USCC Contender 07Ryan Hawkins is no stranger to Sport Compact Car. Fact is, if it weren't for him, the Toyota Supra Turbo would never have received as much coverage as it has over the years. That's not to say we don't like Toyota's supercar--we certainly do. But Hawkins calls us roughly once a week to tell us about a Supra that needs to be featured, or an owner's event that needs to be covered.
He's the guy on his hands and knees in Las Vegas and in Texas, taking pictures and writing stories on the Supra community's two biggest meets. Hawkins has even gone so far as to coordinate mini-meets himself, rallying up 200 Supras to watch the three The Fast and the Furious movies. But in all the Supra-related events Hawkins has covered, he's never once featured his own car. When USCC 2007 came around, it was our turn to call him.
With the aforementioned event coverage and a general obsession for all things Supra, Hawkins has easily developed the recipe for a proper ass-kicker. He's used his connections to figure out what works and what doesn't. And he has the accumulated knowledge from people painstakingly piecing these cars together over 14 years. Hawkins must have more than a feature car by now--he ought to have a USCC contender.
We could spend an entire issue listing the hundreds of modifications on Hawkins'Supra. But more than any other single characteristic, the MkIV Supra is known for its ability to create massive horsepower.
By any normal measurement, Hawkins' 600hp, 3.4-liter example is no exception, but Supra owners know that he clearly exercised restraint in order to achieve a broad powerband. Powerhouse Racing's Stage I + kit deploys a single turbo to work with an HKS tubular exhaust manifold. An external wastegate and two HKS SSQV blow-off valves regulate and relieve boost pressure, while a Type-R intercooler from the same company keeps the incoming charge dense.
The new turbocharger fires air into a fully-built 3.4-liter stroker engine, stuffed with CP forged aluminum pistons, 4340 billet steel balanced connecting rods and a Brian Crower 4340 billet steel crankshaft. Up top, dual HKS 264-duration camshafts bump the valves on Powerhouse Racing street valve springs, while a five-angle valve job with pocket port allows air to flow unrestricted.
The resulting hot gas is expunged through a Powerhouse Racing four-inch downpipe and mid-pipe, then into a 3.75-inch HKS Super Drager exhaust. So as not to bomb our emissions test, Hawkins has even gone to the trouble of installing a four-inch Random Technology catalytic converter. Though there's an electronic exhaust cut-out for when the time comes to set some real performance benchmarks.
Hawkins was initially in the hunt to buy a pristine six-speed Supra Turbo. But when this extra-clean automatic (previously owned by RS Akimoto) popped onto the market, he knew he had to bite. Before you start hating, note that it's one stout automatic, fitted with a Precision Industries 2800rpm stall torque converter. And, after all, an automatic transmission is easier to use in real-life situations, like going to showings of The Fast and the Furious.
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