OMG - Tom's goes restomod with to-die-for Supra
Legendary Toyota tuner celebrates its 50th birthday with new way to part JDM fans from their hard-earned...
Tom’s is to Toyota what Brabus is to Mercedes, AC Schnitzer to BMW and Manthey to Porsche. Anyone’s who ever binge-watched Best Motoring videos will be familiar with their mad creations, while the iconic Castrol-liveried Supra is legendary among Gran Turismo players. Now entering its 50th year, the Japanese tuner has announced it’s throwing its hat into the restomod ring - and boy has it come out swinging.
This, folks, is Tom’s first creation: a reimagining of the A80 Toyota Supra. Okay, so the fourth generation Supra isn’t exactly old by restomod standards, but given their immense popularity these days (and the fact that they were pretty far from luxury cars when new) Tom’s obviously feels like there are buyers out there for the Supra of their rose-tinted dreams. Its first restomod sports TRD’s (one of Toyota’s many official tuning arms) 3000GT bodykit, mirroring that of the firm’s old Supra racing cars, a set of gold Potenza wheels and a much bolder green colour than was offered stock. Looks ace, doesn’t it?
There’s no official word on what’s changed underneath, although word on the street is the stock 2JZ inline-six has been left alone. That means 280hp in twin-turbo JDM guise, though Tom’s will surely oblige if you ask them to up the power a touch. Elsewhere, there are beefier Tom’s-branded Brembo brakes with drilled discs, while the interior has been given a makeover with Bride seats that look far more modern than what came before. Again, Tom’s hasn’t said how much its new restomod comes to, but CarBuzz reckons it’s 25,000,000 yen, or £135,000 - half the price of the options list of this Singer DLS.
The Supra’s just the start, of course. Tom’s has already carried out more traditional restorations on other Toyota classics, including the original Celica, AE86 Trueno and the second-generation MR2, with more models set to be added to its portfolio in the near future. So if you want your tatty old Toyota spruced up a bit, but aren’t keen on the gold wheels and wide body kit of the A80, Tom’s still has you covered. Whether it’d accept a ratty first-gen Yaris that’s spent half its life in the corner of a British cul-de-sac is another matter…
“And, the fact they were pretty far from luxury when they were new” . . I take it you mean by today’s standards? And 280hp for a tt . . . Mmmmm, I had a basic bpu and dyno’d at over 400hp so I don’t think it was 280 from the factory more like the claimed 320+!
Maybe the articles lacking detail but I'm really not understanding why you'd spend that much to be stuck halfway between stock and modified?
If they were making a totally stock-looking car but with all uprated components (think Singer) then I'd get it, but as it is it is I'm just not seeing the point.
I picked up a low mileage A80 TT6 a few years ago as it was one of my hero cars that I'd always wanted. BPU mods and some decent coilovers which I had set up properly.
I found it totally overrated. It made a nice noise and went well, but really it was just a big boosty GT without any real finesse. Which I guess is exactly what it was designed to be. Got loads of positive attention, but it wasn't much fun on a B road blast. On a sunny morning for a run out, I'd take the keys to it's MR2 Turbo stablemate every time. It may lack the street / Instagram cred, but it's is a better driver's car and actually feels more special more of the time.
I sold the Supra and the young chap who bought it seemed very happy with it. Maybe my expectations were too high. Hopefully he's still enjoying it. I do see his pictures on Instagram on occasion and it looks like he is.
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