to get a TT,. not cos mine feels underpowered just cos everybody keeps asking,. "is it a turbo ? " and plus by then i will prob fancy a TT anyways .

The wheels will spin if you have a clumsy or heavy right foot otherwise the power is very controllable. - can drive, in 2nd at 750rpm no probs

id get the SZ ,. see how you feel in that

* on a footnote i know of someone thats 23 and was quoted £3500 to be insured on a SZ.

Jp .

Used to use mine as a daily driver but now do 80 miles a day and simply isn't viable in cost. (My TD will cost me 40 a week) the Supe at least 80.

They are very reliable so no prblems there. How about keep the Fiat and buy a Supra for fun.

Other thing to consider is you would have to insure it for business use and I think you would be lucky at 21 to insure either a TT or NA for under 2.5k

i use mine as a daily and will prob do 50k in the next 2 years if its still going

business insurance for me was a £14 load but mine is a uk spec tt and im an old git, so total of £400 ish to insure

......., but the TT especially can catch the most experienced of drivers out at times if not given enough respect.

OH YES..... sure DID...i mean CAN ! !

In the DRY i never had ANY problems with the TT.

In the damp/wet/ice/snow.........i was brought up on a diet of FWD

and i'm afraid CANNOT get the hang of HANGing the back end out.

Yes the N/A is still a SLIGHTLY tail-happy/200bhp lump, but, it doesn't

have turbos cutting in (and, in the case of the auto, dropping down 2 or

even 3 gears on kick-down ) on a wet bend.

i also get 40p a mile from my company and i have an SZ. I done a trip to leeds and back which was 650 miles and cost £90 in fuel and get £260 in fuel money from company, so as you can see youll be fine.

Around town area for £20 i get about 120 -130miles from my NA. Also an advatage of an NA is you can use normal unleaded which is cheaper,whilst with a TT you be nuts not to use optimax or tesco 99 Ron if avaliable to you.

Hey,

Thanks for all the quick and informative replies people. Very Impressed.

Also I'll try and keep it a little easier to read Nic.

By the sounds of it, it seems that the SZ would be the right choice for me. It would provide the looks i want, while at the same time minimising fuel cost and also giving me the chance to get accustomed to a RWD car, which i havn't driven as yet.

Definitely agree about daily driving. I guess if it's a second car then it doesn't need to be a daily driver, but for me, having a second car isnt really an option. Once i get a supra, i get the feeling i'll not even look at the fiat twice. haha

Insurance wise, well i tried http://www.confused.com, and well there really wasn't any point in doing that. haha. However i hav tried ringing round and a few online quotes. Lanacaster Insurance did me a good deal online for he SZ for roughyly £1800, fully comp. However i'm going to ring them tommorrow to get more detail abotu mileage allowances and business use. The lancaster one included commuting + social and domestic. So i think insurance wise it could be ok.

The other option would be trying to do the whole "driving other cars" extension. ie Get myself insured on my dads rover for example fulll comp, then with some companies i can driver other cars 3rd party. However i wouldnt want to drive a supra third party to be honest, you never know what could happen. I am a perfectly competetent driver, clean record. However these days it only takes a bit of oil on the road or a bit of black ice. SO definitely fully comp for me.

How many uk spec ones were made, as i sure there quite hard to find and also more expensive usually, because of all the extras included. However the insurance above was for a japansese grey import so hopefully by the time i come to insure a car, i'll be ok for a quote. I should phone sky up as well actually, just to see what they can do for me. Also the discount once i become a member here will be helpful as well im sure.

Whitesupraboy2, your fuel consumptiona ctually looks quite reasonable, especially for a 3.0litre.

Are there usually any meet up in scotland at all. Wouldnt mind seeing some supras up close and personal.

Also if you are trying to keep costs down the NA is usefull as well, Servicing doesnt need to be as often as a TT and my plugs i have had in a year and firing strong,though i have just purchased some to change them. Also using NGK plugs...the type you can get in halfords 4 for about £12 (although you'll need 6 of course lol)

Oil filter is about £7 oil £30 roughly

Cambelt can be got for about £20, Aux Belt for about the same.

then the only other main thing is tyres my fronts have lasted 16mths so far but will need changing soon, rears last about 8 - 10mths for myself

Fuel economy i find really good and that is with some spirited driving in the mix

good thread...wonder why it hasnt been asked before?

sounds ideal mate.

Is yours japansese import or uk. U got any mods.

So you've found the SZ to be fine with normal unleaded yeah. That's good also.

Are the tyre sizes different fronts and backs, staggered i think its called. Do u do all ur servicing and stuff yourself, also when does the cambelt need to be changed in the SZ.

Got around 3 months to soup on supra knowldege, then time to buy. Cant wait.

One thing i wanted to know, how come u cant get past the 97 modelf of the supra in the uk. As im sure in japan they have made them up until 2001. Just something that bugged me. However i think the older ones are fine.

ps cheers imi, nice video on ur link there mate, like the one when the jap cars are "annoying" the enzo haha

off to watch top gear, I'LL BE BACKKK!!! lol

The SZ (3litre i) only comes as an import. Mods wise just a cat back exhaust. Ive had car now 2yrs and bit and always use unleaded,though sometimes put couple tanks of optimax in every so often clear some crap out of the engine.

Yes tyres are 225 / 245 or 235 / 255 and standard wheels can come in sizes of 16" or 17"

Servicing wise - Do oil, change of plugs, air filter all myself. Id pay someone to change cam belt (bout £200 -£250ish) should be done every 60,000 kilometres.

There are some newer then 1997, but due to import rules now needing a model report there isnt one for after 1997 for the facelift, so no more can imported at the moment

ah i see, cheers for all the info mate, very helpful...

 

ps cheers imi, nice video on ur link there mate, like the one when the jap cars are "annoying" the enzo haha

 

Supras are awesome looking cars....real headturner.

And their performance can be supercar like...

Its an engineering marvel and was a bargain @ £45K

Welcome from another Glasgow member. If you need any help at all id be happy to come and look at some cars with you. I did literally years of research before I got mine.

I'd say SZ first. It's still v.quick and a good learning curve to getting a TT in a few years perhaps.

My TT is a fair bit more thirsty than the SZ when being pushed - but that's what you'd expect. On a plodding along day to day basis, probably got an extra 30+ miles out of the SZ from a full tank.

alrite m8 theres a few members here from glasgow as well. try elephant.co.uk they quoted me really cheap prob cheaper that ur £1800 fully comp. More and more jap cars are over imported these days and theyre getting really really cheap. if ur just interested in the car purely for the looks and not performance then the NA will be fine. But thats what i said before as well. Im obsessed with speed and i really want a TT just now. Insurance wise they're about the same. Performance wise is a big difference. Any mod u do on an NA except for NOS or turbo will give you very little gains. And the money you need to spend to reach gains near enough to the TT will cost you prob more than buying a TT anyway.

U might wana spend a bit of time when ur looking for one and not rush into buying it. The prob with these imports is that majority dont have service history. So i think might be good sense to get them really checked out cos finding parts can be a bastard sometimes.

Maintenance wise i find it hard to trust any garages in glasgow at all. Majority of them will never have seen a supra and they will over quote you labour. Personally i do all the work on the car myself.

alrite m8 theres a few members here from glasgow as well. try elephant.co.uk they quoted me really cheap prob cheaper that ur £1800 fully comp. More and more jap cars are over imported these days and theyre getting really really cheap. if ur just interested in the car purely for the looks and not performance then the NA will be fine. But thats what i said before as well. Im obsessed with speed and i really want a TT just now. Insurance wise they're about the same. Performance wise is a big difference. Any mod u do on an NA except for NOS or turbo will give you very little gains. And the money you need to spend to reach gains near enough to the TT will cost you prob more than buying a TT anyway.

U might wana spend a bit of time when ur looking for one and not rush into buying it. The prob with these imports is that majority dont have service history. So i think might be good sense to get them really checked out cos finding parts can be a bastard sometimes.

Maintenance wise i find it hard to trust any garages in glasgow at all. Majority of them will never have seen a supra and they will over quote you labour. Personally i do all the work on the car myself.

need any help pm me

cheers guys, good to see there some glasgow lads here 2, always good to know some fellow supra lovers kicking about.

i guess what i really need to do is get into a supra and feel the difference between a supra NA and a supra TT. Thats the only way ill be able to really decide. If insurance and everything is else pretty much similar, then maybe the investment in a tt could be the better option, rather than spending money on a sz, then money on making it look nicer, then sellling it and most likely losing all the money i put into it.

are there ever any glasgow meets or anything similar, as i wouldnt mind getting a chance to sitting as a passenger in one of the cars just to feel how they drive etc.

wat u think...

pete so u think there really aint that much difference between sz and tt fuel economy...

like out of a tank in a sz, maybe ull get like 250 miles, and in a tt maybe 190 miles,

then again the optimax will cost more i guess

anyway ive still got plenty of time to buy one, hwoever i want to make the right choice, so sorry if im coming accross all indecisivie

once again thanks guys...and look forward to more replies

ps whereabouts in glasgow u guys live.. Getrag and Gazzawu

im from west end of glasgow

pete so u think there really aint that much difference between sz and tt fuel economy...

 

like out of a tank in a sz, maybe ull get like 250 miles, and in a tt maybe 190 miles,

 

then again the optimax will cost more i guess

My NA was decatted (which helped fuel economy) and ran on Optimax all the time. Usually got about 260/270 out of a tank.

The VVTi TT I have now, again decatted and running Optimax, is giving about 230 if I'm careful. This is 1/2 town driving, 1/2 dual carriage way to work and back and not too mch else. Steady Motorway can stick a fair more on top of both. I think I had about 270+ out of the VVTi TT in France.

The TT I had I can't remember the figures for, but it was pretty thirsty.

Not a great difference, but it depends how many miles you do, as this percentage could mean a lot in the long term.

The main thing is, you'll loose the fuel an awful lot quicker caining the TT than the NA.

I live in the city centre. You know where the dental hospital is? well just 2mins from there.

Think Hamish (Getrag) lives in Newton Mearns.

AFAIK he's the only other member from Glasgow but there are a few other supras kicking about and not members from this forum.

Ah thanks for the info pete, very helpful.

I dont think ill 100% know what ill get between the 2 as the difference doesnt seem too much as i previosuly thought. Dont know why im so worried about petrol thinking about it, but better to be over anxious than just getting one and then realising that you'd struggle to run it. But by the sounds of it both should be fine.

Im going to get in touch with Jurgen to see what the import market is like for getting a car. WHat you guys think about importing a car rather than buyin one thats in the UK already here ( ie dont mean about UK version, i meantjap import cars that have already been imported). Prefer one with some alloys and a subtle bodykit on it already. I like the splats on the back, then some nice sideskirts and maybe a bomex front looks good i think.

ANyway in general do many people import cars nowadays, as there seems to be a steady supply of them coming over.

Gazzawu, yea i think ur near sachiehall street right. I have a mate who lives on hill street with a silver fto, u might have seen him kicking about.

Lanacaster Insurance did me a good deal online for he SZ for roughyly £1800, fully comp. However i'm going to ring them tommorrow to get more detail abotu mileage allowances and business use. The lancaster one included commuting + social and domestic. So i think insurance wise it could be ok.

Careful with this one. Com, soc & dom insurance is supposed to only cover travel to and from your home to your place of work. As soon as your company is paying to cover your mileage, you're getting into dodgy territory.

Oh - and

Im going to get in touch with Jurgen to see what the import market is like for getting a car. WHat you guys think about importing a car rather than buyin one thats in the UK already here ( ie dont mean about UK version, i meantjap import cars that have already been imported).

Jurgen has a very good rep around here.

I think you can still use his link to view auctions to get an idea on what's about. He has guys over there that check the car out for you with an honest appraisel and photos, organises SVA etc.

Nowadays it won't work out much cheaper though.

I wanted a VVTi (which you can no longer import) so had to buy UK.