6G Celicas Forums

So I am just a bit curious . To those (mostly Canadians) who have owned both GT/ST and have converted to the real Gt-Four, I'd like to know a few things. Obviously the ST205 is turbo, awd, and quicker. BUT:

-What did you like and didn't like about?
-Maintenance issues? Do you do your own maintenance? Will Toyota dealerships do maintenance on these cars?
-Problematic areas?
-Is it as heavy as what everyone says?

If there's anything else, chime in. I'd like to know before I call up my cousin to drive down here and fly back up north

TIA

What i like about the gt4 vs 204.
-power, and lots of it!
-awd, throws you in the seat and makes the car feel alive.
-looks, factory body is out of this planet compared to most modern cars.
-handling, super strut suspension is a blast of fun in the corners.

Maintenance on the car isnt all that difficult. oil changes every 3k (for myself)
basic things such as coolant changes,plugs, ect.. all very easy.
As long as your not replacing parts and just doing basic maintenance you will be in good shape, its when you have to start sourcing parts. that's when it gets $$$$
Also regarding dealerships working on the car, i would say its 50/50. Most parts you would have to source and they could probably replace. I personally work at a dealership so its easier for myself to have someone help get things done. Even some cases they may say no due to the 12# vin not coming up in the system.

Problematic areas include but do not exclude..

SUPER STRUT
-figure 8's
-lower control arms
-crush tubes
-strut ball joints

OTHER AREAS
-rear diff mount
-occasional wheel bearings
-strut tops
-oil pump seal
-valve cover gasket
-induction tube seems to get hard from the heat and cracks
-higher boost cylinder wall cracking (pretty rare)

People in the state... looking to own a gt4

THIS CAR IS EXPENSIVE!!!!!
Do not buy this car if you expect it to be about the same price as a 204
Parts like super strut, some engine, drive train, and body parts are hard to find and only sourced from Europe or japan.
When you do find parts they can be shocking in price, If you want a good idea check out TCB parts online. they are price pretty well but it will still give an idea to the money you could be spending.

Car weight
owning both a st204 and st205, i would say no.. the st205 does not feel any more heavy and here is my reason why i feel people say this.
The 3sgte is awesome but does seem to have some boost threshold, so when you are really going for it you hear the boost build and then bam your going. there is that split second where you expect something to happen and your mind instantly thinks weight, drive train loss, ect. Other reasons i feel this car doesn't weigh as much as it is brought up to be... handling, its very nimble and light on its feet. change of direction is effortless and surprisingly good for such and old car.
Also if you are comparing stock for stock they feel very close, But..... if you have a 3s powered swap with coils i will guarantee you will say the gt4 is a heavy overweight pig.

Would i recommend a swap or the real deal.
- i would have loved to say i built this, its a great feeling of pride. Although at the same time owning a gt4 is an out of body experience, its wonderful on so many levels.
Its a hard decision between the two, the biggest factor is AWD, price, and what do you really want.

Hopefully this helps in your decision. BTW buy the gt4 bahaha

This post has been edited by 4-eyed-freek: Jul 13, 2015 - 8:43 AM

+1 on the post above. I am coming from a AT200 and the feeling is unreal, the GT4 is a blast to drive.

Thanks guys. I've been reading up on a lot of things about the st205 and sounds exciting lol.

4-eyed-freek. if I get it it's only going to be a weekend/track car.

I said the same thing.. Now I drive it just as much as my dd haha

Having owned a celica st202 and then a celica st205 the gt4 feels much more fun to drive and has more power and torque, It allways puts a smile on my face ; )
My GT4 isnt my daily driver mostly sits in the garage,

Not legal here in the states so will have to track it. I wish I could drive it everyday!



Glad to hear you're keeping it a queen!

This post has been edited by 4-eyed-freek: Jul 16, 2015 - 11:25 AM

Sounds like fun, good luck!

Instead of making it a track car you could (not saying you should because it's illegal) VIN swap an st204 VIN onto the 205. Nobody would know or be able to tell unless you told everyone about it.

Until he wrecks it and he gets caught and hes asked where he got the idea...

Likes: better all around performance (acceleration, braking, traction). I like having the auto climate control, especially in the winter. Slapped on a set of snow tires and it's a real beast in the snow.
Dislikes: RHD a slight inconvenience in some instances, parts are difficult to find and expensive to import, expensive to insure, full comprehensive insurance nearly impossible to obtain (at least where I live).



Did all of my own maintenance.
Never attempted to have the deaelrship do anything on the car.



Didn't come across any common problematic issues (if there are any) but then again, I owned it for only 1 year before I sold it to buy my FR-S.
Although I had to replace the bad spark plugs, front RH axle, and worn brake pads after I imported it. Months later I replaced 1 bad wheel bearing and ended up doing all 4 since i was planning to keep it for a long time.



You can feel the difference in weight between the 202/204 vs. 205, but the AWD and especially the 3SGTE in the 205 totally makes up for it.
If I had to relate it to another car, it feels like driving a WRX/STI.

With grey market imports it really depends. I know some postal people import cars from Canada as they'll already be RHD and won't have to be converted for delivering mail. If you can find one with a Canadian title you should be able to get it over here, would just have to look into it for your state. All else fails wait until the '94 model is 25 years old and then it doesn't matter.

This will be a track car and only a track car.



IKR



Thanks, that was helpful. How do you like your FRS? I had mines for about 6 months and got bored so I traded it in.



You won't be able to register it until it's 25 years old. I've asked numerous auto insurance agents lol. It's such a long wait....by that time it'll just be a statue.

GT4 Track car would be so much fun!!

This post has been edited by 4-eyed-freek: Jul 22, 2015 - 3:09 PM

Have you taken yours out to the track?

Drag strip, but not an actual track. Would be a hoot of fun though!

Yeah I imagine it would be fun.

You have any #'s of what you've ran at the strip?

Yes sir!

http://www.6gc.net/forums/index.php?showto...93639&st=40

Dude! Didn't realize you were from the states! That's awesome! I thought you were a Canadian lol. Ill check out the post!