Canadian drag racing’s thriving fast import car sub genre includes a “perpetual pet project” within the Province of Ontario….
Within that vein for drag racing – one off and one of a kind creations are very common and a 1996 Toyota Supra owned by Ryan Sammut is a prime example.
Ryan (who is from Port Colborne), and who first immigrated to Canada (from Malta) back in 2006, has been a regular player and participant within Southern Ontario drag racing since he first acquired this car back in 2013. Since that time he has been relentless with both time and monetary investment while constantly morphing his project each and every season.
“This Supra was imported direct from Japan – bone stock all original,” Ryan revealed. “I started racing it right away and the modifications never stopped. I had it running 9’s by 2016, 7’s from 2018. It was a fast street car initially — then it was time for a NHRA spec roll cage — and with that change it became a race car only. I compete with this car at CSCS import events mostly and have won multiple times.”
Ryan’s career journey has so far already propelled him into the Canadian record books for fast import car racing. That includes recording the quickest and fastest times ever in CSCS drag racing & laying claim to the quickest and fastest Toyota Supra from Canada. To date, with his right side drive and rear wheel drive machine, his best ET is 4.72 secs (1/8th mile) and 7.58 secs (1/4 mile). He has topped the 200 mph mark with a personal best terminal speed at 200.17 mph.
“I hold the record for being the quickest and fastest Supra in Canada,” he affirmed. “That came with the car scaling at 3150 lbs (including driver). I can race in either the Super Street or Pro Sport Compact class – depending on event entered.”
During the just past 2020 season Ryan’s Supra featured a 3.2 Litres “2JZ” Billet block engine program. That motor which features Headgames cylinder heads and a Precision brand 98 mm turbocharger was built by Arrow Machine in Texas and produced 2150 HP on the dyno at Protech. Ryan’s car also benefits from the tuning wizardry of Chris Delgado who oversees the car’s Motec M150 engine control system.

This highly modified Toyota 2Jz motor is a 3.2 litre configuration alcohol burner producing in excess of 2000 HP!
Ryan’s passion for racing is both deep rooted and “very social”.
“Before this Toyota I did race Hondas during a lot of my teenage life,” he added. “So I’ve always had a passion for imports and especially the 2Jz motor. There has been both good and bad along that process. I think what sets me apart from some others is the transparency for this project. I’ve shared every step of the build on social media and proud to have a social media following of over 40K. Everyone has been able to see and monitor the progress since the day I purchased the car. I share all the mistakes along the way and what I’ve learned to make the car quicker. That’s different than most – the tendency to hide mistakes and only show accomplishments.”
The upcoming 2021 racing season will see Team Sammut further evolve as the quest to make the car even quicker and faster continues it’s roll on. During this off season the car was taken to The Chassis Stop (Mississauga ON) where it is undergoing a series of significant new upgrades.
“It is being converted to a 4-link rear from independent rear suspension,” Ryan added “We’re upgrading the chassis to 25.2 — that will certify the car legally to run as quick at 6.0 secs in the 1/4 mile. That new chassis will support any size tire including a 33×10.5 big slick — although our plan for now is to stick with radials. For 2021 we will use the M/T radial pro 315 which is an upgrade from the 275 radial we have used. The rear end differential will soon be a new solid axle Strange Ultra 40 spline center section. All these changes are designed to result in significant weight reduction for the car overall – we estimate about 400 lbs. Our plan was to remove every ounce we can because for Super Street the allowed weight for this car is 2300 lbs. Our objective is to get the car much more competitive for racing in that class for next summer.”

A major modification for Team Sammut for 2021 is a higher rated (25.2) new chassis build and fitting.
Ryan also confirmed that additional modifications to his engine program are being made — the sum of which should see him have in excess of 2200 HP to play with and manage next season.
Ryan funds his racing endeavours as an independent from his profession as a Service Manager and technician for Diebold Nixdorf (an ATM manufacturer). But he points to the support of some valued team associates – Platinum Racing Products, Induction Performance, Powerhouse Racing, ProSpeed and Brian Crower.
To check out more information on his team project you can by social media platforms:
Instagram – @sammutrz – Facebook – @Ryan Sammut – YouTube – Ryan Sammut Racing
Post and photos by Bruce Biegler