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07/02/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 07/02/2024 07:21

Final Parking Space: 1987 Toyota Supra Turbo

The middle and late 1980s were great times for fans of slick-looking turbocharged two-door cars plastered with exuberant graphics. I've documented plenty of turbocharged Nissan 300ZXs, Mitsubishi Starions, and Ford Thunderbird Turbo Coupes during my explorations of junkyard history, but the Toyota Supra Turbo is an extremely rare find in American car graveyards. Here's a solid example of the third-generation Supra in a self-service yard located between Denver and Cheyenne.

Murilee Martin

The Supra evolved from the Celica and its sedan sibling, the Carina, which went on sale in the United States in 1971 (the Carina was discontinued here after 1973). Despite being powered by a low-revving truck engine, the early first-generation Celica proved popular among American car buyers. For 1978, Toyota widened and lengthened the Celica, stuffed a straight-six single-overhead cam engine under the hood, and called it the Celica XX in its homeland. When this car hit our shores as a 1979 model, it was named the Celica Supra.

Murilee Martin

The Celica Supra name stuck around through the second-generation (1982-1985) cars, which looked very much like their four-cylinder Celica siblings. Then the Celica went to a front-wheel-drive platform derived from the T150 Corona for the 1986 model year, while the Supra remained a rear-wheel-drive machine and became much more evil-looking for its third generation.

Murilee Martin

Now here was a Toyota that could compete eyeball-to-eyeball for sales versus the hairier versions of the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro, while causing Nissan and Mitsubishi salesmen even more stress than the Celica Supra had inflicted.

Murilee Martin

The Supra got even more belligerent for the 1987 model year, when a turbocharged version was introduced in the United States market.

Murilee Martin

The 7M-GTE was a highly advanced fuel-injected, distributor-less dual-overhead cam mill displacing 3.0 liters, and it was rated at 230 horsepower and 246 pound-feet for 1987.

Murilee Martin

That beat the 1987 Nissan 300ZX Turbo and its 200-horse V-6, while blowing the doors off Mitsubishi's Starion ESI-R and its 176hp turbocharged four-banger. The most powerful Chevy Camaro Z28 engine for 1987 was the L98 5.7-liter small-block with 225 horsepower and 330 pound-feet, while the beefiest factory Ford Mustang engine that year was a 5.0-liter V8 generating 225 horses and 300 pound-feet. That big V-8 torque gave the Detroit ponies an edge versus the Supra in drag racing, but the Supra was more competent on a road course.

Murilee Martin

The MSRP for this car with automatic transmission was $23,500, or about $66,373 in 2024 dollars. That was quite a bit more than the cost of a new Mustang GT ($11,835, or $33,426 today) or a Camaro Z28 ($12,819, or $36,205 now), but the Supra also came with plenty of standard features that were extra-cost items on those cars.

Murilee Martin

I've found Toyotas of this era in junkyards with well over 400,000 miles on their odometers, but this one barely managed to squeeze past 150,000 miles.

Murilee Martin

This car is a "49-state" model, not legal for new sale in California.

Murilee Martin

A five-speed manual transmission was base equipment, but this car has the four-speed automatic.

Murilee Martin

The paint is weathered and the interior shows signs of lengthy outdoor storage, so I think this car got parked years or decades ago and didn't move under its own power during that time.

Murilee Martin

These cars are nearly impossible to find in the Ewe Pullets of the land because they retain a devoted enthusiast following to this day. Most rough ones get intercepted before they can reach this sort of final parking space.

Murilee Martin

I suspect that this car will be stripped clean by junkyard shoppers, or it may even be sold whole to a Supra aficionado.

Murilee Martin

Production of the third-generation Supra continued through 1993, after which it was replaced by the even faster fourth-generation car.

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