Don't bother looking for a crazy audio/video system or neon lights in this car; the Twins didn't build their Supras to win Best of Show at Hot Import Nights. What you might catch a glimpse of, though, is the Billet Works rollcage encircling the OMP carbon kevlar seats. The stock dash is in place with a MoTeC datalogger filling in for the stock gauges. With all the options on this car, you're looking at a dash worth around $8,000. As for the rest of the interior, it was taken out and painted flat black. On the passenger floor panel, you'll find a collection of harnesses and relays; in the trunk, a 22 gallon fuel cell from Fuel Safe. Drop the front bumper and it'll reveal a highly integrated ducting system to direct cool air down to the brakes and intercooler. And yes, we must remind you that this is a street car.
Grim estimates about 800 man-hours and tens of thousands of dollars in parts are put into his Supra-well worth it when you take into account this is his dream car. Those of you thinking about doing the same thing, either learn how to build motors, weld and fabricate, or drop off the car to the Twins with a fatty check. Grim told us some rich guy offered him $150,000 for the car and he refused. That takes a big man considering Nads calls this Supra a pig. (Correction, I think all Supras are pigs. Please don't kill me, Grim. - JN) You have no idea what the Super Street staff would do for half that amount. Then again, we have no morals.
The A-Team Car
There is no name more fitting for this car than the A-Team Supra. Cue in the theme music, uzis and BA with his gold chains anytime you want. If you ever make it out to our Time Attack, you'd feel the same way when you hear the roar of exhaust as Steve starts up the Supra and rolls into the grid. Most of us have small goals, like making it home without hitting traffic or eating 16 double cheeseburgers in one sitting; Steve wanted to have the fastest road-racing Supra in the States. He didn't like that the Supra had the stigma of being a drag car, so he set out to prove it could become a hardcore road-racing machine. It's pretty safe to say that his mission is complete.
Steve bought this car already fixed up with off-the-shelf parts, which was good for street and dyno power but not for racing. And Steve planned on racing it...heavily. That's where the headaches started rolling in. Whether it was blown front main seals, overheated power steering or overheated engine, there was always something that left the car sputtering back onto the trailer. He finally got fed up and called on the Twins to perform some of their magic-not just for their reputation, but also because they shared the same Supra obsession. The Twins methodically went through the car fixing one problem at a time. Basically, it took tearing the entire car down and starting from scratch to get the results they wanted. Steve dubs them as the PhDs of Supra engine building.
Starting with the chassis stiffening, the car was gutted to hell and fitted with a custom Steen rollcage with NASCAR-style door bars and a front strut brace. The same Eibach springs and Penske coilovers from Grim's car were called to order. Adjustable sway bars were put on along with a full Heim jointed suspension system, allowing this high-powered front-engine rear-wheel drive car to hang with the all-wheel drives on the tarmac. The naked interior was then filled with Sparco racing seats and an Aim Sports MXL Pista dash. Stuffed into the fenders of the custom widebody kit are 18x12 (front) and 18x13 (rear) CCW C14 wheels with either Goodyear or Hoosier racing slicks for maximum grippage. And behind those bad boys, you'll find Brembo GT mono block brakes. Finishing everything off is an extra glossy coat of Porsche Carrera GT Silver paint. Not too shabby for a racecar.
The Twins down-tuned this...
The Twins down-tuned this engine so Steve would have more control on the track.
The once-crappy engine is now a work of excellence. Again, very similar to the setup on Grim's car, the 2JZ-GTE engine was yanked apart and fully balanced and blueprinted. The bottom end was beefed up with Arias pistons and Brian Crower connecting rods. What appears to be a stock intake manifold is anything but. The inside was heavily ported before being mated to the ported and polished head. Keeping the top end running like clockwork are Brian Crower stage 3 cams, R.E.V. stainless steel valves, dual valve springs and titanium retainers. Dumping in the petrol are 96lb Bosch injectors, an Aeromotive pump and a Twins Turbo fuel rail. The brains behind the brawn: a MoTeC M600 ECU with a GP Motorsports harness.
Making massive horsepower on the dyno is one thing, but translating that into something useful on the track is completely different. Steve might be a good driver, but he is by no means a pro. He's a real estate agent with kids, so throwing him on the track behind the wheel of a 1,200hp beast isn't ideal. With that in mind, the Twins used the highly elaborate World Racing TBC-1 boost controller to hold the Innovative DBB T-4 turbo to just 21psi of boost. That's good for 711hp and 631 lb-ft of torque at the wheels measured on the Dynapack. Using the 16-percent drivetrain loss concept back up to the crank, you're in for 847hp and 752 lb-ft of torque. If any remnants of the original car remain, they're sure to be replaced very soon. Grim tells us that swapping out for a more efficient intercooler core along with other tweaks can extract another 80hp or so. But they'll come to that when Steve is good and ready. "Steve says the car is almost too fast," Grim smiles.
Clawing your way to the top of our Time Attack isn't easy, especially when you have to compete with the cream of the crop from all over the world. But Steve, Twins Turbo and the A-Team aren't too far off from taking home the gold-colored plastic. There's no doubt that the car is fully capable and Steve drives better after each NASA event he competes in. At this point, he's already surpassed most of the race Supras in the nation and is still aiming higher. By the time our finals come around in November, the other tuners out there better watch their backs.