Fribox's 1996 Celica GT, A used car that likes to suck money out of my pockets Options

[fribox]

5s-fe, 5 speed, 221000 miles. Second owner. (Now nearing 225000)
It looks shiny in this picture, but it has a lot of problems.




Engine refuses to rev past 4500-5000 RPM (not that I do this often), if anyone has a solution to this I'd be very grateful. I've read a bit on here its either the catalytic converter being clogged or timing is off.

This thread isn't really much of a project thread, more of a maintenance diary. I don't plan anything spectacular with this car, but I'd like to share my woes and experience with you guys.
Maybe I'll come across something and find out what is wrong and help someone who has the same problem, who knows.
I was first planning a 3S-GE swap, but figure its not worth the hassle on a car with 225000+ miles on it. I've seen good things about 294 grind cams though, which is what I might do for the little more umf at the high end that I want.
But I'll post whatever happens to my car here.

This post has been edited by fribox: Mar 18, 2014 - 10:38 PM

[fribox]

-snip-

I changed the oil last weekend and the engine still runs smooth as silk nearing 225000 miles. Oil showed no sign of "milk" from coolant so my head gasket is A-OK. I'm still having the limp mode issue where it wont rev past ~4500rpm, I'm thinking the timing is off so that'll get a look when I work on it next. If nothing is wrong with the car it might just be a lazy tachometer, though I do lose all power when it stops revving higher (no redline bounce, no bad noises, etc).

I'm also in search of stock rims, so I'm going to see if I can grab some off a Celica at my local pull-a-part. My current rims are ugly and one is slightly bent from the PO.
Anyway, as I like to keep content fresh here is an old picture I took of my car which is new to you guys. I'll make sure to get some new pictures once I'm done working on the car and can wash off all the grime from it.


This post has been edited by fribox: Apr 21, 2014 - 2:06 PM