MarcusEstevez Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 I decided to buy my Girlfriend, Amber, a car. She had always talked about her dad owning an AE82 Corolla Seca when she was little that he called the BLAT. I thought it would be nice to get her a Corolla the same model as the BLAT she loved so much... I found this one on gumtree, It was located in Mt.Bryan. Me and my brother went for a cruise down there in the Celica, It was a lovely drive =P Anywho, When we arrived we checked it out and made sure it was a good runner. Started up great, no knocks or noises, Went into gears more smoothly then my Celica. Sounds awesome for a little 4AC. We had also never seen that colour on an AE82 Seca. Got it home and serviced it. New oil, Oil filter, Air filter, Fuel filter, New spark plugs, New dizzy lead, New dizzy cap, New dizzy rotor, New timing belt. She runs really well, I'm very impressed. It goes better then my Celica, It's a very quick little car! Heres some pictures. Mind the Dirty RA40, The roads to work give it a hard time and I havn't had a chance to wash her, It's pretty rusty but Amber doesn't mind. Missing Mirror. PLANS Serviced most of it, Still needs new brake pads but other then that she runs very well. Fender mirrors, Amber wants some so I'll have to delete the originals. Lowering, We hate how high it sits. Touch up the rims, Touch up the black trim, bumpers and grill. Remove pin-striping. Better exhaust tip, or maybe cannon! =D More but I can't think... Will update when I remember. Quote
B.L.Z.BUB Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 More but I can't think... Will update when I remember. Fix rust? Quote
MarcusEstevez Posted September 2, 2012 Author Report Posted September 2, 2012 Maybe... Theres a lot. It's a daily so I can't do too much that will impair it's usability, Fixing rust takes a bit to do I figured. Correct me if I'm wrong, I havn't done rust repairs before. Wheel arches will be okay but the roof will be a bitch to do won't it? Quote
B.L.Z.BUB Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 (edited) I suppose it depends where you live and if cops care. I'd at least grind it out, rust treat it and bog it up so it looks presentable. I reckon that roof rust is worse than it looks though. Edited September 2, 2012 by B.L.Z.BUB Quote
Trev Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 In all my time of owning 82's I have never seen rust in the roof on one. Quote
19914afc Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 Hope you got that car for free! That rust looks bad! Quote
ke70dave Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 Hope you got that car for free! That rust looks bad! haha! yeah thats some baaaddd cancer. Quote
Jono.C Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 You guys are soft :P Unless you want to pull the headliner and all out just get the wire wheel on a drill onto and take it right back, flapper wheel, rust converter, fibreglass, sand, filler, done! Quote
MarcusEstevez Posted September 2, 2012 Author Report Posted September 2, 2012 I did think of just grinding, rust converter, bog then painting it the original colour again, But a proper removal of the metal and welding in new material I don't think I'll do... To much effort for her first car. If she intends on keeping it as a project later on then I will do it properly, till then I don't see the point. I'll do a band-aid fix to keep the cops off of her back though. She wanted tinted tail lights, I said no =P Tinted tail lights plus rust equals defect... Also I won't be putting a cannon on for the same reason, Just a nice tip. I got it for $800, It was the only AE82 in SA within Ambers budget so I sussed it out. The engine is awesome though, wicked condition. After I serviced it, it feels like new. Interior is great too, Only one small crack in the dash. The steering wheel is buggered though, so a trip to U-pull-it is needed. Only major issue on the car is the rust. I would have rathered buy her a rusty but reliable car over a great looking vehicle with a shit donk, Her budget was only $800 so this was right on the dot. Question though, How low can you get these cars? It sits really high and the only springs I can find lower it by 30mm. We wouldn't mind it being maybe 60 or 70mm lower. Any method to go about doing this without cutting coils? not a fan of that... Quote
altezzaclub Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 We wouldn't mind it being maybe 60 or 70mm lower. it looks the same height as the Celica parked behind it to me... and with a daily do you really want to be having your kidneys pounded on the bumpstops twice a day every day of the week? Ride comfort might be more important that 70mm of lowering.. Can you cage it without a cert? That might be one way of putting strength back into the body with the bog filling the rust holes. Quote
MarcusEstevez Posted September 2, 2012 Author Report Posted September 2, 2012 The Celica isn't lowered, Thats on the RA40's to do list =P So basically there is no way to lower it but still have comfort? Just looks funny that high off the ground =/ I thought maybe a body kit to give it that 'Low' look but most are really over the top or ugly, They get bloody pricey too! Might be lucky enough to come across a good looking second hand one. Quote
19914afc Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 I wouldn't bother with the rust at all, just paint over it and find a better shell. Quote
MarcusEstevez Posted September 2, 2012 Author Report Posted September 2, 2012 I don't know if it's worth it yet, I'll have to wait until she's driven it for maybe 6 months, if she wants a project we'll fetch her a better one with a 4AGE in it =P If not she might want a KE70 or AE86 (I hope she gets one!). Quote
Jono.C Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 it looks the same height as the Celica parked behind it to me... and with a daily do you really want to be having your kidneys pounded on the bumpstops twice a day every day of the week? Ride comfort might be more important that 70mm of lowering.. Can you cage it without a cert? That might be one way of putting strength back into the body with the bog filling the rust holes. To be honest i reckon having a cage in a daily driver would be a lot worse than having it lower and stiffer, makes the car a bit useless for daily duties, plus at a guess you'd get more cop attention Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.