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]

my order for the Iridium IK22 plugs also came in. but man, changing plugs on a st205 isn't as easy as you have to remove the intercooler to gain access to it.

I made the same mistake of thinking that! You don't actually have to take it off, but its good you made use of it :3

really? i don't see how else you can access the plugs without removing the intercooler.

btw, replacing the plugs seems to have fixed the hesitation issue at WOT. when i pulled out the cords, there was a pool of oil sitting in each spark plug tube. looks like i'll have to replace some gaskets to replace the leak. the oil or the plugs themselves must have been the source of the problem. i'm gonna test it out again later today just to make sure. if it's fixed, i wanna hook up the vacuum lines for the boost controller and get it working.

I'm gonna miss my garage

Don't worry man - there are plenty here that are available to you if/when you need them.

thanks man the car ran really well all the way here so hopefully i don't run into any serious issues that would require a garage. my uncle here in Calgary has a garage but it's so empty that i kinda feel sorry for it.. lol

Keep going mate! Only what I would change (if I were you) is that intake filter. HKS is not good for street cars at all. It's filter capability is really poor. I recommend Apexi http://www.nengun.com/apexi/power-intake.

thanks martin I hate the HKS filter too but it will have to do for now. i looked at the intake filter comparison on supraforums and showed Apex'i being the best with minimal pressure loss. i'm going to switch over once i see that the HKS foam insert starts to show signs of degradation.

when i took out the intercooler, there was all these small black bits from the air filter foam stuck in the intercooler fins at the inlet. so while i had it out, i added gasoline in the intercooler and i ziptied rubber gloves around the inlet and outlet sealing the intercooler. i also added boiling water into the water lines to help heat and loosen the grime that was stuck. i gave it a couple of minutes of hard shakes, and emptied the gasoline. all i saw was black grime pouring out. i repeated the process about 3 times and got rid of most of the left over HKS muck. so DON'T GO WITH FOAM AIR FILTERS ON FORCED INDUCTION! i'm just glad it didn't mess up the turbo.