Mk3 Supra or 300zx?
Author
Discussion

raw1981

Original Poster:

157 posts

227 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
OK, so I've found a couple of likely prospects.

A manual mk 3 supra non turbo. does strike me as being a lot of car for the money and maybe wont be quite as thirsty as a turbo, but still plenty of poke. Having said that its 1700kg, which is a heavy mother.

Or a 300zx. It looks like a drug dealers car. or maybe a pornographer. But I do like the looks. I like the driving position, but I bet its a pig in traffic. I test drove one at the weekend and it was a flier! Engine bay is very tightly packed, I bet its a bh to work on. Its a lot more expensive too.

I'm thinking the supra as it'll be easier to work on, plenty of performance, slightly better build quality (except the cylinder head gaskets) slightly cheaper to run and substantially cheaper to buy.

Masses of mk3 Supras in Northern Ireland for some reason.

Any thoughts people?

BarnatosGhost

34,090 posts

282 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
I'd think you'd get a lot more 300ZX for your money, but the Supra is ultimately by far the better car.

OzzyR1

6,366 posts

261 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
raw1981 said:
Masses of mk3 Supras in Northern Ireland for some reason.
I'm sure that a recent Norn Iron poster in another thread on here recently said that above 2.5L the road tax is now €800/year!!

Probably not that attractive a proposition on a car worth circa €2K.

Jazoli

9,649 posts

279 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
I'd have the Supra, neither are pigs in traffic, they are just cars, the 300 will be cheaper to buy but they can be troublesome and space is an issue under bonnet.

I had a decent run in a 300TT a few years ago and it was a flyer, the Supra is the better car though, as long as its not festooned in Veilside tat.

tuborgman

150 posts

207 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
OzzyR1 said:
raw1981 said:
Masses of mk3 Supras in Northern Ireland for some reason.
I'm sure that a recent Norn Iron poster in another thread on here recently said that above 2.5L the road tax is now €800/year!!

Probably not that attractive a proposition on a car worth circa €2K.
think thats southern ireland and it's €800 on a 2.2,
for 3 litre plus it's just shy of €1600
oh and new cars that have a co2 over 226 g/km will pay €2100, so uk buyers don't have it to bad,
op personaly i'd go for the 300zx as i prefer the looks, although i hanker after a mk supra for some reason.

Edited by tuborgman on Wednesday 25th August 14:06

BUG4LIFE

2,518 posts

247 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
Is there any point in having a Supra without the turbo's - that's like going to a posh resturant and being given beans and toast, or dating Kelly Brook but never being aloud to look at her smile

Edited by BUG4LIFE on Wednesday 25th August 14:05

Dakkon

7,832 posts

282 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
The non turbo Supra is a tad tame to be honest.

Big Rod

6,265 posts

245 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
I had a MKIII NA Supra a few years ago. Lovely car but was a money pit. I'd have another one, but it'd have to be the turbocharged one OR a 2.5 twin turbo import. I really miss it TBH and was looking at a couple before I recently bought my Zed TT.

I currently have a 300ZX. I do like it, but I'm having a running battling with incessant breakages. The car has become somewhat incontinent of late. It's a bit of an expensive mistress. Had the cam belt and some other odds and ends done a wee while ago at a specialist and there wasn't much change form £800. Having said that, it's a 21 year old car, so I can't really complain. At the time the car was a technical 'tour de force'. 3.0 V6 24v with VVT they also came with HICAS 4WS.

The Zed is more powerful off the shelf, both are tuneable.

Whatever way you go, make sure you buy the best one you can afford as a cheap one is highly likely to be false economy.


raw1981

Original Poster:

157 posts

227 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
If I get a good solid na supra, I'd have a good base to start with. How hard would it be to fit a turbo? Easy to get chipped?

Also with tax, I thought older cars had a standard £190 per year if they're pre 2000 or summat. dont tell me theyve changed it!

clarkey328is

2,220 posts

203 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
raw1981 said:
If I get a good solid na supra, I'd have a good base to start with. How hard would it be to fit a turbo? Easy to get chipped?

Also with tax, I thought older cars had a standard £190 per year if they're pre 2000 or summat. dont tell me theyve changed it!
Talking about Republic of Ireland tax.

Original Poster

5,429 posts

205 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
Supra all day long IMO.

MrPickle

139 posts

193 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
I sway towards the Supra.
I love the look of the 300ZX but heard of some daft prices for parts?

Big Rod

6,265 posts

245 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
raw1981 said:
If I get a good solid na supra, I'd have a good base to start with. How hard would it be to fit a turbo? Easy to get chipped?

Also with tax, I thought older cars had a standard £190 per year if they're pre 2000 or summat. dont tell me theyve changed it!
NA's aren't very tuneable. Buy a turbo!

Hell27

1,564 posts

220 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
Big Rod said:
raw1981 said:
If I get a good solid na supra, I'd have a good base to start with. How hard would it be to fit a turbo? Easy to get chipped?

Also with tax, I thought older cars had a standard £190 per year if they're pre 2000 or summat. dont tell me theyve changed it!
NA's aren't very tuneable. Buy a turbo!
Turbos are good.
They can do this.................

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmNy-ajRV0U

anonymous-user

83 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
Get a Soarer.

Better cars that both of them put together.

cptsideways

13,884 posts

281 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
Supra is a better car for DIY stuff, but the 3.0L 7M Turbo engine is rather troublesome. UK cars rot for England too.

If you really want one get the 2.5TT import version, loads better in every respect but quite rare & sought after.

Alternatively get a Soarer which is a Mk4 Supra in a frock but came with the 2.5TT, 3.0i & 4.0L V8 versions

Variel

174 posts

220 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
Hell27 said:
Big Rod said:
raw1981 said:
If I get a good solid na supra, I'd have a good base to start with. How hard would it be to fit a turbo? Easy to get chipped?

Also with tax, I thought older cars had a standard £190 per year if they're pre 2000 or summat. dont tell me theyve changed it!
NA's aren't very tuneable. Buy a turbo!
Turbos are good.
They can do this.................

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmNy-ajRV0U
A Mkiv Supra, not a Mkiii...

Answer: Get a Twin-Turbo Mkiv Supra...

J-Tuner

2,855 posts

272 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
As a previous owner or a modified mk3 turbo, i would say that its a waste of time getting an N/A - you will be disappointed.

The turbo brings its own set of problems with the heat from the turbo causing headgasket issues. I think i read somewhere that they bolted a turbo on as an afterthought in response to the mazda rx7 being released. i could be wrong on that however....

The 7m-gte engine otherwise is a nice engine when its had a decent head/block skim and a HKS steel gasket fitted. I think i was running 8-10psi on the standard turbo. You will need some shocks and lowering springs (i used KYB kit which was great), and a decent diff at the very least, and if you want some extra performance ditch the electric seats, superb as they may be they weigh a ton !

Otherwise a nice car to drive, and really do get a move on when in good tune (despite the weight).

Cheers

Steve

Edited by J-Tuner on Wednesday 25th August 19:44

Kenny-Mack

197 posts

225 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
if your getting one get the twin turbo MK3 Supra (Kinda rare i'm told)

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1998166.htm

Thats one a friend of mine is selling, he's had a few, this thing can shift! ... Sounds good too!

In response to the 7M-GTE engine, Head Gasket issues are stupidly common, and the engine isn't that impressive, certainly not when you have driven anything else that has decent performance ... EVO's, MK4 Supras, Late Spec MR2 Turbos e.c.t. they all seem to offer much more GO than the 7M

raw1981

Original Poster:

157 posts

227 months

Wednesday 25th August 2010
quotequote all
OK guys, just to put things in perspective, the 2.5 tt mk3 supra is around £4000, an NA 3.0 with fsh, head gasket dealt with and manual gearbox is coming in at £1250. ok, it wont be a top shelf performer, but is it not possible to add a turbo charger to the standard engine?

Although a 285 bhp road rocket is definitely worth saving for. (means i cant afford it right now).

Hey, see if I import one of those twin turbo bad boys via one of the import companies- would I have to pay post 2000 tax rates on it? According to the road tax website, if the vehicle is registered before 2001, you pay either £210 or less if the engine cc is less than 1600. but what if the vehicle is built in 1992 but isnt registered in the uk until 2010? I dont fancy handing over £500 in road tax.