So, I finally did it. Got my hands dirty building a tribute to that iconic orange Toyota Supra from the first Fast and Furious movie. You know the one, the ’94 beast. It’s been rattling around in my head for years, and I figured, why not?
First up, finding the base car. Took me a while, honestly. Finding a decent MKIV Supra that hasn’t been thrashed or priced into the stratosphere is tough. Ended up finding one that needed some love, which was perfect, really. Saved a few bucks and I knew I’d be tearing into it anyway.
Getting Down to Business
Stripped it down quite a bit. Pulled off the bumpers, side skirts, spoiler – the usual stuff. Wanted a clean slate. The body needed some work, few dings here and there, nothing major. Spent a good weekend just sanding and prepping.
Then came the body kit. Man, that was a hunt. Trying to find something close to the original Bomex kit used in the movie, or at least the right style. Lots of fiberglass parts floating around, quality varies wildly, you know? Found a kit, finally. Fitment wasn’t perfect, obviously. Never is. Lots of trimming, filling, sanding. My garage was covered in white dust for weeks. Felt like I was breathing that stuff.
Color was next. That bright orange. It’s not just any orange. Did some digging, looks like the movie car used a Lamborghini color, or something close. Went through a bunch of paint chips, finally settled on one that felt right. Spraying it was nerve-wracking. Didn’t want to mess it up after all that bodywork. Multiple coats, clear coat, then waiting for it to cure. Felt like forever.
The Details Make It
Wheels and tires. Had to get those specific five-spoke wheels, the Racing Hart M5 Tuner style ones. Finding replicas or originals in the right size and offset took some searching online and talking to folks. Got ’em mounted and balanced, put them on the car. Starting to look like something now!
The graphics. That crazy Troy Lee Designs ‘Nuclear Gladiator’ vinyl down the side. That really makes it the movie car. Ordered a replica set. Applying big vinyl decals like that is tricky. Lots of soapy water, squeegeeing out bubbles, hoping it lines up straight. Took my time with that one.
Inside, I didn’t go too crazy. The movie car had some specific blue seats and bits. I kept it simpler, cleaned up the existing interior, maybe swapped the steering wheel later. Main thing was the outside for me.
- Found the base car (a ’94 Supra needing work)
- Stripped off old body parts
- Sourced and fitted the aftermarket body kit (lots of adjusting!)
- Prepped the body for paint
- Sprayed the iconic orange color
- Found and fitted the correct style wheels
- Applied the side graphics
- Cleaned up the interior
Why Bother With All This?
It’s funny, working on this thing, late nights in the garage, covered in grease and paint dust… it took me back. Back to when that movie first came out. I was younger, less responsibility, maybe more dreams I guess. Couldn’t afford anything like this back then, not even close. Just watched the movie and thought ‘wow’.
Now, life’s different. Mortgages, jobs, all that grown-up stuff. You spend all day dealing with emails or meetings or whatever. Getting your hands on something real, physical, making something with them… there’s a satisfaction there you don’t get from pushing papers around. It’s messy, it’s frustrating sometimes when things don’t fit or go wrong, but you fix it, you figure it out. Felt good to just focus on bolts and panels for a change.
Anyway, it’s pretty much done now. Looks the part, sounds alright too (kept the 2JZ mostly stock, reliable power you know). Took it for a drive the other day. Yeah, it gets looks. Brings back memories for people, I guess. For me, it’s just cool to have finally built something I thought was awesome all those years ago. A bit of movie magic in my own garage.
