Type to search

Paul Walker’s Supra

Not all movie hero cars make it from the set to the streets, but Paul Walker’s Supra has. The Fast & Furious icon is out there in the wild still.
The Fast & the Furious scene - 31 kash Movie Clips on youtube.com
The Fast & the Furious scene - 31 kash Movie Clips on youtube.com

Pop the Hood.

“This will decimate all after you put about 15 grand in it – or more. If we have to, overnight parts from Japan.” was the cheesy line from Jesse (the character – not me) when referencing the 2JZ engine found in a burnt-out Toyota Supra. It didn’t look like much when it came in on that flatbed (it actually looked terrible), but that Supra was transformed into a bright orange ten-second car that’s been synonymous with Paul Walker ever since. Today, we’re taking a look at the first Fast & Furious movie’s JDM icon and how it lives on to honor the late great Paul Walker.

Bringing In the 1994 Toyota Supra

Craig Lieberman's Supra - fastandfuriousfacts.com
Craig Lieberman's Supra - fastandfuriousfacts.com

The producers for The Fast & the Furious had virtually no knowledge about cars or the street racing culture they were trying to portray on screen. That is, until they brought on Craig Lieberman. He grabbed the attention of Univeral Pictures with his bright yellow 1994 Toyota Supra that had been featured in magazines and had won car shows. Craig told the producers that they basically had a movie that was made to go straight to VHS, so Universal brought him on as the technical advisor for the first couple Fast & Furious movies.

Craig used his experience in the tuner car industry to source aftermarket parts and all the cars seen in the movie from local car groups. His Toyota Supra, however, was chosen as one of the stars right from the moment Universal laid their eyes on it. The Supra didn’t keep its bright yellow paintjob and was instead repainted with Candy Pearl Orange sourced from Lamborghini and adorned with a Custom Troy Lee Graphics by Modern Image design along the sides. The Fast & the Furious Toyota Supra also received some Bomex body parts, a TRD composite hood, updated headlights, 19-inch Motorsport Racing Hart M5 Tuner wheels wrapped in Yokohama AVS S1 tires, and that big APR rear wing.

The Fast & the Furious Toyota Supra - imdb.com
The Fast & the Furious Toyota Supra - imdb.com

Craig’s Supra served as what you’d consider the hero car for The Fast & the Furious. It was the one featured in close ups and the glorious shots under the hood. That finished 2JZ we saw in the film had been completely outfitted by Craig with parts from Greddy, HKS, APEXi, Turbonetics, and plenty of other aftermarket companies that the engine block was about the only bit left from Toyota. Plus, Craig went ahead and had nearly every part in that engine bay chromed. That engine was also mounted to the now notorious nitrous oxide system that the franchise loves to promote. If you want to dive into the specifics, he gives a detailed rundown of this car and other Fast & Furious cars on his site, fastandfuriousfacts.com.

In real life, Craig Lieberman’s completely decked out 1994 Toyota Supra reached between 544 and 569 horsepower, could hit 60 mph in 4.3 seconds from a dead stop, reach a top speed of 185 mph, and made a quarter mile time of 12.2 seconds. That last fact kind of makes the whole “I owe you a ten second car” line moot and brings into question if this JDM would have actually held its own against a dragstrip ready Dodge Charger in a real-life heads-up race. Make sure to read more about Dom’s Charger over here by the way.

The Fast & the Furious Toyota Supra - imdb.com
The Fast & the Furious Toyota Supra - imdb.com

But back to the Supra. Now, Craig’s wasn’t the only Toyota Supra used in the whole movie. Obviously, he wouldn’t have been too keen on the stunt drivers abusing his finely crafted sports car. So, like most movies and TV shows, Universal created lookalikes of the hero car. These gussied up Supras may have emulated the hero car’s design, but they were severely under powered in comparison. None of them featured the extensive list of aftermarket parts found in Craig’s car, they were all naturally aspirated, and most of them had automatic transmissions. Paul Walker was probably slamming that shifter into drive and neutral a lot, I guess.

While it’s clear that the 1994 Toyota Supra belonged to Craig Lieberman, it’s hard to not recognize it in association with Paul Walker after his portrayal of Brain O’Conner. Sure, the Mitsubishi Eclipse, Mitsubishi Lancer, and of course the Nissan Skyline R34 GT-R V-Spec are all heavily associated with the late actor, but that Toyota Supra was such a focal point in the first film that it’s commonly referenced as Paul Walker’s Supra now.

A High Price for Paul Walker’s Supra

Auctioned Toyota Supra Replica - Barrett-Jackson on youtube.com
Auctioned Toyota Supra Replica - Barrett-Jackson on youtube.com

While the hero car Toyota Supra for The Fast & the Furious stayed with Lieberman, the clone cars drifted around and have fetched some high prices at auction. One of the first examples of Paul Walker’s Supra showed up at auction in 2015 where it ran up a price tag of $185,000. It was truly an exact visual replica of the hero car, but unfortunately featured the turboless 2JZ. This specific stunt car was a 1993 model used throughout the film and most notably for the final street race against Dom. It featured a five-speed manual and some nitrous oxide bottles in the back. Those bottles were just for show and not hooked up to the engine since they’d probably send a piston into the stratosphere out of that poor stock straight-six.

A second version of Paul Walker’s Supra was recently sold in advance of the release of F9 that was actually featured in two of the franchise’s previous movies. This Supra clone was actually driven by Paul Walker in The Fast & the Furious for some scenes. It also went on to be repurposed in the sequel, 2 Fast 2 Furious, as one of the street racers in the intro scene. While the previous Paul Walker Supra was noted as being the naturally aspirated engine, this one comes with the factory stock 2JZ-GTE with the single turbo setup. However, the gearbox is automatic this time around. The auction featured all the film documentation and it was restored to its original form from the first movie. It fetched an astounding $550,000 dollars in the end, a new record for the most expensive Toyota Supra ever sold.

The Fast & the Furious Toyota Supra - imdb.com
The Fast & the Furious Toyota Supra - imdb.com

Only one other version of the car may be able to surpass that record-breaking price, and that would be Craig Lieberman’s personal Supra in movie restored fashion. Will we ever witness that sale? Only time will tell. Anything is for sale at the right price, and I’m sure there are a handful of Fast & Furious fans out there with a cool million ready to pounce on the chance.

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in April 2015 and has been completely revamped and updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

Related Pop Culture Articles

This ‘71 Ford Bronco Keeps It Real (Original)

Rarified Air – ‘62 Chevy Bel Air Bubble Top

Everrati: Redefining Automotive Icons

Keeping Pace With this ‘72 Hurst/Olds Cutlass

Jesse McGraw

Jesse McGraw brings his life-long car obsession into his writing. A fun childhood that involved growing up around race tracks, working on a rusty ‘99 Dodge Dakota held together by zip ties, and collecting Hot Wheels developed into a strong appreciation for automotive history. If there is an old, obscure, or rare car, he wants to know about it. With a bachelor's degree in Web Development & Design from Dakota State University, Jesse can talk shop about car or computer specs, focusing on classic cars, imports, and car culture.

  • 1

3 Comments

  1. chance bates June 4, 2020

    I love the charger and the supra fast and furious has played a big role in my life and im very sad about Paul Walker’s death even after seven years has always been one of my favorite actors from fast and furious to furious 7

    Reply
    1. Carsforsale.com Team June 5, 2020

      Thanks for sharing, he made some great movies!

      Reply
  2. Sarahosmani 9 10 1999 November 16, 2020

    Elle les super est vidéo original a muogou es ce il pa râle de son per pas se ce j’adore dominic Toretto ???????????????????????????????????????????????

    Reply

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *