One dedicated track rat, a man who goes by the YouTube alias of 80kirin, regularly posts footage of his outings in his highly-modified JZA80 Supra. The product of nearly a decade of development, this Toyota sports a slew of wild modifications including a rare and sought-after Tamon Designs aero kit, which is reportedly based off of the shape of several JGTC Supras. The downforce it provides is obvious, but even big wings and diffusers can’t keep this driver from throwing his car into a hairy spin at the end of this committed lap at Autopolis.

Some might find the Tamon Designs aero kit an eyesore, but there’s no denying its effectiveness. Photo credit: Supraforums.com

Another perk of the Tamon kit, is the reduction of heft — this Supra weighs in at around 2,800 pounds. By swapping out the stock twins with a medium-sized HKS GT3240 turbo, a little more weight is taken off the car’s front end. The effects of that diet can be seen in how willing the car is to turn in — though very stiff Quantum Racing coilovers help there, too. Even with the iron inline-six sitting slightly ahead of the front axle, this Supra is uncharacteristically agile.

That accurate front end is complemented by a controllable rear. Wheelspin is a regular occurrence, especially with a turbo that hits this hard, but it doesn’t hinder his progress much. 80kirin can catch slides in his sleep — most remarkably at 1:04 while grabbing another gear with his left hand — and the car still generates some forward bite with the rear Enkei RPF1s spinning furiously. Fun, fast, a little violent, responsive, and controllable — it’s everything a track car should be.

Undaunted by the rears spinning at speed, 80kirin casually grabs another gear and countersteers towards the next apex.

Even the motor has been massaged to produce power in the right way for the circumstances. The motor is a late-model 2JZ, which features variable valve timing (VVT-i), and inside it sits a set of HKS 264-degree cams. Complemented by a free-flowing Trial Tryforce titanium exhaust, the motor always offers power when needed. Though some might argue the GT3240 delivers the goods a little too abruptly, it comes on-line with the faintest sniff of the throttle. It even seems to help neutralize the Supra at higher speeds.

It’s in the faster corners where this long-wheelbase car can best flex its muscle. In third- and fourth-gear corners, the power is no longer enough to roast the rears, and the aerodynamics help keep it reasonably straight. Yet, despite the fact he’s grown quite comfortable with the car in his ten years of ownership (the progress can be seen in his YouTube videos), 80kirin still, on occasion, bites off more than he can chew.

Despite his quick countersteering, there wasn’t much he could realistically do at this point.

A flick of the wheel, plus a pair of likely overheated tires, put the Supra into a sphincter-tightening spin at something around 105 miles per hour. As the world spins around him and smoke billows off the tired tires, your shoulders tense; waiting for the thud, but the stripped car comes to a halt before contact. Guess it’s a good thing that bodykit is as light as it is.