My Celica '97 Project, "PUCA" Options

[FrostBiitez]

My Celica '97 Project "PUCA"


Hi Guys, Its about time I made a post, I bought my first Jap a week ago, a 1997 Toyota Celica SR 1.8, from a good friend, known here as Bourne6Gen.

So Far, the best way I could describe such a car, would be, "THE F***ING BOMB!", which should be about right considering the amount i'm paying for insurance as I'm 18 and I've only had a licence 5 months.

Car is in need of a wash and polish, but the paint work is in quite good nik.

Here is a link to the post by Bourne6Gen: http://www.6gc.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=94268&hl=

I've got a few ideas for it, so start of with a GT4 spoiler + JDM rims, purple blaze plastidip colour.

Front strut brace is on its way, GT4 style. I'll also be getting a rear strut next month.

All Ideas and Suggestions (politely) appreciated.

Here are some photos!





This post has been edited by FrostBiitez: Dec 24, 2014 - 5:19 AM

[Box]

I've renamed your car Pooky, live with it. If it were me I'd have started with suspension, either quality springs and struts or a quality coil-over set. When you have a car like this that's not powerful you're better off focusing your time and money on handling. Various braces are honestly the last step, coil-overs and sway bars will make the biggest improvement and one that's definitely noticeable. Not sure about in the UK, but the Megan EZ Street is the least expensive quality coil-over set for about $600. Anything like the various air intakes, header, exhaust etc... Won't do much of anything but make more noise. The engine in most Celicas are economy engines, either 1.8L 7A-FE or 2.2L 5S-FE. The FE being Toyota's designation for economy heads, and GE for performance. Those like the SS-III with the BEAMS 3S-GE and the GT-Four with its 3S-GTE are the only real performance engines. Not trying to discourage you in anyway, just trying to educate you so you can make informed decisions with your (assumed due to age) limited budget. Focus on style and handling and I'm sure you'll be happy with your Celica for years to come. Also be careful with rims, as a heavy one will deaden the feel of the car due to its lower power. I ran the OEM 14" alloys on mine and it would spin the tires and chirp into second. One good cheap mod is the Megan (or whoever) 7th gen short shifter, won't really make it faster but it improves the feel of shifting greatly. I think that about covers it, plenty of information here in the forum and I always try to help out with any questions that get posted. So welcome and enjoy your stay!

[FrostBiitez]

I've renamed your car Pooky, live with it. If it were me I'd have started with suspension, either quality springs and struts or a quality coil-over set. When you have a car like this that's not powerful you're better off focusing your time and money on handling. Various braces are honestly the last step, coil-overs and sway bars will make the biggest improvement and one that's definitely noticeable. Not sure about in the UK, but the Megan EZ Street is the least expensive quality coil-over set for about $600. Anything like the various air intakes, header, exhaust etc... Won't do much of anything but make more noise. The engine in most Celicas are economy engines, either 1.8L 7A-FE or 2.2L 5S-FE. The FE being Toyota's designation for economy heads, and GE for performance. Those like the SS-III with the BEAMS 3S-GE and the GT-Four with its 3S-GTE are the only real performance engines. Not trying to discourage you in anyway, just trying to educate you so you can make informed decisions with your (assumed due to age) limited budget. Focus on style and handling and I'm sure you'll be happy with your Celica for years to come. Also be careful with rims, as a heavy one will deaden the feel of the car due to its lower power. I ran the OEM 14" alloys on mine and it would spin the tires and chirp into second. One good cheap mod is the Megan (or whoever) 7th gen short shifter, won't really make it faster but it improves the feel of shifting greatly. I think that about covers it, plenty of information here in the forum and I always try to help out with any questions that get posted. So welcome and enjoy your stay!

Thanks for the input mate, I'll keep that in mind .

It's in the list of things to do, no need to worry about the budget, I'm actually quite far of for my age and in qualified full time employment as a Software Engineer, next up is lowering with adjustable coilovers and a front and rear strut brace.