www.86garage.com

Like i said yesterday... this is the chronicle of Greased Lightning, my 87 Corolla coupe. I bought this many years ago from some girl on Craigslist solely for the purpose of a beater. I paid 700USD if i recall correctly and i got a brand new drivers side fender that i have yet to put on to this day. I dont have any pics of when i got it, but the car was in pretty good overall shape... the paint was flaking and the motor was old and on its way out, but it ran smoothly and reliably for years. then i got cooler cars... and became negligent.

this is what we're working with now


The engine is all but toast... There is significant rod knock and no4 cylinder fouls sparkplugs all day err day.
I burn oil, i leak oil, i have to put at least a quart a week. that said, i suppose you could still get from point A to B. I did drive the car here when i moved, which was an adventure in itself.


After sitting for a year or two, the car has become a sort of impromptu storage for my tools and car parts
Ive been terrible... it turns out that the windows were partially down, so rain has been getting in and raising all manner of hell... its smelly in here






Look at what i found hiding under the debris my missing wheel



Look at this! what an unsightly spare tire. Why would someone allow this Shrek looking POS to remain there?


Its because back in the day, some neighborhood drift kids were calling me out. Since they wanted to see my moves so badly, i thought id throw them one and show off a little. this is the disastrous result of poor car control

looks like you have some work to do.... looks like a fun project though

Looks like a great starting point. Any plans of attack?

JDMwhiteboy wrote:Any plans of attack?

Define plan. Im not sure what ill do with the engine yet, so ive started with...

These are going to become some sweet ass coilovers. ive lowering springs and blown shocks at the moment; this will be a satisfying upgrade. Im thinking Ohlin.
you like my box? fragile things have a harsh existence in my world


And to make sure my pinion isnt saggy


I have already swapped out that ghey SR5 axle with a GTS one. Drum brakes are nothing but fail.
I also ditched that driveshaft... the bushings on the middle joint were noisy, so i went and had a one piece made. oh yeah, ive got some serviceable U-Joints now.
sorry, no pics... ive already installed them

so ive been debating as to whether im going to rebuild my single cam, or upgrade to a twin cam engine. ive chosen twincam. i heard on the streets that more is always better so... i found a guy parting out a aw11 mr2 and have taken that engine home for my corolla. its a bigport unmodded non rebuilt goodness...

im plotting on rebuilding the engine, then getting me some megasquirt. i have the mr2 ECU and harness, but i think itll be way awesome to megasquirt it instead. idk jack shit about how to do it, but my mom raised a boy with balls to bang, so im certain ill figure it all out eventually. after i sort it out na, i want to turbo the car with a low boost setting... <10psi.

ive already separated the head from the block:


those cylinder walls are smoother than a babys butt. this has some milage on it, there are no serious scratches or gouges, which is nice. this car was running when the engine was pulled.
in theory, i could just slap this under my 4ac head and get to driving again, and that temptation is real. but i also think i should do this job right the first time...
lets look a little closer:


I pulled the head to look at its filth and for damage and it seems to be in good shape. at this point im only planning on giving it a good cleaning and replacing the valve stem seals.


i fuxd up guys. i dont know what goes where anymore...


on a completely non engine note, here are some heyman steering knuckles i have laying around. i never did mess around with my steering lock angles, i only drained the oil from my power steering and unhooked the pumps drive belt.

Oh man, you didn't put your shims, buckets, springs, and valves like in a egg carton and numbered 'em or labeled 'em some how? Doh!

all part of the learning process. I've had many (aw f***) moments. lol. Plus I know the tempation of slapping a 4ag bottem end on a 4ac top end. I worked fine till I got bad luck and she over heated. You get what you pay for, so now I am spending way too much but getting a badass motor. :D

Good luck with build...

been three years...
i did some work today. im taking this mr2 4age and using its shortblock on my 4ac.
my sr5 will be running again in a few days if i dont get lazy



i know you mirin my hand made dolly....

good luck on getting it running man....

i have pulled the original 4ac, finally....




these two mr2s here have been occupying most of my attention...