Which To Do? Options

[GuYun14]

What’s up fellow 6gc Celica enthusiast,

I just need some advice, tips, opinions, ideas, on what I want to do this next summer before I head out to school. I have a 1998 Celica GT which is unfortunately an auto. I only have next summer to work on my car so here’s what I have in mind at the moment:

•Suspension - since I do want try autocross this summer. I have Eibach springs with KYB struts, TRD front strut brace, OEM rear strut brace right now.
•Cams upgrade - since I do want a little power increase but don’t know how hard the install is.
•Body work - because the car does have a few ding and scratches here and there. And either new paint or plastdip
•Auto to manual swap – because manual.
•Engine swap – more powah! But maybe not in my price range.

Now know that I have no experience with any of these except suspension work. So, in the timeframe I have, what’s the most viable project to get done? Your opinions will very much be appreciated.

[SwissFerdi]

Manual conversion was by far my favorite mod. It touches on everything that needs to be improved, and if you get lucky you may be able to find parts cheap. I was into it for only a couple hundred even with a new clutch plate and axle, did it over a week in my friends garage five years ago. No regrets. It did take about half a year to gather everything at cost, including great hook-ups from members here.

This post has been edited by SwissFerdi: Dec 26, 2018 - 12:23 PM