1987 Suzuki Samurai With A Supercharged Toyota 20R Is More Hot Rod Than Off-Roader
Suzuki built the Samurai to be small, light, and happy on a muddy trail, which is why a stock one looks like a toy next to a modern pickup. SEMA 2026 in Las Vegas pushed that contrast further at the Freak Show Builds display, where jacked-up trucks on enormous tires filled the lot. One black Suzuki parked among them went in the opposite direction.
The Suzuki Samurai Was Never Built For Speed
The Samurai arrived in America with a 1.3-liter four-cylinder making just 63 hp, and the run to 60 mph took about 17 seconds. That was fine for a tiny 4×4 that spent its best days crawling up hillsides, and buyers happily signed up for the slow lane.
Consumer Reports changed the story in 1988, when its review claimed the Samurai rolled over easily in turns. Sales fell by 70 percent and never fully recovered, leaving the rollover claim as the thing most people still remember about the little Suzuki.
A tall body, a narrow stance, and barely enough power to bother a cyclist defined the Samurai for decades. Few people would have picked it as the starting point for a hot rod, let alone one with a supercharger. Today, sold as a three- and five-door, and branded as the “Jimny”, the little 4×4 is forbidden fruit for the U.S., but around the world, they are often extensively modified. Owners and builders create some insane interpretations and faces for the Jimny. But none like this Samurai that showed up at SEMA 2026.
Splinter Swaps Suzuki Power For A Blown Toyota Four
Chris at See Customs built this 1987 Samurai, named “Splinter”, for SEMA 2026 on a custom hand-built frame and suspension. The build sheet says just about everything else was custom designed and fabricated too. The name goes unexplained, although a rat rod Samurai called Splinter is hard to see without thinking of a certain Ninja Turtles sensei.
With a reputation for running over a million miles, a 1977 Toyota 20R replaces the Suzuki engine, and it has been bored and cammed for this job. As a stock 2,189 cc inline-four in North American trim, it made 96 hp, which already beat the Samurai by 33 hp.
An M90 supercharger sits on top, displacing 90 cubic inches and sharing its model name with the unit on the 3.8-liter V6 in Ford’s Thunderbird Super Coupe. Here, it force-feeds an engine that started out with two fewer cylinders and little more than half the displacement.
Aces Fuel Injection handles fueling in place of the carburetor these engines typically wore. The original Samurai didn’t make big power, but the true output of the 20R swapped rat rod remains a mystery for now. The build sheet doesn’t list horsepower or boost figures, so the real output of this little four remains anyone’s guess.
A Ford 8.8 rear axle puts the power down, while a Jeep 2WD front axle handles the steering end. That 2WD front axle also means this Samurai has officially retired from the four-wheel-drive business.
All-Terrain Tires Are All That’s Left Of Splinter’s Off-Road Past
Typical of a Rat Rod, the hood and front fenders are gone, leaving a freestanding radiator with two round LED headlights mounted on its face. The front axle sits completely exposed, so you can see the steering and brake hardware from across the parking lot.
Headers snake down the side of the engine into a side pipe that ends just ahead of the rear wheel. The blower scoop rises high enough to cut into the windshield sightline, which would make spotting traffic an interesting exercise.
TIS Offroad wheels sit wide of the body at a low stance, wearing Venom Power tires with all-terrain-style tread. That chunky rubber is the one nod to the Samurai’s off-road past, and it looks gloriously out of place this close to the ground.
Bulky Johnson laid down the satin black paint, which carries a red pinstripe along the body. Connie’s Upholstery Shop handled the interior, and Quake LED supplied the lighting.
A Kansas plate hangs on the back, though there’s no word on how much road time Splinter actually sees. Either way, this Samurai has traded its trail-rig past for pure hot rod attitude.
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