3rd gen Toyota Supra 1986–1992

Watch out for

Reputation: what owners and the press report. Tap one to see what to check.

• Leaking head gasket All years

  What to check: Look for oil in the coolant and coolant in the oil, and for smoke from the exhaust. Ask whether the head bolts were replaced and retorqued.

  PistonHeads says Toyota's original head bolt torque on the turbo 7M-GTE was too low, and advises new bolts torqued higher. Four posters in one Grassroots Motorsports thread raise head gaskets as the known problem, three of them pointing to the factory torque figure or the bolts, and an owner on Edmunds' 1990 page warns the head gasket can leak.

  Sources ^1,2,3

• Rust in the arches, sills and strut towers All years

  What to check: Look at the rear arches, sills, strut towers, the lower edge of the windscreen and the chassis rails. Take the trim out of the boot to see the rear towers, and feel the carpets for water.

  From PistonHeads' guide to the cars sold in the UK. A poster in a Grassroots Motorsports thread also calls rust typical.

  Sources ^1,2

• Timing belt due All years One source so far

  What to check: Ask when the cambelt was last changed.

  PistonHeads gives 60,000 miles or four years between changes, and says the engines are non-interference.

  Sources ¹

• Cheap boost modifications All years One source so far

  What to check: Ask about any bleed valve or other change that raises boost.

  PistonHeads warns that cheap boost modifications cause problems and prefers a standard car.

  Sources ¹

What buyers say

Reputation: what owners and the press report

• Sought after: The turbo, with its head gasket sorted All years One source so far

  In one Grassroots Motorsports thread, two members praise the turbo six. One calls it stout enough for all the power they would want, and an owner of a 1990 Turbo says it was bulletproof apart from a third-gear synchro.²

Before you pay

Open the buyer's checklist

Every warning and recall for this generation, with a box to tick.