VOLUME 4 GAZOO GARAGE
Words by Sam West
Photos by Brett Walker
3 MIN READ
Anthony Roperto reckons there’s no point in having a classic car if you’re not going to drive it. That’s why, after restoring his Supra Mk4, he clamped on some roof racks before heading out on his first big road trip. “It's a car that everyone sort of drools over,” he says. “But in reality, you don't have to build the cleanest car or a show car. You can just do whatever you want to do.”
Anthony found an original Mk4 front bumper that fits just right.
A P-Plater who’s been working as an apprentice mechanic for Toyota, Anthony says he got lucky on Gumtree when an “insanely cheap” Mk4 popped up in a search. “It was in pretty rough shape,” he explains while showing us around the family garage – a space he’s filled with tools and plastered with skate stickers, old road signs and some Toyota posters he salvaged from work. He says he was especially wary of the Mk4’s splodgey orange paint job that looked to be inspired by Fast and Furious, but executed using hardware store cans. Still, he convinced his dad to take him out for a look, and ended up buying the car there and then.
Lifting the bonnet on the mighty 2JZ.
Two years later and the Supra’s finally growling down open roads. To get it there, Anthony’s been “saving every bit of that sweet apprenticeship wage” and investing it in the project. After getting a new, pearl white paint job done, he searched for replacement interiors, overhauling the damaged drive train. Being a Toyota mechanic, he was able to source a range of original parts including an original front bumper and Mk4 spark plugs. He was particularly excited to take on some of the winding, unsealed roads around the Otways, along the southern coast of Victoria.
Always good to see a true believer in the Toyota Value Advantage.
Between restoring the Supra and finishing high school, Anthony’s been fixing up an ex-RACV HiLux for his sister too. He says they’re a Toyota family. “My mum's uncle was one of the higher-ups at Toyota,” he explains. “He’d arrive in Celicas and 70s Corollas. I always thought it was cool.”
Garage goals unlocked.
Toyota’s Supra model evolved from the Celica back in the mid-80s as a way to keep pushing the possibilities of Toyota technology and break them further into the sports car market. Design ideas for the Mk4’s curved coupe bodywork were seeded in one of Toyota’s very first sports cars, the 1967 GT2000, and have been carried through to the GR Supras of today. Anthony says it’s the Mk4’s iconic shape that first caught his eye, but it wasn’t until he got under the hood with the 2JZ inline 6 engine (another grandchild of the GT2000) that he began to fully appreciate the power of the design. “Working on it is what made me really fall in love with the car,” he says.
Here's to living fast when you can in summer.
Unapologetically ready for the road.
Anthony’s next plan is to work in the aviation industry. He’s starting a new apprenticeship as an aircraft mechanic after a summer break. But, before he looks to the skies, we had to ask if he has any tips for aspiring Toyota restorers? “You don’t necessarily need a garage to work on cars,” he says. “I’ve seen some of my friends pull out gear boxes on the street. Just build the car the way you want it. And pace yourself. There's no rush to it.”
A massive thanks to Anthony for inviting us around. You can follow Anthony’s Mk4 Supra journey @anthony.roperto.
If you know of any great DIY Toyota restoration projects that you think should be featured in the GAZOO GARAGE, please get in touch via our social account @tgr-aus. We’d love to hear about it.
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