MA61 Suspension, Brake and Wheel Upgrade

This is the story of my efforts to improve the handling and braking abilities of my MA61 Supra. When I began the car had standard brakes, albeit with slotted rotors and good quality brake pads, and while this is adequate for a relatively-stock 150hp Supra they quickly run out of stopping power when faced with close to 400hp worth of turbo-enhanced acceleration. The suspension had already been improved with Kings low springs, KYB dampers and urethane bushes throughout, and while this was an improvement over stock it still left a lot to be desired with its tendency to float and bounce on uneven surfaces, and excessive body roll despite its much lower ride height.

On top of this, the original 14x7 wheels made it impossible to significantly upgrade the brakes and also meant I had to use tyres with a high sidewall - not good for steering feel or mid-corner control. Upgrading to larger wheels is no simple matter with the 4x114.3 stud pattern and unusual +8mm offset - very few suitable off-the-shelf wheels are available, and custom-made wheels are very expensive.

So I came to the conclusion that the suspension needed to be upgraded once more, the front brakes needed significant improvement (although the standard rear ventilated discs probably don't warrant an upgrade at this point), and ideally the stud pattern should be upgraded to 5x114.3 both for its greater strength under high loads and the much greater availability of new wheels - this is the same stud pattern used by pre-AU Falcons, MA70 and above Supras, R32 and above Skylines, and others besides.

So how to achieve all of this in a DIY fashion without spending a small fortune? John Duel from ImportBitz comes to the rescue - he has researched a brake upgrade for his GX71 Chaser wagon which utilises JZX81/MX83 Chaser/Cressida struts, BA Falcon rotors and R33 Skyline calipers. After confirming the MA61 front suspension is sufficiently similar to the GX71, I decide to go ahead with this plan. John acquires a pair of JZX81 struts converted to coilover, and the project begins!

The rear upgrade is a much simpler affair.  It turns out the MS123 Crown has a nearly identical rear end to the MA61 Supra, but it has 5-stud hubs.  The idea is to acquire a pair of these hubs, install them on the MA61 trailing arms, and re-drill the MA61 discs to suit the new stud pattern.  At some point in the future I plan to investigate a rear coilover conversion, but that can wait until my wallet has recovered!

The full story unfolds below:

	Part I: acquire the parts and assemble the front struts and brakes.
	Part II: install the new struts, brakes and wheels.
	Part III: convert rear hubs to 5-stud and install the new wheels.

Price list