Is this a good first car?

[suprarx7nut]

I'm with the older guys on this. I love supras, but its a terrible first car for most people. Buy something more basic, work on it a little, save up and buy a supra as a second car or later on when you've got more funding.

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[MINA]

i defiantly agree
horrible car(but love em)
buy a cheap DD civic etc
then u can buy a poopra on the side as a project

 

[LunaVyohr]

Just to clarify, I agree with the sentiment of most everyone else. I bought a MK3 as my first car (not my first vehicle, mind you), but I have mechanical experience, and I spent a lot of time researching the Supra platform before I decided to buy mine. Even though mine may look like a bit of beater, it is mechanically, very sound.

If you don't have a good amount of experience wrenching on things, and know what problems to look for, and how to diagnose them, Supras can be headaches. Hell, ANY old car can be a headache, but the MK3 was an especially complicated and complex car for its time, which just means that more stuff can go wrong on it now.

MK3s require a lot of patience and compromise I'd say. It's not like an old Honda or Camry where you can just get in, drive it like hell and expect it to work all the time. Part of the reason why my car is as reliable as it is, is because I don't beat on it. I can drive in a spirited fashion, and I sometimes do, but constantly revving the nuts off of it, hard starting it, etc. will most likely guarantee the fate of that old 7M. Seeing as how you're still young (I'm young, but I take care of cars like I'm an old man), you WILL end up breaking something.

So, overall, unless you're ready to live with, and deal with a Supra, don't it.

 

[LunaVyohr]

In fact, I'll be a soothsayer. Here's the path almost everyone who buys a MK3 as their first vehicle takes:

1. Young person buys Supra, most likely turbo. Also most likely that the head gasket was never properly repaired/replaced.

2. Young person drives the hell out of it for a couple months at most, and develops BHG.

3. Young person has a choice to make. Either they come online, complain what a piece of shite MK3s are, and sells it for scrap money. OR

3.5. Young person looks up how to change head gasket, spends tons of money on repairs, and improperly services the HG.

4. Young person develops rod-knock.

5. Sells for scrap money.

5.5. LOL JZ SWAP

 

[radiod]

As much as I loved my Supra, it definitely needed a lot of care and attention. I owned the car for just under 5 years and it spent probably 2 of those years off the road (in seperate occasions) fixing different things. I probably did half the work myself and half in shop and I was still in to it over $10,000 even after taking in to account the money selling it. Don't get me wrong, if I had the time, the place, and the money to work on it I would have kept it, it's an amazing machine, but at this point in life it was just too much.

If you do decide you want to go ahead and buy a Supra, I'd highly recommend budgetting for a second car that you can drive when the Supra is down for the count (which WILL happen). It doesn't have to be anything spectacular, but definitely something that will work when you need it to. I had an '86 corolla sedan and a '91 323 over the years I had the Supra. Spent less than $1500 on both of them combined along with all the repair work they needed. Without those backups the Supra would have been gone even sooner likely.

 

[S.A. supra]

My advice is a civic or a celica. The simpler the better. Supras are money pits.

 

[radiod]

My advice is a civic or a celica. The simpler the better. Supras are money pits.

I moved from the Supra to a celica....heh. Honestly unless you're looking at spending a little bit more money and getting a 7th gen celica the civic is a better option. The USDM celicas didn't get the 3S-GE love that a lot of the rest of the world got, so when you compare the two they end up being slower and suck more gas then the civics.

 

[LunaVyohr]

As much as I loved my Supra, it definitely needed a lot of care and attention. I owned the car for just under 5 years and it spent probably 2 of those years off the road (in seperate occasions) fixing different things. I probably did half the work myself and half in shop and I was still in to it over $10,000 even after taking in to account the money selling it. Don't get me wrong, if I had the time, the place, and the money to work on it I would have kept it, it's an amazing machine, but at this point in life it was just too much.

If you do decide you want to go ahead and buy a Supra, I'd highly recommend budgetting for a second car that you can drive when the Supra is down for the count (which WILL happen). It doesn't have to be anything spectacular, but definitely something that will work when you need it to. I had an '86 corolla sedan and a '91 323 over the years I had the Supra. Spent less than $1500 on both of them combined along with all the repair work they needed. Without those backups the Supra would have been gone even sooner likely.

Would that 323 be a Mazda 323 or a BMW 323?

 

[S.A. supra]

My 93 celica did better then my 97 civic, 3 more miles per gallon. Point is that they are both simple and reliable dd.

 

[Turbo Habanero]

You can buy mine

Lol..... Everything is new and fixed even a brand new wiring harness..

Just expect it to try and kill you if you press the gas to hard

 

[Kcband]

Mr2 NA? Is it still this unreliable? And I have my moms eurovan I can drive when it breaks down

 

[Turbo Habanero]

In reality any sports car/toy is not going to be reliable if you have money they can be used as DD.

IF you can control your driving habits and don't beat on the car as much and get lucky with a decent shape supra they can be great cars.

But the % of this being probable is low.

I can't tell you how much I've spent on my car and I try to not think about it lol. I drove my car 26,000+ miles last year with many problems. I've spent upward of 3500+ in repairs this is me doing all the work sometimes on the side of the road lots of blood sweat and curse words.

Just remember we warned you.

Me personally am the type of person who loves to drive and takes tons of pride in what i drive and work on so no geo or Honda for me.

 

[te72]

NOTHING sucks more than a car you can't drive if it's your only car.

9 times out of 10 a first car ends up as scrap anyway.

Both things that are VERY true. Only a fool trusts his transportation to only a Supra. (this coming from a guy who's daily driven Supras for about 6 years now... spent a LOT doing it though).

I dunno. Maybe my car is a needle in the haystack. It makes me smile every time I drive. Not like some drab, and dreary Civic/Corolla/Geo/Hyundai/whatever.

I agree with that sentiment, BUT... you got luckier than most that show up on here or people that I've known with these cars.

Mr2 NA? Is it still this unreliable? And I have my moms eurovan I can drive when it breaks down

Still a 20 year old car at the very least, rubber rots, causes things to leak, leaks cause things on cars to break, etc... people who aren't car people tend to ignore maintenance, even on the best of cars. Hell, people who ARE car people neglect maintenance sometimes.

Still can't believe that nobody has given the RIGHT ANSWER yet:

MIATA.

Seriously, get over the looks, and you'll have a fun, reliable, efficient car. Just be prepared to catch a lot of hell from your friends, the gay jokes WILL fly your way. Thing is, you'll be having too much fun to care, and the car WILL teach you how to drive. They don't hide driving errors. They're easy to drive, but if you push them too far, they WILL let you know it, and you WILL learn the limits of a car.

Another possible option if you're looking for a fun Toyota is the MR-S, the third gen MR2. Good cars, reliable, but not much for luggage space... not that you'd care, because you're having too much fun.

 

[LunaVyohr]

Another possible option if you're looking for a fun Toyota is the MR-S, the third gen MR2. Good cars, reliable, but not much for luggage space... not that you'd care, because you're having too much fun.

There's a few problems with the MR-S. They do NOT make good first cars - they're absolute rubbish in rain and snow. Worse than any other tiny sports car that I've encountered. Secondly, they're extremely low to the ground. Both of these traits will equal disaster for a 17 year old with only a year's driving experience. Also, they're out of his price range for one that's not completely scrap.

Also, and this is coming from a very effeminate person, but the MR-S looks totally and utterly gay. Way more than a Miata.

 

[Kai]

Buy a reliable DD. First cars are supposed to be basic and shitty so you gain experience driving, and they're ultimately disposable. Supra as a first car is stupid, as is an MR2, 3000GT and anything else you might 'want'. Unless you have the ability to learn to drive these cars instantly, and enough money to shovel into the doors of them to get them reliable & working, don't get one. Spend $1995 on a Kia, Hyundai - whatever, as long as it runs and gets you from A to B.

Most people your age that end up buying a Supra don't have any concept of how to maintain them, or restore them, so they end up not working, sitting in a driveway rotting, and they come on the forum and whine about how expensive everything is. Don't be that person.

 

[IndigoMKII]

My first car was my supra. Being the first car I've OWNED but I've driven who knows how many. I shoved close to 8k into it mixed between buying it and fixing it. This also involved putting together the crate engine it came with and finding/buying the rest of the pieces and hitting stuff with a BFH when problems arise. This is with me doing all of the work myself but I've also gone to a A&P tech school so I know my way around a few tools.

All in all it's been a PITA at times and I've considered selling it from frustration but when you get the car running the way it should be and performing how it should, I've never smiled bigger. To know this is YOUR car makes it that much better. Just my .02

 

[Supracentral]

I've got to agree with the others. This is a terrible first car.

One of the steps in my budgeting a build post is:

If it is your only means of transportation, stop now and include a cheap daily driver (like an old Honda) as a part of your budget and buy that car before you modify this one.

You're talking about a 20 year old, complicated sports car.

The old saying; "Cheap, fast, reliable - pick two" holds true here. If it's cheap and reliable, it's not going to be fast. If it's fast and cheap, it's not going to be reliable.

Get something cheap and reliable, use it as a learning tool, make all of your mistakes on and with it. Then move on to a Supra.

 

[tyang82]

I've got to agree with the others. This is a terrible first car.

One of the steps in my budgeting a build post is:

If it is your only means of transportation, stop now and include a cheap daily driver (like an old Honda) as a part of your budget and buy that car before you modify this one.

You're talking about a 20 year old, complicated sports car.

The old saying; "Cheap, fast, reliable - pick two" holds true here. If it's cheap and reliable, it's not going to be fast. If it's fast and cheap, it's not going to be reliable.

Get something cheap and reliable, use it as a learning tool, make all of your mistakes on and with it. Then move on to a Supra.

Now that was well said.

 

[sylquebec]

Don't buy a supra as a first car because you will want it to look like a fast and furious car and you will ruin an other supra. ANd they are not so many left...

 

[supraguy@aol]

My first car was a '77 Datsun 280z. That motor/ tranny are bulletproof.
If you want reliability in an older Japanese sports car, that's the one I would suggest.
Parts are cheap, but finding a good 280Z that isn't a rust bucket is tough for $4,000.
If you could though, It's a nice car, and will certainly keep it's value.
My current daily driver is the aforementioned Mk1 MR2.
I think it's an ok car as far as reliability goes, but It has no cargo room. I am currently shopping for
a proper daily beater: a 90's Cherokee, Trooper or Ranger/ S10.