Back from the Dead, and Been Through Hell Options

[CastrolCelica]

Not sure who is left from when I was here, but figured I'd pop in and say hi again and share the story of the last few years since selling my Celica.

I am definitely starting to miss my Celica that I sold. The 6th generation Celica has always been my dream car, specifically the GT-Four I never was able to get back then. Since then, the economy has gotten better, and things are looking much better financially. So hopefully a GT-Four is in my future. Anyway, since then I've also owned a few cars... and it's been a miserable ride:

First one after the Celi was a 02' Mini Cooper S. Really fast, especially after I modified it, but had to be the most unreliable car in the world. Water pump/installation 2200 dollars... yeah.. don't ask. And no, you can't do it yourself. The car is so damned low and the part is so far hidden deep inside the car, you're stuck. That's just one of tons of issues. Paint, engine, hatch electronics, power locks, speedometer, interior, brake system... all within a year. Was a nightmare. Stay FAR away from BMWs.

Had to get out of the Mini to escape repairs and got into an Xterra which was nearly as bad as the Mini. Won't go too far into detail, but the truck was just poorly engineered. Rust issues, the "8 thousand mile clutch", horrible build quality in the dash, no clear coat on the roof from factory, ball joint bearings, etc. All with low miles.. just a bad truck. Gas mileage killed me, too when the gas prices skyrocketed. And between it and the Mini, really put us in some debt.

So I had to get in a lease to get rid of the negative equity. I'm now driving a '11 Honda CR-Z. The car is extremely reliable. No complaints there. The paint on all CR-Zs though is horrid. All of them for some reason have millions of circular scratches in the paint. It's a large issue. That and the paint is thin as heck. Other than that, 40 mpg and decent pick up and go, it's good for the 19k I spent on it. Hard to find a reliable, peppy, fuel efficient 6speed now a days. And it's helped make life a lot less of a headache, which I can't thank it enough for doing.


But as time goes on, I really just want go hop back in a Celica. I miss the feel of the car. I miss the looks. I miss the interior. I miss those tail lights. There's just something about them that's just perfect in more ways than one. I'm thinking of getting a GT-Four either when the lease is over, or just a fixer upper while I use the Honda as my daily commuter. Still going back and forth, and it also depends greatly what happens with my career which is on the edge of promotion.

Anywho, it's good to be back, in some form.. even without a Celica. Hopefully some of the guys and gals that were here when I was around are still on the boards.

[richee3]

Welcome back!

[95CelicaST]

Scratches are easy to remove.

Surbuf pad on a Porter Cable with Meg's 105

Then something like a Griots Garage Orange pad... again with the 105

And lastly a soft foam polishing pad + 105

then step back and marvel. No more scratches.

[kurt95gt]

Yes another Ohio member has came back
Happy days oh happys days lol

[CastrolCelica]

Thanks for the warm welcome back. Good to see you again Richee3!

Thanks for the help regarding the scratches, 95CelicaST. However, I now have a bigger issue on my hands. Someone hit my car with something white. My whole driver's side quarter panel is dented in and my mirror is pretty messed up. Seriously this Honda is cursed, lol. It's been keyed 3 times, hit now twice, and it's hood dented/chipped from a cement truck in one year. I've never had such bad luck cosmetically. My Celica was spotless, lol.

Speaking of which, I know at least when I used to be on the boards that some members had GT-Fours in the states, telling the state it was simply a GT. While that's easy enough, what is the best way to purchase one (outside of finding a local seller) from outside the country? Say, Canada for instance.. how would you import it without them knowing it's a GT-Four? Just curious if this is honestly even feasible.

I hope it is, because I really do miss my Celica to death.

[SwissFerdi]

Always did surprise me that you sold it so quickly after having realized the bulk of the project...you are not alone in doing so, though.

[CastrolCelica]

Always did surprise me that you sold it so quickly after having realized the bulk of the project...you are not alone in doing so, though.

At the time I needed something more reliable. And something that wasn't a money pit. It just was a bad time for a project car. Honestly, financially it was just a bad time, period. Thankfully my wife's medical condition improved and she was able to get back to work, which really helped us out tremendously.

This post has been edited by CastrolCelica: Oct 1, 2012 - 5:45 PM

[kurt95gt]

Someone get this man a celica ASAP lol

[CastrolCelica]

Someone get this man a celica ASAP lol

Yes please!

[azian_advanced]

i'd start with making an offer to those who have gt-fours in the country before trying to import one.
but yeah the gt-four is surprisingly reliable and fuel efficient than i expected.
finding one or even importing one won't be easy (or legal probably).

[CastrolCelica]

i'd start with making an offer to those who have gt-fours in the country before trying to import one.
but yeah the gt-four is surprisingly reliable and fuel efficient than i expected.
finding one or even importing one won't be easy (or legal probably).

Oh, I'm sure it won't be easy. Consider this me asking our little community at the very least if someone has one for sale. But I plan to look where I can and find one eventually. It's not a huge rush, and I know I can find one.

I don't want to do what I did last time and rush into a purchase I later regret. As much as I loved my Celica, it wasn't really what I was looking for. This time, now that I know what to look for thanks to this site, I'll do it right.

So if it takes a year or two, so be it. But at least it'll be my dream car I've been looking for, and I'll keep it forever.

As far as legality, I'll just tell the BMV it's a GT. They don't know the differences anyway, nor care. I've seen people get away with far worse.

If that doesn't work out, I'd settle for doing an engine swap with GT-Four bumper/hood/spoiler. But that's a last resort. I'd like to get what I really want if I'm going to spend the money for it.

This post has been edited by CastrolCelica: Oct 1, 2012 - 9:46 PM

[ricochet1490]

could do what i did.... but its a ton of work I won't lie to you. I'm doing the BEAMS version, but I've cut and rewelded RHD parts on a usdm gt.... so it actually WAS a GT that has just now been modified. Then you can have it legally, have it RHD, have it anyway you want it. Just depends on how mechanically inclined you are.

[Box]

Someone get this man a celica ASAP lol

He can buy mine.

[kurt95gt]

Someone get this man a celica ASAP lol

He can buy mine.

No then you won't have one lol can't have that lol

[Box]

Sure we can. I'll stick around, just won't have a Celica.

[njccmd2002]

Sure we can. I'll stick around, just won't have a Celica.

[Box]

Most likely will keep it, everything has been replaced on it and it'd be stupid to sell for another car that God only knows the history of. Just tired of driving a car that looks faster than what it is.

[CastrolCelica]

Most likely will keep it, everything has been replaced on it and it'd be stupid to sell for another car that God only knows the history of. Just tired of driving a car that looks faster than what it is.

Hence why I want to do it differently this time around .