I want a supe but I am scared!!!!!

[GT5500]

Heres the deal I have dreamed of owning a supe since they came out, Ferraris, lambo's oh no they weren't for me, it was that big spoilered monster every time. So a year ago I find that to my amazement I can insure one for not much more then I pay now for a Cavalier GSi (I know, I know!!). But last year without upsetting anyone they were a selling for a lot of money this year they seem to have fallen. I would quite like a UK spec and think I would actually go for an auto, I have never owned an auto but I like the sound of the auto supe. So know I think they are within the price range I want to go to for my next car, I think because I don't drive that much I can afford the fuel bill. But I am very scared because you guys always talk of massive bills and expensive servicing. I like to think I can do almost anything on a car as long as I have a manual or something, but does servicing require specialist equipment or tools. In my mind a service is oil, filters, plugs sometimes brake components. I feel I could do all of these things so would general ownership still be really expensive for me? obviously I know about the worry of the turbos failing, but is the drivetrain going to fall apart without warning?. How are they doing body wise as well, the ones I have been looking at are old now 1993 ish are they going to need constant welding and spraying. Sorry for all the questions its just that every time I think I should get a more sensible car I feel like I am missing out so I want convincing that I should just get the supe!

[Fifty]

well Ive had mine 4 years

 

so far the only fails have been

 

1. Radiator, sprung a leak

2. aerial drive cable

3. coil pack clips

 

50000 miles travelled

 

normal servicing oil every 3000 miles, brake pads, tyres

 

body work not prone t serious rust around rear window is common like on mine

thats it

 

on the other hand my 306 diesel cost me 1200 quid when the camshaft parted company with the head

 

Rich

[The Raven]

Ive had all my work done by a nice garage and havent been charged any more than i would for a normal car.

 

That said mine is a N/A so things might be different with a TT

[markssupra]

No need for special tools for general servicing like you point out and not much more expensive than any other "normal" car. I dont find the supe much more expensive than an Mundano ST I used to have. Obviously the turbo's will fail at some point but the car wont suddenly fall apart on you if its been looked after properly. They are really quite reliable. Mines 14 years old this month with only 66K miles and no patch up welding or spraying

 

Dont be sensible, take the leap and have fun fun fun.

[Guest Geneb]

N/A or TT the local garage does mine no problem. you could always get one serviced cheap at a specialist garage like JDP or TF and you get a nice burger too..;..

[markssupra]

N/A or TT the local garage does mine no problem. you could always get one serviced cheap at a specialist garage like JDP or TF and you get a nice burger too..;..

 

Lol, burgers were the best bit by the sound of it.

[GT5500]

Ok I have been trawling through the forums, I have noticed that tyres cost a LOT!! but I really don't think I will be changing them often, I really don't like pulling big wheelspins, I tend to pull away smoothly which must prolong the life of the tyres. I have never really gone through tyres fast in any other cars, now granted none of them were 300bhp but surely they last long enough if you don't go drifting round corners all the time?. Another thing that caught my eye is brakes £400+ for discs and pads? ouch!!! but again surely under normal driving these last a while? So I know I can carry out the servicing myself but some of the service items seem really expensive, £70 for oil, is that right? and what the heck is toyota red coolant and why do you need that? do you really need iridium plugs at £60 a set? (funny story about them, my old man used to be a mechanic, he had a car that had been fitted with iridium plugs. The thing just wouldn't run right and in the end he checked the plugs, all 4 were breaking down from new, he fitted some standard NGK's and all was well!)

[markssupra]

I paid £40 odd for Silkolene pro s from Oilman on here. Toyota red coolant is premixed antifreeze, about £15 for 5 litres iirc.

[Suprasteve]

had mine nearly 5 years and only needed to change the pads once so far. However rear tyres i get through every 12 - 18 months. they're around £120 each (17inch).

[Guigsy]

Dont forget GT5500 this is an owners club and a lot of people think is very important to have the very best and nothing less for there car. Personay as long as you don't put a very cheep set of tyres on and make sure you have the correct oil etc then you will be fine. you shouldnt HAVE to run expensive oils, fancy plugs and race track pads and disks like some do.

[colsoop]

Ok I have been trawling through the forums, I have noticed that tyres cost a LOT!! but I really don't think I will be changing them often, I really don't like pulling big wheelspins, I tend to pull away smoothly which must prolong the life of the tyres. I have never really gone through tyres fast in any other cars, now granted none of them were 300bhp but surely they last long enough if you don't go drifting round corners all the time?

 

Tyres will last depending on your driving style and your alignment from 6k - 12k i normally replace with eagle f1's and they are around £110 for the rears and £90 for the fronts (stock 17" sizes)

 

 

Another thing that caught my eye is brakes £400+ for discs and pads? ouch!!! but again surely under normal driving these last a while?

 

front disks are £120 a pair (approx)

Rear disks are around £140 a pair.

 

Pads depending on spec range from £80 £120 a set of four.

 

 

So I know I can carry out the servicing myself but some of the service items seem really expensive, £70 for oil, is that right?

 

It depends on the spec of your car and the grade of oil used, i go with a 10w 50 oil and it is around £60 for 6 litres.

I tend to change my oil every 3 - 6 k depending on how it is driven and the state of the oil, oil filters are £8

 

and what the heck is toyota red coolant and why do you need that? do you really need iridium plugs at £60 a set? (funny story about them, my old man used to be a mechanic, he had a car that had been fitted with iridium plugs. The thing just wouldn't run right and in the end he checked the plugs, all 4 were breaking down from new, he fitted some standard NGK's and all was well!)

 

Toyota red coolant is just Toyota's own brand coolant, that is around £30 for 10 litres.

Some people use the iridiums (£45-50 a set and some go for the standard plugs (there is a guide to plug types for different levels of boost). The chaper plugs if changed regularly are known to work just fine when gapped correctly.

 

Some light reading:

 

http://www.mkivsupra.net/vbb/forumdisplay.php?f=64

 

http://www.mkivsupra.net/vbb/forumdisplay.php?f=60

 

http://www.mkivsupra.net/vbb/forumdisplay.php?f=65

 

The Supra is not an expensive car. But items will need replacing and it can add up to a fair old amount.

I know the cars aren't a lot of money to buy these days but remember they were £40k when brand new and so parts are reflected in that price.

Also note they can be very expensive if things go wrong so don't go cheap thinking you will save a few quid because you may not.

[dr_blackman]

In 9 months the only thing i've replaced was the original battery

 

Servicing I had a full service and cam belt change for about £430 (except changing the plugs)... On way from Nic at the mo lol....

 

Toyota state 9k servicing, some do it after 3k or 6k on here, I do my miles quite quick so I will do mine every 9k I think....

 

I love mine, do it

[supra steveo]

all i have done to mine is fan belt change full brake pads change, and ariel cord snapped so changed that and ive been through 2 sets of tyres in 3 and a half yrs of ownership the rest of the work ive done on the car was none essential like bodykit and blue led conversion leather seats etc, ive had my car serviced once by toyota, big mistake, uber cash involved there so do it my self now dont really keep a history either dont intend to sell the car

[Dave]

ive had mine for 3 years and had no probs at all breezes the mots

only tip is oil & filter change every 3 months and ive only had one set of front pads plus tyres of course .get one m8 youll be grining every time you drive it n/a or t.t :d:d:d

[GT5500]

:D:D:D Ooooooh I am getting excited its starting to sound like a good proposition now, another thing I thought is if I buy it and find its too much of a pocket drain I should be able to get my money back. I was starting to wonder if all the stories of 7k bills are from people with modded supe's? it seems as if people with std ones have very few problems. So just to confirm, the toyota red is just pre mixed water and anti freeze? so I could just run a decent anti freeze and normal water?. On a scale of 1-10 how hard is a cam belt change, bearing in mind I have been playing with engines for a few years now, the old man has about 35 years experience of every brand of car going, he has done cambelts on pretty much everything with the exception of v6's and v8's.

[The Raven]

:D:D:D Ooooooh I am getting excited its starting to sound like a good proposition now, another thing I thought is if I buy it and find its too much of a pocket drain I should be able to get my money back. I was starting to wonder if all the stories of 7k bills are from people with modded supe's? it seems as if people with std ones have very few problems. So just to confirm, the toyota red is just pre mixed water and anti freeze? so I could just run a decent anti freeze and normal water?. On a scale of 1-10 how hard is a cam belt change, bearing in mind I have been playing with engines for a few years now, the old man has about 35 years experience of every brand of car going, he has done cambelts on pretty much everything with the exception of v6's and v8's.

 

He would piss a belt change, as for toyota red i hear it wont mix with water and cause all kinda issues if you did.

[mwilkinson]

The main expense with the Supra is modifying. As most of my colleagues will back me up, once you get use to the power you just want a little more.....and then some more....oh yes and then a little more .

 

Naturally once you start doing this, as with any car the costs both for parts and general running go up. Its no big secret just common sense.

 

Hence if you just want a lovely looking, fun car, the Supras it!! Lets face it there are dog ugly dull cars out there like BMWs!! (He awaits the bullets!! )

[snake]

[markssupra]

:D:D:D Ooooooh I am getting excited its starting to sound like a good proposition now, another thing I thought is if I buy it and find its too much of a pocket drain I should be able to get my money back. I was starting to wonder if all the stories of 7k bills are from people with modded supe's? it seems as if people with std ones have very few problems. So just to confirm, the toyota red is just pre mixed water and anti freeze? so I could just run a decent anti freeze and normal water?. On a scale of 1-10 how hard is a cam belt change, bearing in mind I have been playing with engines for a few years now, the old man has about 35 years experience of every brand of car going, he has done cambelts on pretty much everything with the exception of v6's and v8's.

 

Cam belt is easy to do once you get the crank pulley bolt undone

[GT5500]

The main expense with the Supra is modifying. As most of my colleagues will back me up, once you get use to the power you just want a little more.....and then some more....oh yes and then a little more .

 

Naturally once you start doing this, as with any car the costs both for parts and general running go up. Its no big secret just common sense.

 

Hence if you just want a lovely looking, fun car, the Supras it!! Lets face it there are dog ugly dull cars out there like BMWs!! (He awaits the bullets!! )

 

Famous last words but if I got one the only mods I would want is a nice exhaust, suspension tweaks and if I could afford it RCLT, I think they are plenty fast enough std:rolleyes:. I know everyone says this and although I am into modded cars there are some things I think are best left well alone....like engines:p. That last bit you said though is the reason I made this post, I have run loads of different cars through my head and initially wanted a supe but then decided I should get something more sensible. The problem is every time I get on the ole trader I look at a few cars and think "hmm not quite a supe though", don't even get me started on what happens when a nice supe drives past....My brother recently bought a 530i and while thats a nice car I gave it a wringing out and I nearly fell asleep, it has no feeling of acceleration and didn't feel exciting at all, now the EVO IV I drove did this :d:d to me for a week I hope a supe is even better!

[adam bell]

the evo 4 for is no where near how an evo should be until till you drive a 5 or 6 you wont get what i mean.

my evo cost me a lot to run as i had a problem with my ayc that was over 1000 to get fixed so if money maybe an issue dont get one

[Suprash]

Your not going to be happy in anything else other then a Supra are you .

 

To me it sounds like your being a little over cautious and probably hearing stories from the handfull of memebers that throw stupid amounts of money at their cars, like me most times, but in standard trim, I dont think you will have any worries with the servicing.

 

I spend a lot of money of my car, but even still I cant justify spending much more then £500/£600 for 4 tyres, I run Falken 452's, there fairly cheap compared to some of the other named brands, they might not be as good, but the grip levels in the dry to me an average Joe Bloggs cant tell the difference, in the wet I notice they dont have as much grip but then I tend to be a litte cautios in the wet.......

 

I think you need to starting looking for the Supra that you want, there's a lot out there so shop around.

 

But I tell you now, as soon as you drive her home, you wont look back, wonder why the hell you didnt do it sooner, and love her more then any other car you have ever owned.......I gaurantee that....

[hoff]

I just bought mine without thinking about the cost afterwards. I just wanted a supra. As its turned out Ive not had anything particually go wrong and servicing isn't to bad. My cash has been spent doing things on the outside:)

[markssupra]

 

But I tell you now, as soon as you drive her home, you wont look back, wonder why the hell you didnt do it sooner, and love her more then any other car you have ever owned.......I gaurantee that....

 

[GT5500]

the evo 4 for is no where near how an evo should be until till you drive a 5 or 6 you wont get what i mean.

my evo cost me a lot to run as i had a problem with my ayc that was over 1000 to get fixed so if money maybe an issue dont get one

 

You misunderstood, I don't want an EVO IV,I drove my mates one and it made me very happy, if the V and VI's are evn better they must be awesome. I was actually implying that I think the Supra would make me happy for the whole month rather then just a week:D in an ar5e about face way I was trying to say that I want a car to make me smile and I think the supra is the only one that will do it, aside from some 40k+ cars:rolleyes: