Page 1 : Intro
Page 2 : Updates Page
Page 3 : Exterior
Page 4 : Interior
Page 5 : Audio
Page 6 : Engine
Page 7 : Drivetrain
Page 8 : Chassis/Suspension
Page 9 : Videos
Page 10 : Summary Info
Page XX : My other car, an 86 Crown Vic Sleeper!
10/14/09
So I went to an SCCA auto-x a couple weekends ago. Went pretty good, but I made a mistake in setup. I changed out my rear springs for some stiffer ones predicting that the car would understeer. Well, I think the softer springs would have been a ton better. I was pretty much drifting through every turn. So my times weren't the best they could be, but it was still a blast. I was placed 10th out of 39 by raw times, and 16th out of 39 by PAX times. Friend of mine was there taking pics so I got a good few. I think these are some of the best.
08/22/09
I know it's not a very significant update, but I thoroughly enjoy the Grassroots Motorsports Magazine, and I thought it was about time I showed my appreciation!
08/09/09
I got some pictures from the last drift/grip event that I went to. I ran with 200lb rear springs, and adjust the shocks accordingly, and the car is finally setup great! It's spot on for handling, and it's really easy to drive now. Enjoy!
06/25/09
I've done some exterior updates over the past few months. I got some number decals for the track weekends, and some new wheels and tires for the street. The tires are Bridgstone Potenza RE-11, 195/50/R15 front and 205/50/R15 rear. Wheels are XXR 513, 15X7 wheels. The new tires feel awesome! The grip is very impressive, but at the same time the ride comfort is really good. Much improved in every way over the Falken Azenis tires.
03/01/09
Since I've got the motor all done finally, I've gone back to tinkering with the looks. I had thought of body coloring the bumpers but wasn't able to find a cheap way to get the right color. Well through a little trickery I was finally able to get a near perfect color match out of off the shelf spray cans. I used Dupli-color 'Pure White' and then used Dupli-color 'Wheel Clear Coat' which darkened it up just enough to be a perfect match. The rest of the car was painted with strait enamel some time ago. The results look pretty good, can't wait to do the front as well.
01/18/09
I got the Celica all cleaned up and took it for a drive with a couple friends of mine. Got some nice pictures from the drive and after. Enjoy!
12/30/08
I also came by a GT grill, which I restored and installed. Looks good, but I really need a new set of bumpers to make the car look good.
12/29/08
I got a set of 71-71 flat tail lights not too long ago. Installing was pretty simple. Had to cut a little extra width in the rear body panel as the lights are wider, and the center panel shorter. But it was all of about 60 seconds of work to finish that. Wiring them up took a little longer. I had to restore the circuits, as the ground metal was corroded and did not have good continuity on any of the sockets. I had to also replace a couple sockets that were corroded for no apparently reason. I used all LED lights for the setup, except the turn signal light. When I got them the lights were setup for stock where the brake lights doubled as the turn signal lights. However I also found there was an empty mounting hole at the end of the light board, and a matching hole in the reflector. I found that the mounting hole matched a BA9S socket type, but I needed one that was extra tall to get the bulb inside the reflector. I ended up just welding two sockets on top of each other (worked really good). Problem is no LED light for a BA9S puts out enough light, so I have to go halogen on them. But, I didn't have to change too much and the install went smooth and came out clean looking.
I took the rear windshield out to install the clips for the polished stainless trim that at some point in the cars history was lost and replaced with lots of black RTV. It was a little dirty below the rubber seal but it was in pretty good shape overall (especially for a 35+ year old car). While I had the glass out I taped the entire interior off from the back and resprayed the rear dash cover panel black instead of white (per the last owners suggestion), looks a lot better when you walk by it now! The trim I have isn't perfect, and I had to tap out some dents in them, but it's hard enough to find a set at all let alone a perfect set. And after painfully installing the windshield by hand it finally came out pretty nice looking.
12/23/08
The passenger mirror got broken a while back, and I just took it off for the track. Well it anoys me not having a mirror over there, so I replaced it with a new set that is a little more aerodynamic. I opted for an aluminum version, and they are amazingly light. Installation was pretty simple, drill two holes, but I did have to make two access holes so that I could get a socket on the mounting bolts.
08/21/08
I also decided the other day to drive around on a set of Hoosier tires on 13X7 Diamond Racing wheels that are now officially mine for the excellent price of $0! I did a quick 5 minute clean up on them, and I don't think they were ever used! As would be expected the car is somewhat on rails. Some day soon I hope to get some real use out of these tires. And after they are done, I think I may use the wheels again. Looks like with the car lowered somemore that it would look sweet as hell!
08/20/08
I went to VIR again, first time with the Celica! Started out rough. I bed the brake pads in the first session on Friday, then middle of the second session I blew a head gasket. So I had to replace the head gasket on-site. Took about 5 hours total, which could be done much faster but it was new territory for myself and all those that helped. I had to use help from my Dad over the phone. But finished that all up in time to start the next day! And it was all great after that. The Celica was much faster with the new shocks in the back now. I had them run at the lowest setting for most of the weekend, and only cranked it up to 2 of 12 for the last two sessions on Sunday. My favorite sessions was when I was chasing a 680hp Ford GT for the entire session!! Oh I wanted so bad to be able to pass him, but I only had enough to keep up, I guess the 500hp+ defficit was just too much. But it was still the most fun I had all weekend. Anyways, here are all the pics.
I also went to another practice drift event at Pungo held by Sumospeed and US drift. Only a few pics but here they are.
06/25/08
I decided to get rid of the black crap on the hood before I went to my second drift event. All the pics with the black section seem like something just isn't right about that front end. First time I ever did any body work, and it came out good. Not the exact color match, but best I could find in a rattle can. I also got the paint to shine just as good as the rest of the paint on the car even after I clay barred and waxed the entire car. So now that I know how to do it right I can redo it and it'll be perfect. I'll also be doing the bottom strip on the sides soon as I get some color matched paint.
I received my spoils! I got both the front chin and rear spoilers for the car. I did a tape test fit and they look pretty cool. Gonna try and get some matched paint and some help with fiberglass working. I'd like to make the rear spoiler removable.
04/19/08
I picked up six 14X7 Supra wheels from Craigs List about a month ago. They were pretty crusty lookin' when I got em. So I sandblasted them clean, and painted them with a graphite color, and then clear coated them. Turned out nice. So now I have a set of track wheels, and a couple wheels I don't know what to do with. Since they are my track wheels they should have some track tires on them, so I wrapped them in Kumho Victor Racer V700 205/55/14
03/22/08
Just a few pics from my first track event with the Celica. Marks a few firsts, and lasts that I will be doing. This will be the first and last time I race the car in the wet. Not that it isn't a blast to go sideways everywhere, but I do not with to harm (IE rust) this car, so fair weather from here out. But I figured it would be good experience for a new car, so I made the exception. Did really good, but I definitely need some adjustable rear shocks so that I can bring this car back to neutral. Any-who, here are some pics, and a highlighted aerial photo of the track I drove. Summit Point Motorsports Park, Main Course (2 mile road course).
02/21/08
I had a spare set of side vents in much better shape than the ones on the Celica, so I swapped them on today. I was thinking of redoing the black paint but the chrome on the spares wasn't flawless either, so I just painted the whole thing flat black. Turned out better than I thought it would, and once the sun came out I took a few more pics of the car.
02/04/08
While I was out having fun, I took a few pics, wheels are dirty, but the car is clean. One day I'll get it right I swear!
01/21/08
I've been slowly working around the car restoring the paint job. There are a few good sized chips in the paint so I know it won't be perfect, but it's really helping the shine a lot. I've been wet sanding, polishing, and then doing a final buff. At my current rate, it'll be about a year before I have the whole car done lol! You should be able to tell where I haven't done and where I have from the pics.
While I had the car in the air, I test fitted a set of 13"x7" wheels with some crazy 9.5" wide Hoosiers on them, and they clear my brakes! Yeah, they stick out of the car a little, but if I had those on the car at the track, I don't think I'd get too many odd looks. Probably never will, but thought it was neat to see so much meat on the Celica.
12/20/07
Well the previous owner did some experimenting with fiberglass on the back, so there was a little residual resin on the tail lights. I wet sanded and polished them back to nice level.
These are pictures of the Celica from the day I got it.
Page 1 : Intro
Page 2 : Updates Page
Page 3 : Exterior
Page 4 : Interior
Page 5 : Audio
Page 6 : Engine
Page 7 : Drivetrain
Page 8 : Chassis/Suspension
Page 9 : Videos
Page 10 : Summary Info
Page XX : My other car, an 86 Crown Vic Sleeper!
