Purple Reign

With a turbocharged Lexus V8 under its long bonnet, Ben Newell’s 1200bhp supra is ready to rule the UK’s streets.

- Dan Sherwood 

When it comes to performance cars from the Land of the Rising Sun, there are some models that have, over time, enjoyed a stratospheric surge in their status. These are the heavy hitters. The icons. The cars that are just as revered, or even more revered today, than when they were first launched. It conjures such monikers as GT-R, STi, Evolution…and, of course, Supra.

These hallowed models have gained this lofty status not just as a result of their prowess straight out of the factory, but through their seemingly limitless potential when tuned. Take the Toyota Supra twinturbo for example. Want supercar-crushing speed? Done. Want a four-figure power output? Sure. Want to break quarter mile records? No problem. The combined package of 3.0-litre 2JZ-GTE engine and JZA80 chassis is unimpeachable in its prowess.

So, with this in mind, why would a die-hard fan of Japanese metal want to forego that sacred union of oily bits and opt for a different solution to his need for speed?

‘I’d been into Japanese cars since I was 10-years old,’ laughs now 28-year-old Ben Newell. ‘It sounds a cliché, but it was the Fast and the Furious film that got me hooked. And like every other fanboy, I fantasied about owning a Toyota Supra when I was older.’

Unfortunately, like many schoolboy’s dreams that get destroyed by the crushing weight of reality, the swoopy Toyota coupe was well out of reach for a teenager, but that didn’t stop Ben from bagging an EK9 Honda Civic as a track car build when he was just 15.

‘The Civic was fun, but it wasn’t a Supra,’ smiles Ben. ‘Luckily, when I was 18-years old, I decided to look into Supra ownership again, and found that I could now get my dream car for less than the cost of a Corsa! Even the insurance was cheaper as it was on a specialist classic policy.’