1995 Toyota Supra

"We definitely wanted to show off [the Macs], but it seemed like it would be impossible with our planned layout," Kim recalls. "[We had to] leave enough space in the trunk for the T-top. The glowing blue analog gauges mounted on top are the best parts of the Macs, so we figured why not just show those off?"

The two floor power plants required the installers to remove the spare for additional space, but the third amp forced the Autosound group to be a little more creative. Kim says they began by trying to hide the amp and relocating the gauges, only to realize upon opening up the amps "that there were about 120 two-gauge connections from the ICB to the main board."

Rather than back off, the crew dove into a weeklong project of extending the unit wire for wire, solder for solder, all in order. Kim points out that while this is a good way to void a warranty, it is also a feature of the system that goes largely unnoticed.

"Most people think we only have two amps in there and ask how we did it, and that's cool. But I sometimes wish they realized the third set of gauges, excruciatingly installed on the top."

A feature that seldom gets overlooked, however, is the Alpine VCR rising out of the bottom center part of the trunk. The MDF/fiberglass housing is motorized and triggered by remote. The hatch setup also prominently displays two DEI capacitors with digital voltmeters and four MB Quart competition crossovers.

To give Yamamoto back his rear-view vision, the Autosound peeps mounted a lipstick tube-sized, color reversal camera in the rear left taillight. "We pulled the light off, drilled a small hole in the back and slid the unit up to the clear plastic lens," Kim explains. "The cam is totally enclosed within the factory taillight housing. It turned out beautifully."

The camera isn't the only thing that's stealth in the back. As we pointed out, the Alpine DSP's hideaway unit is concealed underneath the panels in the hatch, along with an Alpine TV tuner and Alpine AV switching network. Augmenting the power up front and under the hood is a Wrangler 240amp alternator under the hood.

Protecting everything is an Aladdin 2000 two-way paging unit with auto start. Teletrac, a module that tracks a car if it's jacked, provides back-up support and can also give the heads upon the nearest gas station, ATM, freeway onramp, hospital or police station. This piece of convenience hardware also runs the remote door lock/unlock.

Kim figures the entire job took about four months and cost about 25 grand. Though that may sound steep, little can substitute for the feeling of 165dB pounding your frame in a sleek, fast custom compact. And in the future? Yamamoto admits only that the Supra is a work in progress, exactly the kind of answer you expect from a true automobile fanatic.

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