Why yes, I would like to race a beater

[M bones]

Hey guys, just logged onto this site for some help with my......
24 hours of LeMons race car. Yup, I just picked up a MK2 Supra for $450 and plan to run it in the Detroit race in September. Our team wanted something distinctive, memorable, reliable and reasonably quick, I think the Supra fits the bill.
The body and interior are horrendous but the engine runs strong and the manual trans seems solid. A couple questions for all your MK2 gurus out there: the beast has a saggy butt which makes for some excessive camber, plus when going over big bumps the left rear corner drops more than the right. Blown shocks, useless old springs? Also, I get some nasty steering wheel shake above 55. The tires are ancient so I feel they may be a big culprit, any other common causes I should know about? I can't wait to get some fresh rubber on it. On that topic, it seems nobody makes 225/60/R14s anymore except BFG (T/A radials) and Yoko (Avis). Any opinions on these two tires? Too bad Falken Azenis don't come in this size. I could always buy bigger wheels but that's loot I don't have and I prefer the classic look.
Any advice is appreciated, thank guys.

[Tire Shredder]

awesome!! great to here somebody doing this. we as a group were talking about getting something together should be great! will be awesome to see a supra representing for the beaters haha.

springs can go a bit soft overtime, though not incredibly common...most likely blown shocks all around causing the bouncing and sagging, it's a good place to start.

as for virbrations, there are no known common issues with the supra's front end, most likely you have scalloped tires and or wheels that are out of balance due to a previous owner driving around with blown shocks.....shocks and new tires would probably fix this.

both BFGs and yokos are decent tires. I've heard more good things about the yokos than the BFGs though (rain etc mainly). falken ziex 502s were the best tire for us, unfortunatley discontinued not too long ago.

Change all the fluids and maybe give everything a good retorque (headsbolts etc.) although the 5mge is not known for headgasket failures, if your car has a ton of miles and you will be racing it, it may be a good idea to make sure all the bolts are good and tight (72ft/lbs is good).

hopefully you can find some good shocks for cheap, and maybe some new(er) springs!

should be a great car for the competition.

keep us posted, we love pictures here!

[hereiam]

Make sure the diff is topped up. Can you really go much over 55 on that track?

[TorqueMasterJay]

The rear of these Supras all look like they have been cambered. Prolly why they handle so well. Replace the shocks...perhaps with some coil-over adjustables. If yer sticking with the old rims, you can get several different tires for it. Try to see if you can find these...
265/50/14 for the rears. I took these off so I would have them if I ever found myself racing Rallycross again. They look pretty tight on the car too. I dun got tha munny to buy them spiffy 17's everyone else is sporting.

[M bones]

Yeah, I guess the rear geometry just sets it up for a lot of camber (like bimmers) so they handle well around the bendys.
So torquemasterjay, you can fit a 2'65' tire on the 7" rim? Woah. Are those BFG T/As I see in the picture?
Thanks for the advice on the Diff fluid. Looking at the diff, it looks a little juicy, so I will definitely check that. What is the best replacement? Redline MT90?
There is some subtle constant noise coming from the rear drivetrain. I'm told by the PO that this is from noisy axle bearings "which is a common Supra problem, no real big deal". What are your thoughts?
I'd like to post pics of the beast but the little "posting rules" box at the bottom says I can't post attachments. The fix? It is so wonderfully nasty looking and it will get ridiculous looking as we prepare it for the race, I must share the progress!

[M bones]

Can we go much over 55 on that track- doubt it. I think it will be a 2nd and 3rd gear track which is fine by me. I'd say 80% of the time will be spent in the corners so that makes it easier on the engine and brakes. Just have to get some good rubber...

[supra_toy]

I had some vibration problems a while back. Turned out I'd thrown a wheel weight. Could be as simple as having the tires balanced. This was after replacement of the ball joints and tie rods diden't solve the problem. some times its the simple stuff.

hth

will

[M bones]

Here's our beast:
http://forums.celicasupra.com/showth...d=1#post364024

[Mercuralis]

Some of the guys here have developed a good method of "capping off" the power steering. Basically eliminating the power steering, but still making it managable and easy to drive. Might come in handy if it looks like your PS is going out. (Mine went out, so I'm just throwing that out there. lol)

I'm sure the weight reduction mentioned would really help as well. I can't think of any MKIIs that didn't come with A/C, heat, and power windows. Might be able to pull out alot of those little things to drop the weight quite a bit.

[Dean]

Check out my website for some cheap and easy mods. Link is in my signature. Intake, headers, exhaust, suspension, advance timing, etc.

Also, check out weight reduction info here
http://www3.sympatico.ca/dean.anderson4/weights.html

Good luck and have fun!