95 GT-Four Progress Thread Options

[azian_advanced]

I just flew in to Vancouver today and picked up a 1995 GT-Four that I imported myself. So now that I have a celica again, I decided I should have a progress thread since I never made one for my previous car.
It is a 1995 Celica in baltic blue (code 752) with the optional sunroof. That's about the only feature it came with from the factory.
Upon arrival, I was disappointed that the exporter did not show pictures of the worn and damaged areas of the car. The only damage noted was a dented rear hatch door and was in excellent mechanical condition.

First, I'll start with the pictures that the exporter had posted of the car.















optional factory seats. but obviously i went with the recaro's.
















here are some pics after i picked up the car and gave it a wash.












this is the mileage when i first picked up the car and drove to the nearest gas station a couple of kilometers away since the gas tanks are emptied when the car boards the ship.
i spent exactly $100 to fill! damn vancouver gas prices are high!








no idea why this is in the car. looks like a turbo timer diy that went bad...





driver-seat.. side bolster is beat to ****! i'm so disappoint!




but the passenger-side looks very good




it has LED map light installed





a couple of adhesive pads were left on the dash. not sure what it was for but i sure hope it can come off easily




this is the head-unit that the exporter agreed in installing.




i found this inside the shifter surround plastic. seems like a turbo-timer DIY install that went bad.





there's also this blitz boost controller which i think is a dummy since it doesn't light up or anything..





black spoiler... seriously?




here's that dented hatch door i mentioned.. hope it can be easily repaired.




small nick on the spoiler blocks




severely faded hood and vents





headlamp rubber seals are about to come off... typical 6gc problem.





and the rest are just random stickers and insignia











some goodies found in the glove compartment












I've spent most of the day driving around the city getting used to the RHD. it feels like learning how to drive all over again. shifting with the left takes some time to get used to. the turn signals are on the opposite side now and out of habit i'm turning the wipers on instead. after a few hours i've gotten used to most of it but downshifting in traffic while using the turn signals & changing lanes simultaneously is nearly impossible to do at first.

mechanically, the turbo spools up like it should but i'm really concerned about how much life it has left. nearly half of the foam in the hks mushroom air filter has already disintegrated, so there's literally no filtering at all! seems like the previous owner didn't care for it. also, when i picked up the car, it was on a gravel lot and the car was dusty. i really hope no sand was sucked in to the compressor and engine to cause long-term damage. i won't be driving through any gravel roads from here on out until i get back to winnipeg in 3 days.

you can really tell the difference between the gear ratios of the e154f & s54. i need to shift at a higher rpm so that the engine doesn't bog down on the next gear.. like the engine is begging to be revved! i'm still a softie when it comes to pushing the engine, looks like things are gonna be different from now on!
the shifter itself is notchy when downshifting to 3rd and 2nd or when trying to shift at higher than normal rpms so i'm guessing the synchros are starting to go?
i still haven't made any hard pulls since i'm still trying to get the hang of driving a RHD but I'll likely do a few once i get on the highway tomorrow. the drive through the mountains is gonna be fun.

This post has been edited by azian_advanced: May 16, 2012 - 1:24 AM

[azian_advanced]

noice. Welcome to the club. theres some good parts on that car. Good stuff. and congrats. Question.. didnt your car come with a jdm flare? they all usually do. Annnd were teh sideskirts on your old car still intact or smashed cause its been sitting on it?

did yours come with it? i always thought the jdm flares were removed as they are hazardous materials.. anyway i remember playing with one of the flares when i went camping as a kit. it makes a nice 2ft flame just need to make sure you don't wear expensive clothing when you light one up
the skirts and splitters are bent but are probably repairable. the problem is getting under the car to undo the locking tabs & screws. you'd need to jack up the car to get to it but i didn't want to take any chances since there have been many deaths with cars falling on people at junk yards.

About the brakes, it can be some non standard "high performance" pads, they usally make a lot of squealing sounds.. the yellowish dust looks like they are not standard anyway.

What kind of DRL kit did u use ? ..Here in sweden we also need to use lights daytime, but it doesnt need to be automatic, however its very easy to forget about it when you are used to cars with automatic DRL (as most cars sold in sweden have)

i figured that the pads were high performance type pads since they were yellow. i'm gonna switch back to regular supra TT on the next set.
this is the kit that i went with. it cost $40 + tax.



you have to wire up to a constant 12V (battery), ignition, ground, then your headlight of choice (for me it's the fogs), and optional parking lights, and optional high beams if you want the DRLs to shut off when the high beams are triggered.

I really like that flare, I dig the utilitarian way that you mounted it in the foot well. Anyway, sad to see your car like that - I'd cry and punch something in the face in that situation. Why did you not remove all the parts at time of parting with the car? Sweet GT-4 still too, looks like she's in good hands...

jdm cars have their flares in that location. since it has everything but the flare, i decided to put one in.
i was not able to remove the parts because after the accident, the car wasn't driveable. the insurance company allows you to come back for the car to retrieve any loose items but anything secured to the vehicle cannot be removed but instead holds value in the insurance write-off amount. unfortunately i wasn't able to bid on it at the salvage auctions to buy it back as a parts car and sell the parts.

Gerald; what shape is the driverside projector housing in on your old red one??

i checked the lamps and they're all damaged. but the driver side high and low beam lenses are still good. the internals of the projector is also in good shape.

[KAOS]

Gerald; what shape is the driverside projector housing in on your old red one??

i checked the lamps and they're all damaged. but the driver side high and low beam lenses are still good. the internals of the projector is also in good shape.

The biggest thing for me is the tabs of the projector. I don't want/need anything else, just the outer shell that holds everything. Unless the driverside is in really good shape, then I might snag the entire thing off you.

Are you going back to get the command start antenna? Would you mind grabbing the DS projector for me at the same time? (just need the driverside low, provided all tabs are in usable condition)

Thanks man! I appreciate it!

This post has been edited by KAOS: May 29, 2012 - 1:53 PM