rider

I'd have the compression checked ASAP on the 6 cylinders to see if they are all consistent, that'll check out any head problems for you either with the head itself, gasket or valves. There is no reason to loose water other than a leak which you say you don't appear to have or as steam out of the exhaust. If the water was going into the engine sump then you'd expect to see it in the oil and as an emulsion on the valve gear. It'll only take you half an hour to an hour to check the cylinder pressures and then move on from there.

The administrators should write to you as a creditor, if they don't then you need to contact them to be added to the creditors list. If the company is a limited company then you just have to take what the administrator hands out as so many pence in the pound. The last time I received money from an administrator the final distribution was 0p in the £ as there were insufficient funds to pay out the preferred creditors (staff wages and secured loans) so you would do best to consider the money lost and anything that does come your way is a bonus. If its not a limited company then there are options for the administrators to pursue the traders personally and this will include property and possessions. The last time I had a settlement from an administrator of a sole trader the final distribution after their house sale and 18 months later was 16p in the £. Just be prepared to take a big hit.

Always good to see a Supra being resurrected. Would be good to see a project thread started.

Here is a pressure chart for R134a https://i.stack.imgur.com/SBEAL.jpg

You really need to know the pressures in the system when it is running compared to standing. If its holding around 60psi at standing then thats a good indication you have a good charge in the system. When the compressor kicks in the LP side should drop to around 14psi and the HP side should be running around 160psi (it does ambient fluctuate). If you aren't reaching the HP side pressure you have a knackered compressor and that will be your problem if the system is correctly charged (you can overcharge as much as you can undercharge an a/c system). If all your pressures are good then it's likely to be your temperature sensors that are not reading as they should.

Thats a good point. BMW Z4 price is going to be a little over half what the indexed price of the Supra was in 1993, until you add some of those famous BMW optionals.

You are probably hoping for or expecting too much from a rebadged BMW. The drive train will be nicely engineered but never over engineered. The Toyota bits are nothing beyond the clothes it wears.

I would have thought it was pretty obvious whats going on, I cannot really imagine any other reason why a 93 car would suddenly be attracting a price premium over slightly newer ones maybe you can? For those who cannot use Google?

There are a few threads appeared and appearing on US sites about importing JDM Supras with a serious upside noted over domestic stock that drive thru girls have to lean much further forward than when visiting such places with a LHD car. There does seem to be a price premium on current 93 cars in Japan which can only be accounted for by our discerning US buyer interest. Seems decent stock TT6's on a 93 plate are asking at the US$40k+ mark now which is a strong 20%+ premium over equivalent slightly later cars. Jap based Supra prices are soon to overtake UK prices which can only mean one thing, either the Yanks will be tempted by UK cars not realising cars rust over here or there is going to be a big rise in Supra inflation here that is presently ambling along at only 30% a year. I've read trade comments that recon Mk4 Supras will match NSX prices in the very near future which in the UK means somewhere around the £60k mark. That's going to add a lot to peoples agreed value insurance premiums over the coming years though it should be good news for those set to offload their cars in those years. Its important people keep an eye on prices which includes anticipating the external market factors to try to maintain adequate insurance in these rapidly rising value times.

Its always good to have some personal goals but with a Supra you'll need to allow considerable leeway on delivering that goal money wise as Supra inflation has been running at 30% a year for a while but is about to get a big jolt forward due to the prices now originating out of Japan that will limit the affordable fresh import options. So if you have a sum of money in mind, add quite a bit.

Check that the serpine belt isn't spinning the water pump the wrong way.

My pet hate with garages is when the clips are replaced by cable ties or just left half there half gone. Air box lid clips and bonnet stays are fair game on the Supra so I always change the air filter myself now to avoid having to pay £15 for a new lid. Thats old plastic for you, it does need careful handling. I've always stuck with small independent garages and never had any issues with the work. The kind of place that around here is used to dealing with farmers shit covered trucks so a Supra that is cared for tends to get well treated when it turns up every year and has done so for the last 20. The kind of garage where you know them and they know you and your kids went to the same school.

I'm not massively into carbon fibre bits myself but isn't a big part of their appeal that they look like carbon? So it might be worth actually getting it film dipped to restore the original fibre look and enhance the parts value over black diffusers that can be had for not a lot of money.

Any recovered refrigerant is boiled out of the system under vacuum so you wouldn't expect to get any oil recovered. The oil remains as a film coating within the system which is why its recommended to add fresh oil into components when they are replaced, 2oz for the condenser and 1oz for the drier which is around 75cc if replacing both. The oil can be wither ND8 or any generic ISO 46 PAG R134a compressor oil

You could split them and spend hours trying to polish away the imperfections or you could save a lot of time and just buy in some headlights, new or secondhand.

You should get the system checked to confirm its actually the condenser that is the problem as it could be a hose that has split or one of the unions leaking. Get it dye tested. If you do end up changing the condenser yourself then you should also change the drier at the same time and add around 75cc of ND8 oil to the condenser before fitting (to replace the oil you will remove contained within the old components).

I've seen RHD full dashes advertised in Canada and USA as they strip JDM cars for parts and naturally, the RHD bits are pretty useless to them so they do tend to offer RHD parts up at a decent price. Keep a keen eye out on North American auction and breaker sites and one will come up. Prices I've seen would run around £1k DDP for a full dash so includes lots of the other parts tagged onto the dash.

If its not your daily driver then it would be a good time to move onto a classic car policy for the Supra with an agreed value. Most companies have the option that you stipulate mileage and based upon that they quote. LV Classics is the only exception to that general rule I have come across in that they operate a 5,000 mile minimum; everyone else who I've ever approached for a quote are happy to give 1,000 mile limit. Though LV at 5,000 mile minimum imposed limit are often cheaper than others with a 1,000 mile self imposed limit. The only question mark would be will the insurers accept a company car as your main driver option, it may need to be a main driver also owned by you?

If you have £30k, if you borrow another £5k this is a perfect investor car in the UK with a reputable dealer. It could be the only near stock TT6 on sale in the UK today.

So you don't want to pay crazy money that the cars are now realising in Japan? I think you are seeking a no chance opportunity that someone wants to part with their black stock TT6 cheaply. Prices are now on a par importing to domestic retail commensurate with condition and mileage in the UK and Japan. You'll need to wait a while till Japanese prices overtake UK prices to realise a home market saving by which time the cars will likely be 30% more expensive anyway.

I was told by the local Toyota garage back in the late 90's when these car were still being made that pre 98 belts were 60k or 6 years so I've always had mine done every 6 years. The only belt I ever had snap was on an Audi 26 months after it was replaced (by Audi) and it cost me an incredible amount of money to repair, fortunately the Supra doesn't have the the interference issues. I'll leave you with a quote. With Supras now increasingly on low annual mileage timing belts may become more of an inspection item than scheduled service item.

Thats the cat back exhaust. The second cat does go a fair way under the car.

Blitz offer two options, one a cat back to replace the OE exhaust and one just a final box which mates with the two mid boxes on the OE exhaust.

I replaced my vents last year and was surprised at the difference between new and old with the old ones having a sand blasted pitted appearance (I thought that was just the way they were) and the new ones being shiny black plastic. A couple of the slats were broken on my old vents as well so its well worth people grabbing a spare set while they can as they do deteriorate. It's so much easier with a ramp though, you really should get yourself one with all the cars you have. An outside scissor ramp would make things so much easier and a professional setup isn't that expensive especially if you can do the ground work yourself. Domestic 2 phase power supply does limit your choice on lifts but still a good choice to be had. My only regret with a lift is I didn't have one installed sooner.

July and August are never great car selling months but you maybe should punt it onto Piston Heads and eBay classified where the £13k asking should get noticed.