8 years, 7 months and 4 days...

[turboBB]

That's the total amount of time Gumji (gum-gee, '95 Supra TT) was kept in captivitiy by a negligent body shop who was supposed to "repair" her (this is a real long story and warrants its own thread).

When we first got her back, she was such a wreck and was basically in various stages of disassembly in order to accomodate the repairs she originally went in for. However, we discovered that during her time in captivity, she was broken into and the interior was brutally gutted of all the A/V equipment and a thick layer of dust completely engulfed everything. Given the extensive amount of work and lack of resources, I was a bit disheartened at a restoration project but after seeing Keylan's (DA MAN!!!) thread, I'm determined to get Gumji back in shape regardless of how long it'll take.

For now, given that the car has been in "storage" for so long, I'll need to replace all the fluids and whatever other serviceable parts (especially the timing belt) before even attempting to start her up. Can someone please recommend a top notch repair shop in Northern NJ (Bergen county).

I'd attempt this on my own but lack the equipment (need to drain out the full gas tank and don't have a 18.5 gal barrel to store it) to accomodate everything that needs to be done.

I ran a search but didn't see anything for shops near me. Please help!

Thanks in advance!,
Tim

[AF1JZ]

Glad you got her back....Now let's see some pictures. Even if they aren't happy times.

[eman2289]

Broadway Performance in Passaic. A lot of north jersey guys swear by them. John is very honest and wants everything done right. The first time. It will cost a little more than normally, but the work is top notch. Give him a call. BTW My car is there right now.
broadway-performance.com

[LilMissMkIII]

Welcome mate :)

Post some pics if you can :)

[turboBB]

Thx for the support guys and EMAN, thx for the referral. Spoke to John and I feel assured that Gumji will be in good hands.

Here are the pics...

Day she came back with 1999 registration sticker still on (has been in shop since 8/9/1999):
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3205/2343543985_95976317ba_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3040/2343544165_f1ebcb7d93_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2257/2344374726_f67b174aae_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2313/2343544291_65ea124987_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3231/2344374882_d58471c010_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2121/2344375018_49e6acc5c0_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2185/2343544557_b14aec5cf2_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3051/2344375108_484b776b81_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2053/2343544673_beab2ace6a_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2182/2343544725_98e0313b0b_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3271/2343544869_c1d7b4f00b_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3035/2343544973_f2e247a3de_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3113/2343545061_84f89878c1_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2340/2343545161_470efcb32d_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2311/2344375760_79a9083df5_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2026/2343545315_318d09dd86_o.jpg

Had the rims painted, boy those 17" sure look tiny by today's standards!
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3165/2343545395_0849b9fb24_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3149/2343545479_4fa4a9d3e8_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3061/2343545545_809a113468_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3005/2343545619_0fcde176b0_o.jpg

[AF1JZ]

Holy crap...That thing was raped. I can't wait to see it all come back together.

[Supracentral]

I've honestly seen worse. I say this not to belittle the amount of work you have ahead of you, but to let you know that it's not as bad as you think. The Supra is one hell of a well built car, and has probably survived these years of neglect not much worse off.

[AF1JZ]

This one for example SC?

http://www.supramania.com/forums/showthread.php?t=60806

[Dunckel]

I am wondering how many miles are on the car? If it hasn't been driven in almost 9 years. I wish I could take nine years off of my car.

[hottscennessey]

It's a time capsule!

[Tire Shredder]

little spit and shine, a fender and some trim pieces....good as new! best of luck!

[turboBB]

Thx for the well wishes everyone and yeah, it actually isn't as bad I had initially thought. It's certainly peanuts compared to Keylan's project (can't wait to see his car up and running!).

As for a time capsule, funny you should mention that. I found a receipt in the car dated about a week before the accident cuz I had work done to recharge the A/C and it lists the mileage at the time at 41,134. Figure it's just a bit higher than that so maybe around 41,500 or so.

I will definitely post pics as progress is made but it won't be any time soon since I have very little time and resources to assign to her right now. In the meanwhile, I'm creating a checklist of things I should replace before getting her started again:

Engine oil + filter
AT Fluid + filter
Gas + fuel filter
Differential oil
P/S fluid
Brake fluid
Replace brake lines with braided SS
Brake pads
Resurface rotors
All belts (especially timing)
Coolant
A/C refrigerant
Inspect and replace hoses as is necessary

Anything else you guys can think of? And also, do you think I need to replace the plugs? (I purchased the car used in 97 with about 28K on the ODO and they've never been done to my knowledge).

Thank you all for your support!

[DegreE]

All she needs is a little seafoam.

[Supracentral]

41,500.. Jesus.

My 95 hardtop's odo:

http://www.supracentral.com/private/Photo_031808_003.jpg

I wish I could find a stock MKIV with that kind of mileage.

[steveyblack]

yah its not to bad, to be honest, you can put together the interior by your self and clean it up...as for the fluids, i say replace everything...you know if there is gas is there? Im sure you can bring it to any mechanic and give them it, just like oil...it has gas in there thats worth only 1$ at the time...lmao...

if you need any help hit me up, im not to far from you

[turboBB]

it has gas in there thats worth only 1$ at the time...lmao...
if you need any help hit me up, im not to far from you

LOL!!! Man, you're right!! Gas was only about a buck at that time... :biglaugh: sigh... sure wish that still was the case... :3d_frown:

And thanks for the offer of assist, I'll definitely ping you if I need help.

[Tire Shredder]

i'm sure the shop would do this, but I'd put a couple drops of oil in each spark plug hole before turning it over for the first time. The rings may want to stick to the cylinder wal for sitting for so long, the oil may ease the process. Disable the fuel injection and crank the engine over several times until you see good oil pressure.

new gas will be a must as mentioned.

[eman2289]

so your car is going up to broadway performance? If so, good choice and I can't wait to see it finished.

[supramanocnsd]

thats a stock looking motor... and a TT auto...hmmm who did that yellow on the seats?

[turboBB]

Well, not so certain about which way to go with the repairs now. As much as I'm dying to get the car up and running there's a certain satisfaction to repairing this on my own (accepting and realizing my limitations that is...). The only thing I'm not familiar with is bleeding brakes but I've heard it's not too hard.

Yup, that's a stock motor and auto tranny. The car was intended for my wife but unfortuantely she never really got to enjoy it, thus there's more incentive for me to personally see to its restoration. Performance was never a top consideration in terms of mods. As you can see, the intake is the only upgrade on the car performance wise. Even the exhaust is stock. As for the color scheme, Gumji actually originally came with a biege interior. As black/yellow is my fav color combo, we had it completely redone and the body shop outsourced the seat reupholstery so I'm not sure who did it.

I'll attempt to work on it this weekend starting with fluid draininage and will see how it goes from there. Will post updated pics thereafter.

One thing I'd like to ask for a recommendation on is a replacement battery. I had an Optima put in due to the stereo set up but since that's all gone now, I don't think I need it. The last set up I had was loud enough to win DB contests (according to Bruce @ Sound Effects which is sadly no longer in biz). I will eventually put in a decent system but nothing crazy like I had. The focus on the new setup will be on sound quality and not loudness so no large subs or huge amps/caps required. Given this, which battery would you guys recommend?

[JustinGotA1j]

How did the shop manage to keep the car for 9 years? Seems wierd to me. Care to get into a few details on this? Very nice car to by the way; I can't wait to see it finished.

[turboBB]

How did the shop manage to keep the car for 9 years? Seems wierd to me. Care to get into a few details on this? Very nice car to by the way; I can't wait to see it finished.

Considering we finally just got over the fact that the car is sitting in our garage and not in "The name that shall not be uttered for we nearly spit blood every time we think of that F@#$@#!!!"'s (F@#$@#!!!"'s) shop, I'd actually care not to discuss it lest I keel over from high blood pressure. :icon_evil

If there was ever a situation that can define Murphy's Law, I think this would be it. In terms of trying to get the car back:

a) I've tried BBB and small claims court (value of car exceeded $3K threshold so they couldn't do anything)
b) I've contacted lawyers ("Are you certain you'd like to pursue this? I mean, it's not like it's a Ferrari so you may end up spending more on legal fees than the car is worth and I do charge $300/hr...")
c) I've contacted the police ("Well, you say you know this guy and you know where the car is so it's not like it's stolen, you should contact a lawyer (see b) or pursue him via small claims... (see a))

Suffice to say, at this point, I just want to focus on getting her up and running and catch up on all the enjoyment we missed out all these years!

Thx to Keylan's post for the motiviation as well as the supportive members here, I'm sure I can make this a reality. I just need to find the time to work on her and that's going to be a real challenge given I have a 2 yr old going through the "terrible two's" stage and we are expecting another child in July.

But, after nearly 9 years, suffice to say that a few more months will not be an issue in order to see this through.

[AF1JZ]

Suffice to say, at this point, I just want to focus on getting her up and running and catch up on all the enjoyment we missed out all these years!

That's what we like to hear!!! Keep the motivation and get her all done up. Or you can just sell it to me, I'll buy it right now as it sits ;)

[cool chuck]

Wow. Sorry they had your car that long. Good luck getting her up and running again. Just keep thinking of all the fun you'll have driving it and only 41k on a TT!

[supramanocnsd]

lol I drive my 94TT daily and its only got 41,000mi on it... the first 2 owners were really nice to it... not me... this baby is on the road... I can not believe a body shop had your car that long... thats unreal...

[turboBB]

Hi all,

Sorry for the lack of updates, have just been so swamped with many obligations. Given that, I haven't made much progress on Gumji.

I did manage to get both front seats cleaned up:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3137/2394894988_c2b5a017d4_o.jpg
(passenger seat)

I'm very glad whatever dirt was on the yellow piping came out during the cleaning. I hope I have the same success with the rear seats.

I also got a new battery and after carefully checking that all the cut wires from the old sound system have been wrapped up in tape, I installed it and turned the switch to on and she came to life. Wow... I never thought I'd be so happy to hear the chiming from the key reminder. :icon_razz Looked at the mileage and it reads 41,595 so I wasn't too far off with the estimate.

Next is to just get her all cleaned up and to organize/clean the parts so that when I finally do tow it to BP, John and his crew can just focus on putting her back together rather than dusting her off.

BTW, the Alpine alarm system was still functional so I'm glad they didn't gut it. I had everything nicely hooked up with an SEA-8081 core and the Smart Windows II from Clifford as well as a remote starter and trunk release. It came with a 2-way LCD display remote and certain features of the alarm can even be viewed/programmed through the in-dash LCD display (CVA-1000). I also had an Alpine paging system put in as well. The only thing that I recall was really bad about this set up was that the range was horrible. Bruce at Sound Effects had mentioned it was due to the metallic tint. Hmmmm... Can anyone confirm if tints affect alarm range?

Otherwise, it's a pretty kick a$$ system even to this day.

Also, I'm looking for recommendations on a replacement exhaust. I'd like the quietest aftermakert set up that would have a deep rumble. Not sure if any of you have ever heard the exhaust note on a 3.0i Z4 but if there's anything that sounds like that, that'd be absolutely killer.

TIA!,
Tim

[turboBB]

Finally got around to cleaning her up and organizing the parts a bit. Have towed her to John @ BP today but after some initial discussions, sounds like I have a major repair bill ahead. According to John, it's about a month's worth of work. He'll call to give me a quote tomorrow.

Looks like I may have to do bare minimum to get her up and running (+ to pass inspection) and then repair the interior myself as time and resources permits.

I'll post pics as soon as progress is made.

[turboBB]

Stopped by John today as he has made some progress, however, they can't get her started. They initially thought it might be due to the alarm (Alpine SEA-8081) but this alarm only came with a starter relay cut off and not a fuel or ignition cut off. Given that the starter cranks, they now think it may be bad ECU due to no spark also they don't hear the fuel pump priming when the key is turned to On so it could also be a bad pump relay or the pump itself. Hopefully they'll get it sorted out soon...

All belts, plugs, fluids and water pump changed:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3218/2469198089_c87e571fea_o.jpg

Driver's side window installed:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2411/2469198155_3bd7dbe6f6_o.jpg
I was originally going to tint it to match the rest of the car but John mentions that NJ laws have changed since I've applied these tints and that currently, you are not allowed to have any sort of tint on the front windows at all. I wasn't aware of this (but then again, I've not tinted a car since this one).

All aftermarket stereo wiring removed and trunk being prepped to have original parts re-installed along with original sub and speakers:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3097/2469198255_15286a39fa_o.jpg

[cruisnhard]

Nice. Sorry about the bad luck. I would have just went in and got it. I had a similar situation and e just showed up with a truck and a few friends and puled it home.

[turboBB]

UPDATE!

Mad props to John Nouri and his crew (thx Alex, Chris and apologies to anyone I might have missed) at Broadway Perfromance for all the hard work in restoring Gumji!!

Mechanically, she is as rock solid as I can recall and drives beautifully. The engine is super smooth and passed a compression test with flying colors. Unfortunately given the additional issues discovered during repairs (faulty ECU, fuel pump + pump relay) plus tons of missing/damaged parts that needed to be replaced, the repairs are now way above the budget we had allocated so I had to take her home as is. There's still some stuff here and there to be done but I think the pics below speak for themselves as to the type of work that BP provides.

I discovered some minor stuff after I came home (door locks, air filter, squeaky brakes, front right marker light) but after a quick call to John, he assured me he will address them so I just need to find some time to stop by next week. Without that marker light installed, I won't able to pass an inspection thus the '99 sticker is still on.

However, bottom line is if you need work done on your Supra (or any other car but since this is a Supra forum...) regardless of which Gen it is, you can trust John and his crew!

And as the saying goes online, if there are no pics, it didn't happen so without further ado...


At the shop day before she came home (look at that shine!!!!) :love::
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3109/2599758940_883d4dbe4e_o.jpg


And finally after 8 years, 10 months and 3 days... back in our driveway! :icon_razz
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3112/2598929753_278f679a1f_o.jpg
(they wet sanded and buffed the body to the shine you see but alas, the bumper was in too bad a shape and will need to be repainted, it'll have to wait as I don't have funds for that now)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3279/2599758798_5e97649f67_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3119/2598929597_632cc922a4_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3012/2599758616_5a7de0e6ee_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3038/2599758566_dddd1d4e32_o.jpg

I'll post a WTB for some interior parts later but please PM if you can refer me to a junkyard/site where I can purchase used parts from. I'm on a really tight budget now so replacing new will have to be an absolute last resort if I can't source the parts from anywhere else.

P.S. Eric, thx for the referral buddy!

[ViR2]

I'm happy for you mate ;) My car had similar story, with being "stolen" by a body shop, I managed to get her back only then when I've sent some "businessman" to hunt the owner. So, good luck bringing her back ;)

[Boost Lee]

Holy Mother of Dust! Look at that interior and engine bay! :aigo:

Yeah...I'd say after almost 9 long years, that'll do it.. ;)

It's unfortunate that all of that happened previously...
However, I'm glad to see that you've built up the motivation to get it going again.

I assure you, your situation could be much worse (As far as the physical condition of the Supra goes).

Good luck with everything! I look forward to seeing you bring it back to life.

Jeff

[BP95GSX]

Tim, it was a pleasure dealing with you and your wife. Your Supra came a long way in the last month and a half. I really hope you find the room to keep it. You and put a lot of sweat and work and $$$$ into getting it where it is today. With a little more work, it will look like it never happened.

[eman2289]

Good to see that it made it home safely. It looks great, as I told you when you were at BP. Good luck, and maybe, just maybe you will find the time, space, and money to keep her. Good Luck!

[cool chuck]

Wow... congrats bringing her back home.

[theKnifeArtist]

Nice restoration buddy!
You're located in Bergen County? Me too! I'm seeing more and more Supra activity now that i've moved back to Jersey.

[mako18]

great job. came along way from the raped condition it was in