1996 CelicaSlowBoi Progress Thread Options

[CelicaSlowboi]

It will probably take me a while to get this completely up to date, but finally starting a progress thread for my 1996 Celica ST 1.8L. Through a series of events with school and my other vehicle, I acquired my family’s Celica around October of 2018. It’s a little rough around the edges but now I get to do some things that I’ve wanted to do for the ~12 years that it’s been in our family. Here’s a few pictures of the Celica before I had done any work on it.









This post has been edited by CelicaSlowboi: Jul 23, 2019 - 12:10 PM

[bloodMoney]

Looks like a nice clean base to start with!

[Box]

Welcome! So what're your plans for it?

[cheela]

Welcome! Looks like your family took good care of it for those 12 years.

[CelicaSlowboi]

Looks like a nice clean base to start with!

Thanks!

Welcome! So what're your plans for it?

I'm a big fan of the "OEM plus" look and options, so the main plan right now is getting any missing parts and restoring any that are in rough shape, as well as mainly cosmetic upgrades for now. This is my daily driver and it has fairly high miles so likely no major mods under the hood until a rebuild or new motor is in order, but I'd also like to beef up the suspension/handling components. I've done a handful of things so far, I just need to set some time aside to upload the pictures of all the upgrades.

Welcome! Looks like your family took good care of it for those 12 years.

Thanks! 312k on the odometer, ~180 on the motor

[narly_charley]

With some money on materials and tools, and some time and elbow grease, you could paint correct the shi* out of that thing and make it look new. I'd get some new wheels, lower it a bit with some new struts/springs, tint the windows a bit, and call it a day.

[Box]

Welcome! So what're your plans for it?

I'm a big fan of the "OEM plus" look and options, so the main plan right now is getting any missing parts and restoring any that are in rough shape, as well as mainly cosmetic upgrades for now. This is my daily driver and it has fairly high miles so likely no major mods under the hood until a rebuild or new motor is in order, but I'd also like to beef up the suspension/handling components. I've done a handful of things so far, I just need to set some time aside to upload the pictures of all the upgrades.

Ha, just like me then. For what it's worth there's no point in bothering with mods on the 7A-FE or 5S-FE, though if you want a cold air intake and a different exhaust for the sound then go for it. Best returns will be through wheels and tires as well as suspension; lightweight wheels with sticky tires as well as good struts and springs will really transform the car(though it transforms most any car to be fair), that or you might consider coil-overs if anything outside of the Taiwanese parts bin is still available.

[bryanf]

You've got a great starting point there for a car you can enjoy and depend upon.

Of the few, basic mods I have done to mine, the GT brake swap is my favorite so far.

[CelicaSlowboi]

With some money on materials and tools, and some time and elbow grease, you could paint correct the shi* out of that thing and make it look new. I'd get some new wheels, lower it a bit with some new struts/springs, tint the windows a bit, and call it a day.

That's pretty much the plan, my dad went through several steps of polishing and buffing about a year ago and it looked great, I can only imagine if I went through and did everything plus wax. I like the design of these wheels but 15" is just too small and brand new tires were put on right before I got it so that setup will likely remain for a while. I'll be adding a sun strip to the windshield soon and I'll see if tinting the rest should be in the works. As for suspension, that's definitely the next big thing on my list. Probably won't go straight to coilovers but at least a solid set of lowering springs and new struts.

Ha, just like me then. For what it's worth there's no point in bothering with mods on the 7A-FE or 5S-FE, though if you want a cold air intake and a different exhaust for the sound then go for it. Best returns will be through wheels and tires as well as suspension; lightweight wheels with sticky tires as well as good struts and springs will really transform the car(though it transforms most any car to be fair), that or you might consider coil-overs if anything outside of the Taiwanese parts bin is still available.

I've been looking into adding a cold air intake but I agree, probably won't be tweaking the existing engine at all. How lightweight are you talking? These are BBS Solitude 15X7's which are 16 lbs in the 15x6.5 configuration, so not sure how much that extra half inch adds. I read where the 7th gen GTS wheels are 18 lbs but to be fair they're 16's. Do you have any personal strut/spring recommendations? The only ones I've really looked into are the Tein springs.

You've got a great starting point there for a car you can enjoy and depend upon.

Of the few, basic mods I have done to mine, the GT brake swap is my favorite so far.

Thanks! It's been the most reliable car my family has owned, and I definitely can't complain about the shape it's in considering it has ~320k on it. I'm very interested in the brake swap, I'm not exactly zooming around with the current setup but I figured that swap would produce some noticeable results.