Hao’s Supra: One Fell Swoop

As tempting as it may be to flash a B58 and win most stoplight showdowns, some can appreciate the stout six for what it offers from factory and spend their tuning money elsewhere. In the case of Hao Wang and his A90 Supra, more boost is something that only makes sense once the already impressive chassis has been improved considerably. The engine, in this instance, is not the weakest link.

“I did my first day with Speed SF. I loved the watermarked photos – they made me feel like I was sponsored,” Hao reminisced.

After all, the ZF8-shifted Supra is already respectably fast in stock trim; its tight gearing and low-end torque making it as quick as more cars in slower, tighter sections.

What Hao recognized early on is that the footwork is what needs some improvement. The car is a little nervous at speeds, and the rear end leaves a little to be desired. However, few cars at its price point respond as well to minor modifications, and so Hao decided to skip the engine stuff and focus on the chassis and aerodynamics minimize some of its waywardness.

Hao considered a ZL1 1LE briefly, but having owned an F82 M4, he recognized the effect the weight would have on his bank balance.

Hao started off on the right foot and bought his friend’s lightly modified Supra already equipped the basics for track work, but they would soon be replaced. If he was to really own it, he had to put his own stamp on it — and heed the advice of an experienced mechanic, too.

The car came with KW Clubsport coilovers, a Verus front splitter, a Varis rear wing, and Titan 7 wheels.

One Fell Swoop

At the first track event in the Supra, one the KW Clubsports broke, so Hao reached out to a friend pushing a new brand of Taiwanese suspension. With the spring rates he believed would make the Supra truly suited to the track, these SY Tech Coilovers promised much and saved him from losing his license. “Because it’s too stiff for the street, it keeps me in check,” Hao admitted. In other words, running 1200-lb springs on a street-legal car limits what sort of shenanigans you might try outside of sanctioned events on a smooth track.

It also directed the focus of the build. With the spring rates chosen, it only made sense to buy the full SPL suspension catalog, as per the advice of his ex-GT500 mechanic’s advice. “He told me to ‘get it done in one go, or not start at all,’” Hao said.

“He wanted to save time basically, and he likes to get everything ready rather than doing the repair-by-modding method. I wasn’t a super good driver to start with either, so it was easier to learn about the car through him and figure out what I would like in terms of handling through approach,” Hao explained. The rationale stuck, and Hao soon added the CSF cooling package and big-dollar Spage aero after watching Jackie Ding battle with Gary Wong at Sonoma.

Along with that, he installed a 4” Tomei catback with catless downpipes which, if the springs hadn’t done it already, practically prevented him from using it much as a street car. “I couldn’t drive it to work anymore because my neighbors would hate me,” he laughed.

Surefooted at Speed

Hao’s made sure to use the right parts with a proven record, and the result is a car which inspires a lot of confidence through its easily accessed performance and its repeatability.

The AP 5000R brakes fitted to the front axle have a way of repeatedly slowing the car from high speeds well enough to convince you it’s a lighter car. The ABS does intervene occasionally, but it seems to take little pedal effort and little consideration of the surface to bring the car to a halt. This, as with the relatively light steering and benign balance, make the car easy and encouraging to push.

The weight is noticeable, but only in slower corners and direction changes. Thankfully, the brakes are easily modulable and a little trailbraking can help a reluctant nose turn into a tight corner, but the short wheelbase and prodigious torque make the car pretty easy to rotate off the corner.

At speed, the aero masks the mass. No doubt, the Supra is a lively car with a wheelbase shorter than the BRZ’s and a silly level of torque from 2,000 onwards, however, the Spage wing gives it a sense of composure that helps when it reaches 120 mph as quickly as it does. Sometimes, you look at the speedo to realize you’ve been doing triple-digit speeds; it just feels so solid above one hundred that you feel you’re at the speed limit.

On track, the benefits are far more obvious. It’s easy to take Sonoma’s Turn 5 totally flat, and the composure through Turn 1 goads a gutsy driver to push harder and harder. Mid-corner speeds of 122 mph are pretty conservative, it turns out.

The Spage wing was strong enough to pull the supports out of the trunk the first time around. A set of welded plates rectified that problem.

“I have no more plans for car modifications. It’s now about modding myself,” he said. Something to grow into – something reliable and fast and challenging and, thankfully, not that expensive to run. A set of Nankang CRS tires lasts Hao five track days, and the Ferodo DS 3.12 pads in his AP 5000R front brakes last about as long. With two and a half sessions between refills, the car’s not the thirstiest on the grid, either, but it’s far from economical.

Nevertheless, the fact that it’s able to set times in the mid-1:40s at Sonoma without a tune is remarkable, and it’s easy to see why the Supra is referred to as the easy button in track circles. It’s amazingly competent out of the box, and with a proven modification plan to follow, it takes the legwork out of tuning and allows the driver to focus on driving. That combination of speed, ease, and seat time might be worth the premium.

MODIFICATIONS

Verus Engineering front lip with endplates

APR canards

Spage x Phd Racing swan neck wing 68’’ with 3D end plate

Titan 7 T-S5 18x10.7 wheels

MotorsportHardware 84mm stud conversion kit

MotorsportHardware 12.5mm spacer all around

Goodyear Supercar3 275/35/18

AP 9660 BBK with Ferodo DS3.12 front pads

Endless ME20 rear pads

Goodridge Steel brake lines

Verus Engineering Brake Cooling Kit

AMS anti buffeting kit

Autotecknic M style carbon fiber mirror cap

Venosa Tech Design intake Snorkel

2x CSF 20+ Toyota GR Supra High-Performance Auxiliary Radiator 8179

CSF 20+ Toyota GR Supra High-Performance DCT Transmission Oil Cooler 8183

CSF Toyota GR Supra Heat Exchanger 8154

Armaspeed cold air intake

Forge Motorsport oil catch can

Forge Motorsport Charge pipe

Verus Engineering Turbo Heat shield

Verus Engineering Master brake cylinder bracelet

Blitz A90 Supra front strut bar

Recaro Pole Position (driver side)

Sparco EVO QRT (passenger side)

Cusco Harness Bar

Schroth 2x2 clubman 6point harness (driver side)

Schroth Racing Rallye 4 ASM Harnesses (passenger side)

Momo Steering Wheel

Battle Aero steering wheel bracket

NRG Quick Release steering wheel adapter

Magnetic Paddle shifter

SPL front caster rod monoball bushing

SPL rear toe link with electronic lockout

SPL front sway bar end links

SPL rear sway bar end links

SPL front lower control arm

SPL rear upper arms

SPL bumpsteer adjustable tie rod ends

SPL rear traction links

SPL Solid Differential Mount Bushings Toyota Supra GR A90/BMW Z4 G29

Hardrace rear subframe anti-vibration insert

aFe power Front Sway Bar

Eibach Rear Sway Bar

Cusco rear member power brace

VTT motor mount solid insert

Torque Solution solid transmission mount

VTT carbon fiber driveshaft

VRSF catless downpipes

Tomei type S single exit exhaust

SYTech 2 way suspension with external reservoirs and camber plates

800lb/ft front 1200lb/ft rear

AntiGravity AG-H7-40-RS battery