Interesting reason a Toyota Supra may be missing a headlight

If you’ve ever spotted a Toyota Supra that was missing a headlight, you may assume the car was in need of a repair – but there’s actually an interesting reason behind it. 

Toyota launched the Supra all the way back in 1978, with the initial production run wrapping up in 2002. 

In 2019, a fifth generation of the Supra was introduced and remains in production today. 

With so many years under its belt, you might not think twice if you see an older model missing a headlight, but it turns out that there’s more to it than age. 

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The Toyota Supra is an iconic road racer

The Toyota Supra has become a truly iconic car – with its profile further boosted thanks to the Fast & Furious movie franchise. 

However, even before Dominic Toretto and Letty Ortiz burst onto the big screen, it was already a popular car with road racers. 

And road racing is the reason that you might see a Toyota Supra without a headlight. 

The interesting story starts back in the 1990s, as street racing grew in popularity in Japan, The Wise Wheels explains in a clip on YouTube. 

One of the favored cars during that time was the fourth generation Supra due to its powerful engine.

Racers and tuners began removing headlights from the cars

The turbocharged fourth generation vehicles could do 0–97 km/h (0–60 mph) in as 4.6 seconds and cover the quater mile (402 m) in 13.1 seconds at 175 km/h (109 mph). 

And that was before tuners even got their hands on them. 

However, these beefed up engines required more airflow – so racers and tuners came up with the idea of popping out a headlight to allow more air into the intake. 

This cooler air gave more efficient combustion and helped to give the car a bit of a powerboost. 

Smart, right? 

So next time you spot a Supra minus its headlight just remember, it may have had a past life as a racer.