1989 Supra Comp

[cwkoch]

Hey- I'm a Supra owner, and I'm helping my cousin shop for an older Supra for his first boat. He's currently looking at a 1989 Comp. I know it's wood stringers. Where's the best place to check for rot easily? Also- What year did they switch to non-wood stringers completely, in case we want to look for something a little newer?? Also- The oldest manuals they have on this site are the 2002s, does anyone have the 1989 in a PDF they can send me??

Thanks,
Charlie

[email protected]

[Salty87]

this a good spot for some pcm engine manuals... http://www.planetnautique.com/index.php?name=Downloads&req=viewdownload&cid=1

i think i've read 92 or 93 for no wood

i'd look for soft spots anywhere (esp under seats), check the bilge for signs of water stains or any water. i'll never get another boat that has any water in the bilge. the general condition of the engine/accessories/bolts can be a good indication of moisture in the engine area. take a real close look at the engine mounts and where they are screwed into the stringers, if anything looks sloppy, out of alignment, or not 'factory' you might think hard about it (my engine mounts had started pulling out of the mushy stringers).

basically, a squeaky clean bilge. otherwise, there's probably been some sort of continued issue that will need to be fixed and maybe more.

one last thing...all boats of this age (at least supra's) will need new floors or have already had them done. it's only a matter of time.

[riveredge]

Good tips, for sure. I came across this on another forum, if you have a couple minutes it's worth reading: http://www.easttxskier.com/usedboat.html - pretty comprehensive checklist for looking at used inboards. Aimed more at MC and CC but mostly relevant to Supra also.

[Morphix]

cw, Supra switched to Full fiberglass on the Comps in 1992. My personal suggestion for checking for rot, as salty said.. check all over but if you want to look at a place that's almost a sure sign, check under back seat... pull the entire thing up(if its not screwed dow) and walk in the very back corners, seems to me with most supra's thats where it begins because of the moist air being trapped in the back behind the seat, but it always vary's... also if you want to see how well they kept the boat dry, open the back storage compartment and check out the wood under the lid . Mainly under the seats would be the best place to start.

[Salty87]

morphix mentions a good one...how the seat bases are attached to the floor. if the screw holes are worn out and the screws just pull up, the plywood has already started to deteriorate. it will continue to delaminate and get softer.

[wotan2525]

These guys are spot on but most of the places they say to look are only going to tell you if the floor is rotten. In my case, the floor had already been replaced and the previous owner was trying to cover up the rotten stringers by reinforcing the floor. The giveaway was the engine mounts -- if any of these lag bolts are loose, pulled out, or crooked -- the stringers have started to rot. It's up to you if you're willing to take the chance, it might just be rotten near the engine mounts, or it might be rotten from the nose to the stern.

In my case, everything behind the windshield was garbage.