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The way a regular car guy becomes a [specific year/make/model] guy is a strange thing. Some people love classic cars with things like “pedigree” and “history”. Others want something modern, reliable, and fast. I want none of these things, instead shooting for pain and suffering in automotive form. Enter yet another 80’s Corolla of the AE86 variety. Specifically, an amazingly stock but beat-to-hell 1985 Corolla GT-S hatchback. Queue the Eurobeat…  Some of you might remember the last time I bought one of these cars. It was a panda colored rust bucket with a swapped 20 valve motor and every China-sourced Ebay part available. That car is gone for a myriad of reasons, most importantly a cross country move (Virginia to California) to a place that hates automotive fun (and swapped 20 valve motors). To be quite honest, selling my last AE86 was a good idea. It was full of body filler, stripped out, and so horribly modified by a string of previous owners. My entire ownership was spent fixing the darn thing - every bushing, every sheered off bolt, and every god-awful decision. Well it sure did look nice from 30 feet. Total lies. At least it sold for $10k, complete with a list of all of its faults. The guy who bought it from me sold it on Ebay a week or two later for even more.  That thread is in the archives, which I don’t have access to (thread was called something like “Eighty-six eight-six: Tofu is gross”). As of this new thread, I’ve owned the red car for about two months. A lot has changed but there’s so far yet to go.  Stay tuned! I also now own this shirt.  
TheLarson fucked around with this message at 08:11 on Dec 22, 2014 |
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Dec 22, 2014 06:31
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| # ? Apr 26, 2024 20:01 |
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Having been without an apartment, garage, or project for a while had me all sorts of stir crazy for something to turn some wrenches on. Luckily I ended up with a spot in a shared garage with an actual lockable door, so it was game on the second I finished moving in. One good thing about California is the lack of rust on just about any car I’ve seen. The alternative is blistering sun, baked paint, and cracked interiors. To Craigslist I went. Another good thing about California is the relative abundance of 1985 - 1987 rear wheel drive corollas. Second only to Los Angeles, the bay area has a fair number of these cars. Most of them are SR5’s (carbureted, drum brakes, lots of automatics), and even more of them are drifted or modified into oblivion. I ended up swinging this bucket for a little over $3k. Aside from a healthy dose of neglect and some Chinese knock off TE37 wheels, this car is 100% stock and 99% complete. Luckily the original wheels came with the car. The seller’s phone wouldn’t shut up during the sale. I came with cash in hand and ready to deal. It was more than I wanted to pay but the demand is still ridiculous for these cars. Without further words, here it is:  Why hello there.  Stock 4A-GE “bluetop” engine, complete with original intake and exhaust manifold.  Welcome to the lap of luxury! That floor mat started it’s life as a delightful maroon.  Cracked dash board, two-tone maroon interior, chunky everything.  Details: -1985 “zenki” Toyota Corolla GT-S hatchback -1.6L 4A-GE engine, 5-speed, RWD, 4 wheel disk brakes -Power steering, heat, A/C, manual windows, no sunroof, but hey power mirrors! -177k miles The good: -Pretty much 100% stock -Runs and drives well enough, no grinds in the transmission -Zero rust, even the jack points are perfect -Sweet double din AM/FM/Cassette stereo -California smog compliant -No enthusiast previous owners (good and bad thing) The bad: -Beat interior -Generally abused -Faded paint (beyond saving, will need a respray) -Some body damage -No factory LSD Previous Owner Madness: -Chinese wheels w/ THREE different types + brands of tires -Comically stretched tires and awful wheel sizing (15x8 + 15x9, all 0 offset, complete with 175 tires) -Front passenger side brake pad installed wrong, car dove left under braking TheLarson fucked around with this message at 08:11 on Dec 22, 2014 |
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Dec 22, 2014 06:56
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I look forward to living vicariously through this thread.
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Dec 22, 2014 07:12
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Goddammit, I wanted one of these so bad when I was looking at cars. I'll keep my eye on this thread, absolutely.
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Dec 22, 2014 07:43
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Thus the madness began. Having learned a great deal from my previous adventures with these cars, I wanted to take a different direction with this thing. Considering how complete and generally original the car is, I didn’t want to make it as nuts (read: basket case) as the last one. The goal for this car is to have a fun and easy to work on weekend mobile. I ride the metro to work and have a Zipcar membership for any serious automotive duty. I rarely go to the track. I don't have any plans to drift this thing. I still want to improve performance and modify it to some extent, but there’s one thing I decided straight away. Don’t do anything to this car that can’t be undone. No roll cages, stripped interiors, rolled fenders, flares, or anything that irreparably changes the spirit of the car. Lastly, keep every part that gets taken off or replaced. Things like the stock intake system, exhaust manifold, stock suspension, and wheels are getting difficult to come by. In the event that me or the next guy wants to change the direction of the car, they should be able to do so easily. Carry on then. Also known as “the AE86’s native environment”.  First order of business: refresh the suspension and brakes. This includes the following: -New suspension - GReddy Type-S coilovers, Prothane bushings (sway bars, front control arms), roll center adjusters, Panhard bar w/ drop mount. Coilover kits are a little extreme at times, but the complete bolt-on package is difficult to pass up. Especially since this car requires cutting and welding front strut casings to lower more than an inch or two. Also the front spindles are integrated into the suspension, so a reasonable coilover kit will have all of this sorted out right off the bat. -New brakes - Reman calipers, Hawk HPS pads, TechnoToyTuning steel braided brake lines, T3 rotors. Luckily you can still get 3 out of 4 calipers for this car remanufactured easily from any parts store. -New front wheel bearings. Wasn’t that fun. -New wheels + tires. Enkei Apache II’s w/ BFGoodrich g-Force Sport COMP-2 tires. Nice chunky vintage design. Reasonable sport tires that are daily drivable in the event of actual rain. -A slew of OEM bits. TRD shift knob, new hood prop clip, new front blinker lenses, new wiper knob, battery clamp bracket, hatch support struts, etc.  Another decision that was made early on: Keep the Ebay/ripoff parts to a minimum, if at all. It’ll take longer ($$$) to gather all the necessary bits, but I’m shooting to keep the aftermarket parts of Japanese or US origin. These old and tired front suspension and brake bits became…   These old and tired rear suspension bits became…   Ignore the mud, this is post test drive. This far I've been super impressed at how rust free this thing is. It's dirty underneath, but it's structurally sound. But wait, there’s more! TheLarson fucked around with this message at 16:47 on Dec 22, 2014 |
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Dec 22, 2014 07:48
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I'm waiting for more! I remember the 86 tofu thread
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Dec 22, 2014 11:06
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Awesome care. I wish I could get my hands on one of these but I live in Ohio so they don't exist or they're all rusted out. Are you planning to at least autocross it? What color are you planning to repaint it?
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Dec 22, 2014 11:37
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mariooncrack posted:Awesome care. I wish I could get my hands on one of these but I live in Ohio so they don't exist or they're all rusted out. Are you planning to at least autocross it? What color are you planning to repaint it? pfft who autocrosses an AE86. Everyone knows they are the king of the DOWNHILL DORIFTURU RACE!!!!! a few years of nightly tofu runs and hell be king of the mountain. In other words I would kill for one of these to pop up around Chicago and not be HERRAFRUSH or not rust/smashed to buhjesus . I remember the old thread and all your turmoil. You really are automotively Insane.
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Dec 23, 2014 02:10
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It seems like you fell in love with the chassis and are a glutton for punishment. Your new example is super clean, which makes me miss mine... sort of. Good luck with this one; you seem to be doing much better with your plans for it than most other new owners of the chassis I've seen lately.
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Dec 23, 2014 02:47
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Welcome to hell. Was that brake line set complete (7 lines instead of 4, as required by zenkis)? If so, where did you buy it? edit: can i buy one of your stock wheel hubcaps
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Dec 23, 2014 02:50
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pr0craztinazn posted:It seems like you fell in love with the chassis and are a glutton for punishment. Your new example is super clean, which makes me miss mine... sort of. Good luck with this one; you seem to be doing much better with your plans for it than most other new owners of the chassis I've seen lately. FopeDush posted:Welcome to hell. Funny you should mention, since I'm looking for a 4th zenki center cap as well. May as well complete the set, I say. The brake line set included the 4 car->caliper lines at each wheel and the car->rear axle line. As far as I know, this is a complete set of flexible brake lines for this car. They can be found from Techno Toy Tuning here: https://technotoytuning.com/toyota/ae86/stainless-brake-lines-ae86-corolla TheLarson fucked around with this message at 03:40 on Dec 23, 2014 |
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Dec 23, 2014 03:36
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gently caress yes, welcome back! TOFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU
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Dec 23, 2014 03:40
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Looks like the 7-line kit is only required for models made before 5/85. Goodridge makes a kit but it's $215  I guess yours is a zenki, but it's not a zenki zenki. Enjoy learning about all of the subtle, undocumented differences. Although, yours is probably the one that all of the parts will actually fit properly.
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Dec 23, 2014 04:10
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FopeDush posted:Looks like the 7-line kit is only required for models made before 5/85. Goodridge makes a kit but it's $215 I think you're right about the earlier models, considering what we got in the US. I believe these go back to 1983 for JDM cars.
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Dec 23, 2014 19:05
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I really really really wanted one of these originally. Admittedly, I still do, but my 300ZX still scratches that itch pretty well. Again, like I said, best of luck.
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Dec 23, 2014 19:29
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TheLarson posted:I'll enjoy the huge zenki "GT-S TWIN CAM 16" graphics while I can. If you trawl club4AG for long enough, you can probably get replacement decals. Worked for me. 
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Dec 23, 2014 19:58
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AE86s are a neat piece of automotive history, but I don't think I could ever Wade through the amount of poo poo cars that are out there. Godspeed, dude. Also, making decals isn't terribly complicated or expensive.
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Dec 23, 2014 20:15
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Phone posted:AE86s are a neat piece of automotive history, but I don't think I could ever Wade through the amount of poo poo cars that are out there. Godspeed, dude.
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Dec 23, 2014 20:44
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I'm so glad I paid <$500 each for both of the ones I had instead of what they're currently going for. Makes me sad I got rid of mine for nothing, and that the prices have now climbed past what I'd be willing to pay for another one now.
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Dec 24, 2014 00:09
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InitialDave posted:This. I really want one, but gently caress the price/condition ratio on them. Doesnt help the choices we have are either usualy complete dogs from Ireland or importing one from Japan which was probably thrashed by someone who thought he was on best motoring.
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Dec 24, 2014 01:28
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This has been on CL since late summer http://fortwayne.craigslist.org/cto/4785891717.html  quote:RE-posting client lost his $1500.00 deposit but will pay same amount in January if I don't sell it. Rotary Tofu?
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Dec 24, 2014 05:43
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That is a loving terrible idea. Isn't the 12A rotary just about impossible/prohibitively expensive to fix once it breaks? And doesn't get much more power than a 4AGE anyways?
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Dec 24, 2014 05:51
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I seem to recall a build thread here where a goon literally got the very last two new old stock 12A housings in north america, so I imagine parts are getting rare. plus the 13b would be the obvious choice for a multitude of reasons, so it having a 12a means the owner was cheap, which is generally not a good sign when custom swaps are involved. it's the rotary equivalent of SBC swaps where they use a 305.
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Dec 24, 2014 05:59
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I mean don't get me wrong. The car is in fantastic shape. But when that 12A breaks, it's going to be literally an arm and a leg to fix it.
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Dec 24, 2014 07:09
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Doesn't every series 1 and 2 rx7 over there come with a 12A? They did here. 12As were in rx2,3,4 (AP series), rx7 series 1,2, half of the series 3 13bs were in rx4, rx5, rx7 some series 3, and all series 4 onwards Discounting the renesis/rx8, more 12as were sold than 13bs as I think as rx2s,rx3s, s1-3 rx7s were more popular in their day and probably outsold later model rx4, rx5 and s4 onwards rx7s (FD rx7 due to the cost of one alone). The 13b is newer, and the 12a turbo is terrible so if wanting turbo you would have to go 13b, but that just means a lot of people would have ripped out good 12as for 13b transplants, so there must be heaps of second hand ones around. E: the holley carb makes me shake my head though, and the triangular 'ram-flo' foam filter - I had one of those filters on a stock carb in 1992, even tried the little oval ram-flos on 40mm weber IDFs, terrible. Sperglord Firecock posted:I mean don't get me wrong. The car is in fantastic shape. But when that 12A breaks, it's going to be literally an arm and a leg to fix it. Fo3 fucked around with this message at 07:34 on Dec 24, 2014 |
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Dec 24, 2014 07:10
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Fo3 posted:Doesn't every series 1 and 2 rx7 over there come with a 12A? They did here. Any rotary-powered Mazda aside from the RX-7 is rarer than poo poo in the states. I've never seen one of them in person, and I have seen/been in a (also incredibly rare here) 2+2 FC. Nobody really bought RX-2s, 3s, 4s, or REPUs here. Which makes me sad as I think RX-3s and RX-4s were some of the best looking cars ever made.
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Dec 24, 2014 08:52
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FopeDush posted:If you trawl club4AG for long enough, you can probably get replacement decals. Worked for me.
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Dec 24, 2014 22:52
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HotCanadianChick posted:Any rotary-powered Mazda aside from the RX-7 is rarer than poo poo in the states. I've never seen one of them in person, and I have seen/been in a (also incredibly rare here) 2+2 FC. Nobody really bought RX-2s, 3s, 4s, or REPUs here. Which makes me sad as I think RX-3s and RX-4s were some of the best looking cars ever made. Also, in the US at least, the RX-4 was only available with a 13b; if you want a 12a you're looking for a non-GSL-SE first-gen RX-7 or either an RX-2 or RX-3. Good luck finding an RX-2 or -3; I lucked into finding my RX-4 two years ago. In the states, when people think rotary they think 13b, and there's far more support around for the 13b than the 12a.
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Dec 24, 2014 23:02
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As it sits. Last week. I finally found a DIY wash station since I don’t have a hose at my apartment.    The Plan (tm) Short term mechanical refresh a.k.a “the car is dangerous to drive otherwise”. -Replace power steering rack since the current one leaks, both boots are torn, and inner tie rods are toast. I’m keeping the power steering this time since there’s a fair bit of traffic and low speed driving around these parts. Luckily I’ve already got a remanufactured steering rack, new inner/outer tie rods, and reservoir lines waiting in the garage. -Replace e-brake cables, which are a frayed and generally weak. Thankfully OEM sets are still available from Toyota. They aren’t cheap ($150/set) but it’s not a thing to be skimped on. The aftermarket ones I bought for the last Corolla were terrible. -Finish fitting front wheels. I’ve got a 15mm spacer on order since the front wheel rubs the coilover on the inside. The coilover shock tubes are a little wider than the factory units, which isn't helping with the wider wheels I picked up. Luckily Project Kics makes a spacer kit that works with factory lug studs. I got the wheels temporarily fitted with a +12mm spacer combo, but the lug nuts were dangerously low on thread. I can always spin up the front suspension if necessary. As cool as it looks this low, I prefer a drivable vehicle. The aftermarket wheel situation for this car is a little weird. It’s not an easy task finding reasonably priced 15” wheels in 4x114.3 without silly offsets. Most of the cheap Chinese wheels are 8" wide and +0 offset, which will require a fender roll + pull to fit on even a slightly lowered car. Luckily Enkei has a nice line of vintage reissues (http://www.enkei.com/classic.shtml), but in a very limited size/offset combination. Unfortunately the only 7” wide wheel they offer comes with a +38, which is a little too FWD for my needs. The only alternative for Japanese wheels is to go used (and refinish) or go big money (Work, SSR, Panasport). Hopefully my Apache II’s will be mounted after the holidays. The long term. Obviously the car needs attention on the cosmetic front. With any luck I’ll be able to freshen up the interior with new carpet, a modest steering wheel, and some flavor of bucket seat. Dash mats look a little to "creepy uncle's '89 Lincoln" but may be the best short term choice. Funny thing -> One of the largest dealers in replica racing seats is based in the bay area right near San Francisco. My last car had ripoff Bride’s (since they lost their trademark in Taiwan/Canada) that worked well enough but the fit and finish wasn't great. This dealer sells fake Sparco, Recaro, and Bride seats for ludicrously cheap (~$400/set for basic ones, with carbon fiber backed ones as well). I will resist temptation and hold out for a reasonably priced basic new seat (Sparco) or a super cool used one (TRD or vintage style Recaro). The paint will be the final step at some point in the future. A decent respray isn't cheap and I'd like a reliable car before I pull the trigger on a $$$ job. It will be red again, since I hate mismatched door jams and engine bays (like my last Corolla). I might spring for a black "panda" scheme, but that's TBD. The car will stay ugly for the foreseeable future. I’ll have to go read up in the detailing thread to see what can be done in the meantime. That’s all for now. It’s late and the holidays are upon us. Parts are in the mail!
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Dec 24, 2014 23:04
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I like the plan. The plan is good. Be advised that replacing the steering rack requires you to pop loose both engine mounts and jack up the engine. The FSM conveniently doesn't mention this detail.
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Dec 25, 2014 10:16
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FopeDush posted:I like the plan. The plan is good.
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Dec 25, 2014 22:28
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Man, I spent hours trying to get that stupid rack out before resigning to the necessity of lifting the engine. It was years ago though so I don't recall exactly what was blocking it - but I think it was just a matter of the space between the front subframe and the oil pan. Either way, good luck. TheLarson posted:I'd love to see some more pics Missed this last time. I don't want to derail your thread, so I'll just paste the link: http://www.fopedush.com/?p=30 Recent-ish engine bay: http://upload.fopedush.com/fopedush/4age_2011.jpg burning swine fucked around with this message at 22:28 on Dec 26, 2014 |
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Dec 26, 2014 22:24
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Excellent choice of wheels. I almost bought a set of enkei apache II's for my mr2, but I found a great deal on Michelin x-ices for the stock rims and they sold before I had the cash to pick them up. Get hosed HotCanadianChick apache II's are the best!
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Dec 27, 2014 00:35
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FopeDush posted:Man, I spent hours trying to get that stupid rack out before resigning to the necessity of lifting the engine. It was years ago though so I don't recall exactly what was blocking it - but I think it was just a matter of the space between the front subframe and the oil pan. now I know nothing of how this car is set up...But on all other cars when I need to do the power steering rack I just drop the subframe, is it not so easy on a TOFU DERIVERY vehicle??
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Dec 27, 2014 01:44
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SouthsideSaint posted:now I know nothing of how this car is set up...But on all other cars when I need to do the power steering rack I just drop the subframe, is it not so easy on a TOFU DERIVERY vehicle?? The engine is mounted to the front subframe, so dropping the frame would drop the engine and rack all together as one unit and wouldn't alleviate the clearance issue.
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Dec 27, 2014 03:31
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FopeDush posted:Missed this last time. I don't want to derail your thread, so I'll just paste the link: That car looks fantastic, excellent work! It will probably be a year or so before I go hunting for body shops. I'd like to find a clean driver's door + fender before paint is considered. In other news, got a few automotive things for xmas.  The tire gauge is a little hardcore, but A+ to my parents for finding a nice one. The valve end swivels and the rubber hose is a nice touch (especially for motorcycles!). I haven't figured out if the button on the gauge is a pressure bleeder or a reading hold. Hopefully I'll be airing up the new tires this week, once I can get the front wheels mounted. The AutoZone gift card is $100, so that should be good for a few maintenance bits.  Unfortunately AutoZone doesn't allow for gift car usage online, which is cool like it's 1998. Good thing I can still use it in the store down the street.Which brings us to the post xmas maintenance binge. Most of this stuff should have been done on day 1, but the car ran well enough and the PO claims to have changed "all the fluids". The brake fluid sure as hell wasn't new, but the engine oil looked clean. All of the following is in the mail.
I also sprung for a new set of valve cover gaskets + grommets, since I'll be respraying a spare set of junk yard valve covers to look nice. Color is TDB, either original grey/blue/black or simple black w/ brushed letters.
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Dec 28, 2014 19:16
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I've got a gauge that looks almost identical to that and the button is to bleed off air. Like you mentioned it has made checking my motorcycle tires so much easier. I just overfill them a few PSI and then snake the thing in there and bleed it down to correct. Much easier than making 18 attempts at filling and checking with a normal gauge that only just barely fits in between two rotors and the rim.
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Dec 28, 2014 19:50
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My amazingly supportive girlfriend also got me this sticker (and the accompanying shirt!). I haven't decided if this is going in the rear window of the car or on the toolbox yet. You can get yours (and some other neat stuff) from Japanese Nostalgic Car.  Galler posted:I've got a gauge that looks almost identical to that and the button is to bleed off air. Like you mentioned it has made checking my motorcycle tires so much easier. I just overfill them a few PSI and then snake the thing in there and bleed it down to correct. Much easier than making 18 attempts at filling and checking with a normal gauge that only just barely fits in between two rotors and the rim.
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Dec 28, 2014 20:17
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I've got the Harbor Freight version of that gauge, and it has a check valve in there somewhere and the button is for bleeding/releasing the pressure. So you don't need a "hold" button, as it will always hold the highest pressure read until the button is pressed. Agreed as to its usefulness for balancing pressure across all the tires.
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Dec 28, 2014 21:20
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You bastard! I would have bought your old shitbox  . I ended up buying that one in north carolina that I Pm'd you about many moons ago and now I am moveing north to the land of DC traffic and Wegmens. So I suppose I am just following your excellent example. Were the pickings even SLIGHTLY better on the west coast? I would have thought at least you would have more to choose from.
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Dec 29, 2014 17:19
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