oldschool.co.nz

heres what everyone has been waiting for including me

spent all morning/afternoon trying to
a) find 2nd hand 195/60/15s and 205/55/15s or 205/60/15s from somewhere
b) trying to convince narrowminded tyre shop operators on what i want to do. got a bit sick of being told i need 255's minimum to fit those rims blah blah blah. yes i know 205's wont 'fit' at all - thats the frikin point. look at that exhaust ffs, does that look right either!? look at me do i look like im another mitsi evo owner!? but they dont understand.

finally got to Rowes Tyres off Rosebank Rd - and FINALLY got a goodnatured and openminded attitude to work with. excellent! you can have all my business. really recommend these guys, been there twice now and both times excellent attitude and work. not to mention great prices.

we tackled the 9" fronts first... dug up some 195/60/15s and tried to get them on there. with a rubber donut and some wrenching we got it pumped up. choice of tyre makes or breaks the stretch - got to get a tyre with a flat/hardened sidewall - 'rounded' sidewalls are easier to fit but look shit when stretched. i didnt have any choice for selection so i decided to just put up and shut up for now - this is afterall a learning experience so im gonna have to hit and miss till i sort this shit out.

heres the 9" on the front, shit michelins rounded sidewall BS:



this would have allowed me to drive off like this but bumps would have caused some (not major) rub on the as yet unrolled guards. but ok, they fit and didnt stick out TOO much. rolling and flares will take care of this alright i think.


then. 205/60/15 onto the 10". this was more drama - the tyre sits with about 3" of loose gap between tyre bead and rim edge... we stood and laughed nervously at this fact for a minute before we tried anything.

eventually we found a technique to inflate them and bridge this monster gap - seat the outside edge using rubber donut and lots of wrenching by hand... then flip over.. put the mag and tyre onto a large 18" tyre, face down, so the 18" braces the 15" tyre but does not interfere with the rim. then, get everyone to stand on the rim and jump up and down while pumping air in, to get the bead to slowly seal and inflate. took my weight and a helping foot from the guy to jam the rim down hard enough for it to catch and inflate but we got it done. 2nd time was easier. with the right tyre and 2 people we believed we could have done a 205/55/15 on there.

this will be attempted next because here is the 10" rim on the back:



so. car rests ON the tyre and wont go down any further. its gonna take some crazy panelbeating to push those guards out - and i will still lose travel as it will not tuck enough to get up into the wheel wells.

it looks deceptively like it will work but believe me in person when i watched the car come down on the wheels i knew it just wasnt gonna happen. crap! damnit! i really wanted to run those 10"s! theres a fair bit of clearance inside edge of the wheel... it would have worked if i just ran less offset. like i said - learning experience. expensive one too.

ok. realistically i dont think i can run the 10 for anything other than show. so i figure, write that off as a failed experiment... and swap to what the jap fellas run - put the 9" on the back and swap back to an 8" on the front. so i'll have a set of 6 rims. no problem, when i go stupid and build cardboard box section bodykits and whatnot, then i'll need the 10s again. so i'll just hang on to them till then.

so we put the other 9" on the back to check that out:



as u can see, about half an inch more tucked (as expected). guard still sits on tyre but only at the very edge of the tread. more stretch, and guardwork, will make this usable.




SO. where to from here. im gonna call Elite and order another pair of rims, 15x8, i'll have to figure out the offset with some more measurements tomorrow. i will get them UNFINISHED this time as the powdercoat they used was just not vibrant enough - as u all picked up on. once they get here im taking all the rims to ProCoat for a dip and strip to remove the powdercoat (hope this is possible) then apply their CermaChrome treatment. this is a finish i have used before and while it is not a "chrome" finish it is a very shiny finish and will be way more attractive than the current dull colour. then im gonna gunmetal the centers, and use chrome hex-bolts around the circumference, and some pretty studs, and it should come alive.

ProCoat is closed till jan 4th, so this is gonna have to go on hold till then - good thing since my money has also all gone very fast this end of year on this project so far.

i'll end up with 2 x 15x8s running 195/50/15 or maybe even 185/55/15 after we've had a few shots of something strong... and 2 x 15x9s running 205/55/15 with alot of patience. they will look alot better than they do right now too so appreciate the constructive criticism on them.

heres a pic of the whole car with the 15x9's on both ends.



rest of pics here:
http://www.defy.net.nz/lofreq/pics/Car% ... index.html

these pics arent too bad for a cameraphone aye.

im going to raise the rear suspension tomorrow morning for some more clearance, then head to Exclusive Panel&Paint for a quote on the guard rolling work. have been recommended them by a trusted friend. i figure, while i wait for Boosted Performance to open on the 9th Jan for my intercooler and other performance mods, i might as well get my bodywork done. maybe some rustwork also. we'll see. anyway thats what happened today.

man. have been on roadtrip for new yrs since the 30th got back on 7th, been fucked thru-out! so no updates. car remained stagnant till now.

i took some time out to visit exclusive panel n paint and discussed flares - we decided that if we really wanted clearance then cutting the fenders might be the way to go - have also discussed hand-folding the guards out to use the factory metal to create a sharp edge like so:



but with the extreme offset of the 10" i dont think it will suffice for street use... see here:



thats really sticking out a fuckload!

anyway we'll see. picked up a sample flare from 86factory and got into some mockups this afternoon.

flare on the 10":


heres the result - i arranged them into comparisons so you can see the 9inch versus 10inch, in similar angles... it may look like theres nothing in it and no difference, but there is really IRL.

CLICK HERE:

front comparison

rear comparison

top comparison


HEAPS MORE PHOTOS here


heres factory wheel offset and flare... heaps of space? until the 10 comes along....


heres the 10 and the flare:


the 9 with the flare looks more civil



the 10" with flare SEEMS to work just right visually, but then with the rest of the car it really looks like a mad-max sticky-outy wheels thing. it will need a ton of guard cut out for wheel travel, and when i look at it, it just sticks out a bit too far to be really usable. it really looks like ive stuck a giant tractor axle in the back and the wheels have popped out.

i AM daily'ing this sucker because that is still the intent, so while it will be ok to pose in the 10s i know that all it will take is one large bump accidentally to wreck the fender and tyre when it overcompresses (possible even with stiff suspension) and tyre mashes the guard, and potentially cause an accident, and its just not worth it i dont think??!@#

i dunno... let me know your thoughts! sometimes i feel im staring at this for too long and losing the plot!

i'll hang on to the 10s but I THINK the 9's look just that much more streetable and not so outrageous. again, the pics dont really convey how ridiculous it looks with the 10s on there.


but you never know till i get it on there and try it... which means i will just get the flare work done and fitted before i decide any further.


so first things first - car still not fully driveable since
1) intercooler not plumbed
2) diff not secured
3) exhaust hitting driveline
4) idles at 2500rpm
5) no tacho and some dash indicators not working.

so she will be going into boosted sometime this week for these critical things to get sorted. after that, off to panel shop for flares. once back, i try again with the 10s and see how much she tucks in. if it works it works. if not then back to Elite for new pair of 15x8's. will keep you posted. im back to work tomorrow (monday) CRAP. no more holidays. have to get back into work mode now as well... its gonna be a hectic few months. target is to complete all this tomfoolery by april with aim to get a cert and WOF by then also... so i can finally start enjoying this thing on the road. keep watching

so. nothing happening for ages now. ive been killed at work with staff reviews, PG issues, people quitting, performance managing, rah rah rah. no time for car... very frustrated. ive fixed the 2500rpm idle but in a rangi way. will attend to this again later, luckily i have a game plan as to how to fix it proper.

also, i just have not got my head around what to do about these flares. stick to 10" and flare? hand roll and use 9's, and pay for 8's? fuck! but its sat long enough stagnant and i need to do something. so im gonna kick into gear.

1) i have ordered new rotor and exhaust gasket from a toyota parts contact so i can get that sorted out
2) have also been looking up shortened shocks and whatnot so i can complete the suspension mods. getting some shortened MR2 rear shocks for the front, and some ae86 ones for rear. then i will shorten the struts and complete my coilover conversion. then i will see how much front travel i have
3) once parts in hand from toyota she will go in to get intercooler done finally, diff braced and exhaust fixed. then it will be road worthy and safe.
4) once back its going direct to panelbeaters to see about the flares. ive decided that, $$$$$ is going to decide what i do. so i will see if a) cutting fenders, bolt on flares and smooth over is cheaper, than b) hand rolling existing metal and repainting. i will get quote for both and then decide. then i will do. then once done i will re-fit the mags THEN see whether the 10s will work or if i need to go to 9's. i think this is most sensible.

here is the best inspiration i have found that is persuading me to cut fenders, bolt on flares, then smooth into one piece, and use those crazy 10s

FRONT:


REAR:






CLICK HERE - HOW TO BOSO YOUR MARKII in 86 EASY STEPS

its really inspired me as to whats possible. enough that i grabbed all the guys' photos and made that album! maybe the 10's will roll daily after all!!! anyway check that link out while i sort my shit.

still not much happening i guess. work is still eating all my time, and more importantly my energy. i just need to find a morning to take the car down to boosted performance and get the mechanical work done. after that, to body shop for rust removal and flares. then suspension. then test with wheels etc. long way to go yet

meanwhile something caught my eye as i was driving down the road - had to stop and look and well, on impulse, here it is.





no wof or reg, because of crack in windscreen. everything else is fine (was a daily driver) lights, motor, all good. panels are in better condition rust wise than my current one. 1GEU auto, and footbrake instead of handbrake. $200, im not complaining. i intended to use it as a junker for spares, but shes in too good nick to waste. so im gonna replace the windshield and have it as a second car while the other is in the shop. lowered and with my old rims, it will look the business i think maybe longnose on this one while its sitting there? will be cool with 2 sacked out old mark2's cruising around cant wait!

fuck its been months eh. whole of march no progress. mainly due to ultra stress at work, getting f34kd up by a girl, and f95kin myself up on weekends as a result.

anyway had to get this done sometime. i bought a new intercooler off tardme. $220 for a nice 450x300x76 bar and plate job - hopefully better than the stock soarer item i was going to use.

shes finally in boosted for the much needed mods. i'll do it in stages. right now boosted has enthusiastically offered to

- reinforce diff
- drop subframe and replace all bushes
- fit new intercooler
- all new exhaust including a grown up tip(s?)
- fix tacho and misc elec probs
- install power steering!







secondary items will be things like

- custom suspension
- a mod cert! before things get too mad

and finally refit my remote start alarm and full stereo, and some pimp bronze tint

tertiary items after a bit more savings

- cut fenders and fit flares
- rust removal on rear flanks and etc
- new gangsta paint...

then when more power bugs bite, fit the big single turbo finally, custom manifold, ECU upgrade, and push 20psi and see what happens

we'll start with the first part shall we?


oh yeah - i drew the back of the car in mspaint to mock up some new exhaust ideas. ended up colouring it in same fashion as other one. came up pretty cool so its now in sig below. yes? no?

all major work is done and i'll pick her up off boosted some time this week

diff has been braced, all new suspension bushings, new intercooler with the shortest boost pipes ever, relocated AFM, fixed tacho, powersteering... and after some feedback from sideways moving 1ggte's, getting the oil sump baffled as well.

meanwhile matt and i took a mission out to drury performance center where a very helpful roger decided to play with some tyre sizes on the wide rims. he got 195/55's on the 9's, and after an explosive session invloving a compressed tank of 100psi air and whatnot he got 205/50's on the 10s. holy hell! we figure the angle on the sidewalls is almost 40 degrees.....



also trialled the 10's on matt's 86, and my mates 1ggte powered gx61. sexy as. cant wait to get my car back so i can test fit and re-think my flare mods.

more pics here!

update! thanks to Mark @ toycrazy.net, here's the results of sunday night's tig and anglegrinder adventure

click on any pic for rest of pics and a vid hosted on mark's site

[url=http://www.toycrazy.net/gallery/toyota/nige/index.htm#4]



[/url]
how close is this to the mspaint thing in my sig!

wonder if this is finally enough to get pulled over with.

massive ups to Mark for his work and time, and cheers to mr slipway Mike for donating the 3" stainless!

oh yeah so i forgot to say i got my car back. bout 2 weeks ago... intercooler all done, mounted 'upside down' (end tank pipes up top) so IC plumbing is shortest in the world. unfortunately one of the headlight chrome surrounds has gone missing so the front of the car now looks pretty rough again. should be able to find something at pickapart again to get them back into order. hopefully.

rear subframe bushes all replaced, shes tite now. diff braced properly. exhaust replaced, sounds good. and extensions as above

just need to sort out suspension now, and a wof, then next step, fenders, flares and the rims.


however, after about 3 days driving, i managed to blow one of the turbos heading up a hill a bit aggressively - sounds like the ceramic turbine's bitten the dust. she wont boost past 8psi now and boost in high gears builds REAL slow. grrr. still goes well tho, other than the strange howling grinding noise coming off boost from the dead turbo. installed my HKS EVC3 as well for boost control, all good

boosted performance is busy for next 2 weeks before they can look at it so this gives me some time to sort out new shocks and suspension and a wof before then. getting the shocks, and probably a TIAL external wastegate and a set of autometer guages from teamFBI.co.nz, then she goes back in for baffling oil sump, power steering finally (didnt have the right bracket to have it installed last time) and big single turbo conversion. 16psi, should be lovely.

yeah im just throwing money at it, but admittedly its a hell of alot of fun

more soon! stay tune! it is the essence of slipway dancer, rejoices!

went for a wet road cruise on satday, my car and mike in his gx61 - it hailed earlier in the day and was overcast for the rest of the time... we made the most of it sliding around everywhere

some photos and a vid for you click and see some spin out fun

so after some encounters with police and fines and whatnot for exhaust dragging on ground cus car full of cunts and whatnot/licence plate not displayed/wof expired/1dead turbo 2nd one dying, shes off the rd.

time now to be spent on getting new suspension, turbo replaced, and wheels fitted FINALLY.

start with easy one - flare guards so wheels will fit.

remember how the 10s looked like they no way in hell would work:




well with help of some good mates we removed the chrome, cut slits in the rear guard, folded the lip in, then bashed the living shit out of the fender to get it out of the way. had to use angle grinder to seperate the inner skin from the outer skin before this was possible. results

[url=http://www.defy.net.nz/lofreq/pics/Car%20Stuff/Personal/060604%20-%20flare%20job/index.html]

[/url]

click any pic for full gallery of the nonsense. i reckon it looks the business now!

too wet today to continue, we finish tomoro. will glass underneath to fix the sliced inner skin to prevent rust, and the fender ripping the shit out of the tyre when fully boned... then shave it back to shape, then bog to smooth, then paint. but holy fuck the 10s fit in. no bolt on guard needed, just pure rim-stick-out-tough-guy look. yeah!

attacking other side tomorrow. then look into the fronts. see how it goes what u reckon?

bit more work done - shes backed into the mighty shed - finished up the glassing on the otherside, glassed all underneath, will antirust the wells then spray with underbody tar... meanwhile mike helped bog first layer on the first guard we tried... now just sanding and shaping to go








then same on fronts but wont be too hard as fronts have much more clearance. getting there!

meanwhile wheels will be going in for recoat. for bit more bling courtesy HPC Coatings auckland.

finish should reasemble this apparently:



hmmm

small update. havent been able to finish the guards from work being a c*nt and me getting stuck in HR issues and so on... its just tired me out. we also working on importing some adjustable KYB AGX shocks for the front struts so when they come in more work will happen to dial in the suspension again.

bought some koni adjustables for the rear, from a 2002 beemer. f8ck knows if they will fit. they seem soft so i may take em in and get revalved or something. while im waiting.

but anyway wheels are back from HPC coat.




cheaper than i budgeted for by almost $100. a pleasant surprise. got them and went straight to drury tyres for some rubber. settled on 195/50 on the 9"s, and 205/50 on the 10"s, traded in my old 195/55's so all tyres came to only about $130. awesome.

so heres what it looks like on the car finally





"http://www.defy.net.nz/lofreq/pics/Car%20Stuff/Personal/060726%20-%20HPC'd%20rims/"
rest of pics here - fucked up the URL cus i put in an apostrophe and the BBS cant handle it. so copy and paste if youre keen.

more work on weekend maybe. sweet

bit more eye candy while i get things done... thanks zamzam for these additional shots.

click HERE for hi res gallery!

no updates since the beginning of august! wat the f2ck?!~>

been goin out heaps on weekends, and being winter, every time i wanted to work on the car, it was pissing down. totally uninspired.

problem is it is at bodywork stage now so bad weather is not condusive to grinding and bogging and sanding and painting.

and instead ive put some time into getting the $200 parts shitter into a cool daily. after being bone stock and no wof no rego for ages, i finally sorted her out. new windscreen, WOF, reg, paid all my fines. haha. just over 1G wasted money to the police. learn a lesson there!

so daily is now woffed and regd till feb 2007. immediately she came under the might makita chop, put my "vw polo" coilovers in the front, and cut ford falcon springs in the rear. took many attempts at the lowering to get the right height and finally today got it sussed

here comes the sun@! and so here comes the continuation of this project!@!



initial attempt with falcon springs resulted in car sitting on the ground. literally. was dragging a trench in the driveway and leaves marks on the road driving.

check out that boso camber on the rear omFHGGWTFF@!#



this was of course f32kn ridiculous so back in again for more mods. also stuck on 1" spacers all round which caused FENDER IT IS HITTING so off with the chrome arch trims, in with the sledgehammer and bashed that shit flat.

initially i didnt bash it enough and the tyres just rubbed on the arches and melted away the sidewall while driving sounded like a supercharger whining (tyrerub) so i bashed it more and now shes ok

a flash of inspiration from mr dori mike got us to remove the chrome sill along the bottom and paint up the black underbody to white, painted the rangi front lip, raised the rear again, heres the final result




looks pretty fatt now for a $200 parts/daily i reckon!

i swapped rear bumpstops off the daily into project boso, to combat the oversize wheels crushing the fender on travel. so next up, re-start work on the flares, fit rear wheels, and then motor mods (fit single turbo, powersteering, and baffle the oil sump)

then get her certified and woffed. then, new shocks, repaint, and shes done. few more months! maybe completed over xmas holidays.

PICS here: http://www.defy.net.nz/lofreq/pics/Car% ... index.html

ALL GOOD! lets get this frikin show back on the road!

and just like that, the daily x71 has been sold! has gone to a new home, potentially will return with a 2JZ manual in it so i shudder to think of the potential

so i am down to one car again, with no wof no reg no wheels and covered with months of rotting shed droppings.

and a HUGE motivation to finish it!!!!!!!

so this weekend - plan is - get tyres refitted to the rims (i did this last time and used inners to pump them out but the inner tubes have failed so im going back to drury tyres to get them to try again) and get a bunch of stuff to complete the damn flares so i can get the car rolling, then its off to WOF to see if she will pass as is, before it goes in for single turbo, powersteering and oil sump baffling.

wish me luck, longweekend better be sunny!

OMG PARTY ON WAYNE@!#@

front fender flaring work has begun, and all going well i hope to complete this job tomorrow including all final sanding, then prep for paint.

1) take off wheel. get BFH and bash the shit out of the inner lip to start it bending while flatmates come out and ask 'what the fuck are you doing to the fenders now?'


2) use vice grips to fold the lip tight, then bend out the factory 'straight cut' out. strip off paint with $20 stripping thing that only lasts 2 fenders before wearing to nothing


3) after stripping paint off, hit it with some bog that you cant see if youve mixed the right mixtures of hardener because it doesnt change colour


4) make sure that she looks right using the 3meter rule - if it looks good enough from 3m away, then youre sweet.


more to come*^)

so when youre workin with bog and sanders and shit, you arent really able to take pics. so there are no "work-in-progress" type pics that i love taking.

plus springs went in and out about 100 times trying to get the height set and still stuffed up the rear which is scrubbing on full bump :/

but anyway u dont care all you want is pics






other random pics here
http://defy.net.nz/lofreq/pics/Car%20St ... rims%20on/


next steps, in order
- reset rear ride height
- need to sand guards again...
- ...and fill rest of gaps with finishing putty stuff
- sand the panels down and paint em properly (at this point maybe i mite just matt black the sucker... dunno)
- new manifold for turbo and wastegate
- powersteering
- baffle oil sump
- cert

easy

oh before you ask, pipes are getting some adjustments before refitting.

getting there!

so, after a blat around the block, the tube inner front tyres also popped their inners (well one did) this was on sat afternoon, so today sun morning went to find a tyre place to fix this. Rowes Tires out west did a brilliant job and popped the 195/50s onto the 9" fronts with some effort, now all 4 wheels are tubeless and should be reliable as

got the rear ride height sorted out, increased rear bumpstops by 4mm, rubbing is almost all gone except when rear has passengers etc - i can live with that

took some pics today to show more or less how she looks.

went for a cruise round town/waterfront, this thing gets the mad looks from everyone. ppl just dont know what to think. best fun cruising at 90 on slow lane on motorway and just seeing every car go past with ppl craning necks over tryin to see. ha ha!





trimmed the pipes down to how i wanted them finally



all thats gonna change now, is the fenders will be smoothed and paint matched (thats just white undercoat on there now), new front lip, and possibly rear spoiler (debatable).

enginewise, next steps is big single turbo and powersteering shes getting somewhere!

whatever.
cop was too dumbfounded at whole car.
he couldnt understand the wheels, pipes, stretch, etc.
went in and out of his cruiser about 50 times looking up manuals about legality of pipes extentions and rim vs tyre vs tread under guards.
sat on the radio and called HQ, his mates, my mum, no one could tell him what to do.
came to me and admitted that he was at a loss, and since i had nothing certified he felt it was necessary to render the car undrivable and also untowable by another car, had to be a truck or car transporter.
whole process took about 45mins.
spent another hour sorting ride and tow.
finally abandoned the car and left it to tow myself on monday.
shes home now anyway, so i need a cert, which was on my list anyway, more incentive to get it sussed over xmas hols etc. but whatever.


ps: yeah so powersteer is in now and its fuckin mint, also fixed the turbo leak prob using a piece of my boso exhaust i trimmed and some computer case metal to make a new adapter, plus some mousepad gasket, fuckin thing now boosts 15psi and flies off the rd, after 4000rpm its just a bat out of hell. cant wait for proper turbo and wastegate and 18-20psi