What engines were in the 89 supra?

[Wolfie]

I'm looking into buying a 89 supra (89 and 94 are my fav models), there are two cars there interest me but one says it has a "4 cylinder Twin turbo" and the other says "6 cylinder turbo" so I'm wondering what engines they came out with and when I inspect the cars what engine should I look at for being the better of the 2?

the 6 cylinder one has been modded and has a rebuilt turbo system among other things. The 6 is appealing but the twin turbo one is very appealing as its a 4 cylinder (cheaper on rego/insurance)...which performance wise would you pick?

sorry for all the questions, but if you know which engines are the better I'll be sure to check that out.

[Wolfie]

ok pictures from one (the 6 cylinder) has XX-GTE...I cant make out the first two digits as its covered by one of the pipes because of the angle taken in the photo.

[damone]

The two engines that were available were the 7M-GTE and the 7M-GE.. With the GTE being turbocharged, and the GE was naturally aspirated..

I've never heard of a 4cylinder in a Supra (correct me if im wrong) Someone could have swapped it in there (a 3S-GTE perhaps??)

[Wolfie]

Thanks, I think I'll go with the 7M-GTE supra then...the other one could be a typo or it has had an engine swap, I like the 3S-GTE engine but I've seen some very good performance output from the 7M-GTE. On car domain theres a 89 Supra with 661hp and his given me some tips on where to start in the mod department.

I just need a car to get me back on the track...Supra is the way to go IMO.

[Wolfie]

one last thing, its a auto...are 5 speed manuel boxes for the 7M-GTE hard to get and would I need a new drive shaft if I did a replacement?

[bgrieger]

Actually, in your market, there was one more engine in 89. The three were 7M-GTE (3L, 6cyl single turbo), 7M-GE (3L, 6cyl normally aspirated), and the somewhat rarer 1G-GTE (2L 6cylinder twin turbo). Perhaps also, it could be an engine swap in the other car for the 91 & 92 offering: the 1JZ-GTE (2.5L, 6 cyl, twin turbo). In terms of power, the 1G and the 7M-GE were in and about the same neighborhood (200ish HP), with the GE getting more torque from stroke and displacement, the GTE got 230 HP, and the 1J had 280 HP stock.

Yes, painfully, the driveshafts are different. Differential is the same though!

Bob

[Wolfie]

Thanks for the info, I'm expecting some cash to come through in the next few weeks and when I inspect the cars I'll post more about it. But If I get it for the right price I may be able to get a custom driveshaft made, which is a pain in the butt as I had to do that with a Ford V8 I owned a little while ago...but for the environment I'll be using the car manuel is the only way to go.

From the pictures I've been sent and I've sent off an email it looks more like 7M-GTE rather then 1G-GTE, and the decider is it says its a 3.0L which means 7M-GTE.With the Single turbo I may do a little work and put a larger turbo in, new ECU chip and tinker with the stock engine without spending a fortune on it (so no bling bling like chrome and alloy everything).

Might look into later model Supra rims for it too, has some ugly 16" on it...

[damone]

just a few tips if you plan on goin with the 7M-GTE, it sounds like you've done a little research on the car so Im sure you know about the headgasket, and will address that issue first off..

Also, until you plan on making huge power, the engine will be fine stock.. The 7M block on stock internals has been tested good well into the 600hp range..

There is no "chip" as the ECU's in our cars are not flashable.. If you see someone offering a chip, its probably a a resisitor of some type (not good) You can buy a re-programmed ECU (reg reimer, Techtom, etc.) but IMO is not worth the cost.. Huge $$ for not a whole lot of power.. You would be better off going with a standalone system..

There are quite a few newb guides to modifiying the supra that give you a decent guide as to what should be done and when..

[Jeeves]

You would be better off going with a standalone system..

Damone, you give good advice but you're wrong in this point. Yes, many people go to stand alones to simplify matters and to give more control, but the high power, 7m's continue to be cars running the stock computer but utilizing the VPC/S-AFC combo.

[damone]

Good point Jeeves!

[Wolfie]

http://www.supras.nl/view.php?page=maintenanceBHG.htm


^^^ I read about the headgasket on this site. The supra I did want sold yesterday and had a HKS headgasket replacement done. Which is why I really wanted that car for the base of what I want to do, that and the new turbo on it was really decent...but I guess thats the way things go. There are quite a few supra's that hit the market so I know its just one chance lost out of many.

If you know of any good sites about the 7M-GTE engine could you please post them up...I know V8's well after teaching myself and I'll do the same with the more modern engines with technical electronics.


This car is prodominently going to be a fun car for playing around with, driving to work and taking to the drag strip. my big dollars will be spent on a 1994 - 2000 model supra when I move to the US in 2 years time...I wanna fully trick one of the Targa models out, full tear down with custom interior. Just a dream for now but my line of work pays big within the US, and from my training I'll be able to make custom parts for my cars.

Thanks for all your help guys!

[Ne0z31]

but why spend a bunch of money on the VPC/S-AFC when a Standalone or even E-Manage is simply a few hundred away, i mean, if your gonna do it, do it right

oh, and althought the MKIV Supra is an awsome car, and has one of the best toyota engines ever made... the targa model isnt that amazing, get a hard top and race the beast at the track, lol, and naturally keep it tame enough (although there have been 950+ street driven supra's) to drive around town...

With supras, dont waist money on the cheaper end of things, go balls deep (unless its god damned HKS where they feel obligated to make everything cost more than its worth... lol)

[Jeeves]

but why spend a bunch of money on the VPC/S-AFC when a Standalone or even E-Manage is simply a few hundred away, i mean, if your gonna do it, do it right

Because, like I said. If you look at 7mpower.com, all the power is being made on the stock ECU, not aftermarket ECU's. You'll also note we're not talking about MK4 Supras here.

[bgrieger]

Standalone only a few hundred away? For the cheapies perhaps and that's only the list price of the computer itself. At least the others came with the required bits and harnesses.

Installed yourself with the required bits and pieces will easily cross well into the 2000 range. If you can't install it and get it running yourself (not including tuning), double that to do it right. Tuning will run into the $500 range to cap it off, but you'd have to pay near that for the VPC/F-CON to be dialed in correctly too.

I prefer the standalone route myself, as perfect running under all conditions can be set up, but there is a substantial cost to it. The power is there doing it on the sly as well, but all have the odd little quirk, usually with idle and off throttle conditions where blowing it up isn't going to happen. VPC/Emanage/Lexus-550 mod have proven capable time and time again.

Bob

[Wolfie]

Thanks for all your tips guys...if I can sell my cars within the next week (had alot of offers so far) I may possibly have a 1990 Supra already modified. Before it had a full rebuild he has dyno slips showing 298rwhp, currently since rebuild and additions its done 800km's so the engine is still being run in.

Mind you his asking only $10k Australian, the guys moving overseas in a months time so I may have got it at an oppurtunistic moment. Fingers crossed that I can get the cash together in time...