Project MKIV Supra: Part 16 – New Body Parts and Going in for Paint!
TwinZ Design body parts and fresh Estoril Blue paint are a nice combination!
The Supra has been driven once in 2017—from Modified by KC, to my house, and then to the paint shop so that Irwin could get his hands on it. During that drive, I was able to get to about 15 miles of the shop before the battery completely died on me (it had been sitting idle way too long) at an intersection. Thanks to MKC's Mike Cho, who came and picked me up so that I could grab a spare battery from my house. While I was waiting for Mike, a nice Olathe, Kansas Police officer spent the entire time talking shop and modifications with me (he even previously owned an LS3 Vette), and he was floored at the power level of the Supra. We even went on to talk about where the safer areas to test a car are. That's how it sometimes is here with the Midwest cops, and they can be a pleasure to be around.
Earlier in the year, the Supra spent a little bit of time at MKC so that owner/tuner Chad Charlton could work some of the many features of the AEM Infinity a little more. We still plan to return, but so far he’s been able to get 816whp (SAE) at 29 PSI on their Dynojet 424x, and the car has been running very smoothly on the E85 that I get at the pump. While it's more than enough power for our use, I still plan to whip up a few more PSI to see how it does. But, 800+whp, T-top, a decent enough sound system, and cold air conditioning…yeah–that's my kind of car.
Over the course of the last few months, the paint on the front bumper was beginning to peel, and so much so that even a little power wash took a big chunk out of the front-right corner. Instead of getting the bumper resprayed, I thought this would be a good time to just get the whole thing done, especially since I had some TwinZ Design body parts sitting in my basement for nearly 2 years.
I had the option to have only those parts painted, as the rest of the car was in decent enough shape, but the “do it once, do it right” thought crept in my mind. I decided to do the whole car. This way we wouldn’t have any problems matching the BMW Estoril Blue color, and I was aching to get my original hood back on again anyway.
Looking at the car from the side or from the rear, it almost looks brand new. The 13-year-old paint (it had gotten painted Blue from its original White color back in 2004) was still looking good…
…until you looked at the front bumper. Notice above the turn signal, where it was starting to peel off like a bad sticker. And then there’s the bottom (which wasn’t me!), but I’ll refrain from naming whoever was responsible for going a wee bit too far over a parking curb. Call me crazy, but unless it was nighttime I didn’t even want to drive the car anymore looking like this.
In the KC underground, Irwin has a great reputation for his painting skills, ranging from things like custom signs, or even lockers, and of course all things automotive. With the latter, his work shows up in classic car meets all over the heartland, having painted a claimed 4000 cars, including in his early days working for a larger car painting firm. Having painted a total of four MKIV Supras, he's no stranger to them.
