Toyota is one of those companies that has classics upon classics in terms of cars the world reveres. This is true for many of their sedans like the Camry, but it really applies to the company’s sports cars. One example of this is the Supra. The classic Toyota Supra is one of those JDM cars that’s becoming increasingly rare in many parts of the world for a variety of reasons. Ask practically any gearhead, and you’ll find that if it’s not at the top of their list of 1990s sports cars, it’s pretty close to it. If not, perhaps they just aren’t fans of awesome cars.
People really love the Supra. It doesn’t have the biggest engine, and surprisingly enough, not everyone even loves the way the car looks, but it brought a great deal to the table in terms of being a fast car that dared to be different from the rest. This is one of the reasons people adore this Toyota so much. Nowadays, most people would be hardpressed to find one. So, whenever this happens, the car would typically clamor for images of this rare beauty. This is especially true when there is a bit of drama involved.
Just recently a 1998 Toyota Supra went for $265,000 at an auction. The situation was a bit out of the ordinary, but this goes to show how valuable of a car this is. It should be pointed out that the 1998 model was the last of the lineup before the Supra was brought back to the market in 2019.
The Story Of The 1998 Toyota Supra Seized By The Police
As it turns out, drug kingpins also have a deep love for sportscars that are hard to find and that cost more than an arm and leg to own. This story begins in the middle of 2020, and it concerns a man by the name of Cory Taylor of Holyoak, Massasetsusts. Mr. Taylor was suspected of running some sort of drug trafficking ring from his address.
Upon conducting a raid of the premises, law enforcement found not only the anticipated drugs, but they found guns, and surprising enough, they found over two dozen classic Japanese cars, mostly Toyotas.
For protection, the cars were wrapped in shrink wrap. And as is usually the case with things like this, they found several millions of dollars in cash. Also, the location in question was an old firehouse that he’d purchased and converted to what was considered to be a pretty impressive place to live, and conduct business, apparently.
Those cars went to auction very recently. Among the cars wrapped in shrink wrap was the aforementioned Toyota Supra. The car has now sold for an impressive $265,000. It had just a little over 22,962 miles on the odometer and was painted in Quicksilver, which happens to be pretty rare. Another Supra of note went for $237,500. That’s not all, there were a total of 13 Toyota Supras that were sold at the auction. This led to an average of $139,000 per car and a total of $1.8 million.
Specifications Of The 1998 Toyota Supra
The 1998 Toyota Supra is a car that truly lives up to its impressive reputation. This small beast is powered by a 3-liter sequential turbo straight-6 engine. In terms of horsepower, it has a max of 321 and a torque of 315 lb-ft. For transmission, buyers could choose between a 6-speed manual or a 4-speed automatic. In terms of speed, this 1998 Toyota Supra can accelerate from 0 to 60 miles per hour in only 4.7 seconds. It can go a quarter-mile in 13.1 seconds at 109 miles per hour. The top speed for this beloved ride is 177 miles per hour. Of course, there are many cars on the market today faster than this, but this last 1990s model can race against the best ones, in a legal setting, of course.
The Toyota Supra is an incredibly well-designed car, which is why it has such a strong reputation.
Why Are These Cars Worth So Much?
There has been a trend now for a number of years of classic JDM cars such as the Supra and the NSX shooting up in value. In fact, many of these older sports cars cost most than their newer counterparts being released today. This is in part because both these examples come from noteworthy car companies, but there is also something else at play here.
When these cars were released in the 1990s, although many of them debuted before then, they amassed quite the following among Gen X-ers. Now that many of these car fans are older and more established financially, they can afford to buy these cars, and that they are. Most people agree that their willingness to purchase these cars at almost any price is driving up the overall value. This means that these cars are unobtainable for most, but the good thing is that it adds to the lore of cars like the Supra.