1991 Supra NON turbo 5 speed

[loanshark]

There is a local 91 Supra for sale, 5 speed. Has 130K miles, original owner. I have always liked these cars, but can't find any info about them.

1) How is the reliablity?
2) How slow/fast is it compared to the ae92 corollas?
3) 1/4 mile times, so I can guage how they are?

4) What should be the going price? Straight body, all records?

5) What should I look for specifically when checking out this car?

I had 2 Soarer/SC300, does the 91 Supra 5 speed drive anything similar to that?

Appreciate it. May join the club soon....

[jon_570]

see if the Headgaskets ever been changed. check for rust where the spare tire is and the little pockets in the trunk. have to remove covers with knobs to get to this area. take the car for a drive listen for weird noises.

[loanshark]

Thanks John. They are asking $3500 for the car. I just bought the AE92 Corolla couple of weeks ago for a beater. Now looking at it, the Supra might be better, more torque, looks better, yada yada yada.

The head gasket on these cars, how often do they need to be changed?

If it hasn't been changed yet, should I walk away?

Woman owned.

[loanshark]

Just talked to woman on the phone.

1) She doesn't remember if timing belt/water pump was ever changed

2) Car has been minimally driven in the last 2.5 years. She is living in TX for business, and when she comes back to CALI she uses it a bit. Her baby sit doesn't fit in the back, thus she is selling.

3)THere is two issues. Front bumper is scratched, and so is rear bumper.

4) INterior is immaculate.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
What do you guys think is a fair price for the car? Also anyone know 1/4 mile and 0-60 time for this car? Just trying to gauge how slow/fast it is to the corolla coupe. Thanks

[emiliorescigno]

1) It's very dependent on how well the previous owner took care of the car, and the headgasket status. To be brutally honest, these Supras are usually ragged on and will have pretty serious engine issues related to many other parts of the car, not just the headgasket. Expect to have to pull the motor, machine the block and head, and add a metal head gasket to get genuine reliability.

*Note* Usually N/As are more reliable since they haven't been driven as hard usually.

2) Night and Day, weather or not the Supra is N/A or Turbo will just dictate how much faster it is. My two cars prior to my MKIII Supra were two '91 Corollas, trust me, they're slow.

3) Not good stock, easy to make quicker if you have a turbo.

4) A better question to ask should be if you should even be willing to buy a car without those things. Be careful with these cars, especially considering how they can be treated.

5) Rust, coolant leaks, smoke, the "birdcage" warning light. To make sure it's in decent running order, turn the car on, go have a cup of coffee, and once the car is at normal operating temp, rev it hard in neutral. Does smoke come out? You decide if you want to deal with that or not (trust me, don't).