Jrad

I know :( text him last night

Soooooo tempting. I'll shoot you an sms. Haha

... You realise I was being 100% sarcastic? hehe. Toyota thought it was a great idea to put some foam crap in the arches - it gets wet and rusts it out. Almost all KE70s have rust in the rear arches. They're also prone to boot, around the fuel filler/cap and sometimes in the firewall. Ahhh, rust.

Rear arch rust in a KE70? I've never heard of that happening? :P

Won't be able to make this one - bogged down in SHITLOADS of uni stuff at the moment.

Uhhhhhh, it's just up for sale at the wrong time - the rust is definitely time consuming to repair properly, even the small amount in mine was a fair job. I might have to consult with dad anyway, hahaha. We've got a '63 Pontiac that I'm meant to be working on over the uni break for him though, not looking forward to rubbing down a 17.5 foot car - but we should probably finish that first. I'm sure someone else will snap up this bargain though - if they can do rust repairs themselves.

$400 you say? I'm eastern suburbs as well - I've read the thread and it sounds like rust is a big problem? Look at my build - is it equatable to the rust in my KE70 or much worse? My dad is currently overseas.. I just don't know how he would react if he got home to see ANOTHER car in the back yard. hahaha

No good asking me about what bolts up to what just yet. All I know is that I can bolt a K40 or K50 onto the 7k. And agreed about wikipedia. Majority of "strange" mods can only be found out by experience. A lot of the time someone goes "Hmm.. I've got this hanging around - I'll see if it fits!" And yeah, I'll be able to source engines and boxes locally from various wreckers/Toyota reps. We've got connections ;) Now I've gotta wait until the uni term is over, finish rubbing down this '63 Catalina project for dad and get onto some mechanical goodies!

In regards to not being very attainable with the wreckers, this could be due to it being a commercial vehicle? Wreckers such as pick-a-part don't tend to get commercial vehicles because of the company owning them. How often do you see a ute or a van that isn't a Tarago at a wreckers? The information from all different sources seems to be clashing a bit haha. Wikipedia is a bit dodge, redbook seemed more reliable. It appears that the 7k was 1.8L in 1998 and the 7K-E until 2003. Redbook only goes up until 2003 so I guess that's correct. And Teddy.. woah haha. Sounds like a racing car you're building there. The quick install was looking the better option because of the cost factor. Although hand made parts isn't hard for me - we've got a panel shop. I don't know if my speedo reads correctly as it is, haha. It kind just.. bounces up and down around the speed. AND YOU ANSWERED MY ORGINAL QUESTION! WOO! Not an EFI engine! That narrows thing down, also limits the options. It looks like I'll have to be on the hunt for a 1998 TownAce 7k engine. Good luck.. :S I can see what happens to so many people like myself and I'm sure a lot of you. Start something.. and it snowballs into a much larger thing.

Yeah, don't worry about listing everything - I'll do some searching myself like I already have. I don't expect to be spoon-fed. I'm not a "drop a 4a in, work it and $7,000 later have a drifter" - if I wanted a drifter I would've bought a silvia. This car is just a bit of a learning thing for me. I've always grown up around cars and the industry but never done any myself. My budget isn't in the $5,000 mark though, possibly I'm underestimating the cost here? If cost is slowly going to rise like that, maybe the 5k will become a better option. I was thinking of just trying to pick up an already worked 4k-c prior to this. My current engine is at 316,000 with a sometimes-but-mostly broken odometer Realistically, I'm after something with some pep, that'll haul up the hills when needed without much struggle. And as for a time frame - as long as I want to keep the car :)

You are the man. That's a very concise listing, it's pretty much everything vaguely mentioned that I had read in one place. I just needed confirmation due to me not being super mechanical. Thanks, I'll look a bit further into them.

Hahah, yes - I also thought about that. Hilux diff could be the way to go. I have a feeling the box is on its way out as it is at the moment, so whack that on and when it goes it's an excuse to upgrade, haha

Yeah, already learnt that, luckily I've got no problems with welding/body work. Did all my car, made up the customer headlight brackets for my quads because they're off a Corona. The 5k is an option - but there's something about the 7k that's sticking out to me. Maybe because it's not a super common conversion, but still easy. It's got a lot of low end torque because it's out of a van - but that'd haul the little KE pretty well. I was after what year TownAce I should be trying to look into and any tips/tricks using an EFT vs. Carby model 7k.

Hmm, I did wiki this prior to asking "The 1.8 L (1,781 cc) 7K was first introduced in 1983. Cylinder bore was 80.5 mm (3.17 in) and stroke was 87.5 mm (3.44 in). Output was 80 hp (60 kW) at 4600 RPM and 103 ft·lbf (139 N·m) at 2800 Was available with a 5 speed manual & 4 speed automatic transmission. Available in both fuel injected and carburetted configurations, the 7K produces much more power and torque compared to the other K engines however it is a lot less 'rev happy' due to having such a large stroke. 7K is available in KR42 Townace SBV vans (1997- 2007) using a large G52 5 speed gearbox (Same bellhousing to box pattern as W55), or automatic." Further reading on Redbook tells me that the 7K-E was in the 1999-2003 model, and simply 7K was in the 1998. The "E" appears to be for fuel injected, as the 1998 and before models still ran carbies. The info on the 1992-1996 models doesn't specify the engine type. You guys reckon it would be an easier conversion to use a carby model? I guess that'd also limit availability. Here's a link to the 1998 info As for that... I searched a bit. Nothing? Are you sure you meant Great Wall? The engine codes on them are like 491QE

I've been looking at dropping a 7k (or possibly a 5k) into my KE70 as it appears to be relatively easy - the sump being the only "major" modification, which is nothing. Just a quick question that I can't seem to find anywhere specifically. Does the engine have to be sourced from any particular year of TownAce? The TownAce prior to 1993 had the 1.8L 7k engine and from 1994-2007 is the 1781cc 7k(yes, still 1.8L but listed differently for some reason?) Also came out in a 5k as well. An engine from 2007 sounds enticing - pretty much brand new. As for other stuff like gearbox etc, it's apparently all the same and I can just use the 4k stock. Although the added torque of the 7k could prove to be difficult for the 4k box to handle. Also, early model TownAce would've come with carby engines, and later model with EFI. i'm a bit of a noob with all the mechanical stuff - but would there be any more than just bolt on with this? Or is computer and wiring required? I probably sound pretty dumb for that haha. Thanks in advance.

SO! I've driven around a few times with the wheels as is in silver, and I think I'm going to leave them like that. They suit it well, and I'm loving the squatness they give it. Still looking at suspension, although it's not too bad at the moment. I'll do a write-up for "Lowering on a budget" once I work out doing the front. There's always the niggling "put an engine in me!" in the back of my mind. If anyone is selling a worked 4k-c (or 5k/7k) I'm interested, but not ASAP. Decided I'd opt for a k-series engine because of simplicity of conversion and cost. I can do body work well, and make pretty much anything work, but when it comes to mechanical- there's much to learn! This is future, for now it's just nice to look at :)

Benefit is low cost of rego if you don't think you'll use it more than 90 days a year. I suppose the cops might be a little more lenient when it comes to Club rego as are some guys when they do a RWC if you say it's going on club rego. They can be less picky because they know it won't be on the road every day. Although they'll more than likely still be an ass.

That's exactly why I went on club rego. My daily is a VR commodore - it's actually been SUPER reliable (touchwood) as it's only done 140,000kms. So the KE70 went onto club rego because it was only $130 and pretty much means I can drive it every weekend of the year. The new 90 day system is great - so many cars are migrating to that from full rego within car clubs.

5% tinted windows?!? You may as well just paint them hahaha. Car is alright, but not my taste in R32s - I'm very classical when it comes to the 32 because it's one of my favourite cars in stock format, or slightly lower with some work 5 spoke rims. But at least it sounds like it has some mechanical goods :D As long as you love it!

I don't know what it's like up close, but from those photos it looks immaculate! Inside of me I have this strange soft spot for a few cars. All earlier minis are included, alongside Mk1 VW golfs, VW beetles that have been ratted/falling apart, ugly box cressidas, and EG Civics (don't ask why I like the civic. Blame Stanceworks for that.) Either way, your car looks great! Hope you enjoy and love it

We just have to accept the fact that we're in Victoria and the cops are just power-hungry. Thankfully I'm in the Eastern suburbs and all the local Commodores keep the cops off my back... although mines on club rego so it's not out so often to be noticed.

Ke70 panel van, assuming it's the same around the guards as a KE70 sedan. You should be able to put 7' wide rims with anything above 0 offset. Definitely 6.5' wide. Of course, this depends on how low your car is as well. You can hypothetically put 10' wide rims with a -20 offset on standard height because they won't bump into anything because the KE70s sit like a 4wd, haha. I've got springs that are about 2 coils lower in the rear, with 14'x7' rims about a +2 offset - and they fit nicely. Rolling guards is easy though - hairdryer and a rubber hammer that wont mark the paint.

The rear guards have been lightly rolled - we did that when we repaired all the rust in them. And yep, thought so about cutting Falcon springs. Might pick some up from the wreckers, remove that whale feeling haha. I read somewhere that Hilux short stroke shockers can be used to minimise travel as well, stopping them from bottoming out. That'd be sooooo stiff I imagine, although wouldn't collapse on a corner like they do currently. Lol. EDIT: Suzuki Sierra shocks as well? Apparently they're almost ideal. I really just need to know what years they come off and what variety. Like the Hilux.. they have 4 and 6 cylinder, petrol and diesel, 4wd and 2wd. Lol. That's the rear sorted.. as for the front? Cut the stock ones in half and cable tie them in place? Yeah, thought so. No but seriously, - would Corona struts be a decent option for getting it lower at all? I know the AE86 struts are common - but they're getting super expensive because of the demand for them. Corona one's can get gotten from a wrecker pretty easily. But then is there much in the way of changing other things..? And thanks! I wasn't really aware of this dyno day, but I'll be working anyway, so unfortunately not. Oh, and here's a shopped image. My dad's going "Nup. Nope." Haha. I dunno, I like them. I can always pressure pack them and if they're bad it'll come off super easy.

So today I finished polishing the lip and sadning the edges. I'm going to paint them in Summer but couldn't wait to put them on the car! Thanks again Spencer, happy with how they fit the car and fill the guards. Photoshopped image of red will possible follow this post, haha. Can't decide if I want to space them 5-10mm, or try and get the car lower. Can any of you guys give me some advice on lowering it on a budget? I don't want to go into the whole coilover business just yet. It's got choppies, but if I cut more off i'm afraid they could bounce out at some stage. Anyone had experience with how many you can cut before this happens? I've cut 2 off the rear and 1.5 fron the front.. I think haha. Also, I know the lower I go the more I would need to consider an adjustable panhard rod. The front ones didn't fall out completely when I jacked it up, although they did come out of the cup at the top so they needed to be held in place when I dropped it back down. Rears stayed in fine but that's because the diff & shockers are all bolted up, etc. Also, I heard about (what model, AU?) Falcon springs being used? Are these low, or do they just give it better ride feel?

Haha, I certainly hope so. I see your sneaky photo of some FAT wheels hanging out the guards. *drool*