1989 Celica GT-Four - Update:April 2008 Rebuild commences

Show us yours....
andycaca
Posts: 740
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:35 pm
Location: Suffolk

Post by andycaca »

I reckon so Dunk, especially at the moment because my engine is dead silent... :twisted:
Celica GT4 ST165 Sprint Special. GT3071@2.0bar

andycaca
Posts: 740
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:35 pm
Location: Suffolk

Post by andycaca »

Today I made some brackets to hold the battery box to the floor. Tomorrow I'll be welding the brackets to the chassis. I also finished grinding off what's left of the old sunroof from the inside so it's almost nice and smooth.

Pictures tomorrow, maybe :)

In other news, the ringlands have gone. Engine still runs fine (now peaking at 1.4bar) but is drinking oil and smells funny (hoho!). Replacement engine has been sourced and may be fitted next month - depends if the current engine grenades or dies slowly. A replacement coilpack has been fitted in an effort to cure the misfire which only occurs when the engine has been running under high stress for a length of time. I'm undecided as to see if the misfire has been cured with this new coilpack with the current engine :twisted:
Celica GT4 ST165 Sprint Special. GT3071@2.0bar

andycaca
Posts: 740
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:35 pm
Location: Suffolk

Post by andycaca »

It's a bit of a "Pigshed Bangers" update today :)

First off, I was going to look at making a new seat subframe for the driver, but I got slightly waylaid when I chipped off the remaining soundproofing and found my worst nightmare, rotten floorpan!
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Me not being the sort to panic, I nipped home to get my trusty toolbox and set to work remedying the situation
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The only thing to do in these situations is to weld in a new section. A few minutes trimming a piece of metal plate and a few more minutes with the welder resulted in the first part being fixed with ease.
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Please note: The welding quality in today's work is absolutely awful, mainly due to the lack of a good consistent earth for the welder.

The state of the driver's footwell was far worse, infact I cant bring myself to show a picture of the "before" state because there were several gaping holes - a few month's more and I wouldn't need an engine to power the car...I could pedal in a Flintstone styleeeee :)

Cutting out a template in cardboard to get the rough shape, this was then copied onto another piece of plate and then bashed into shape. Welding this section took an absolute age!
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Here's a pic of the passenger seat, when I tried to clean it. Upholstery cleaner and a variety of other products failed to shift the dirt and oil stains. In it went into the bath with a couple of washing machine tablets and out it came looking very clean. It's over a week later now and the chair is just about dried out! :D
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Still to come this month (or maybe March)
- New engine
- 4pot brake upgrade
- Finish the goddam respray!
- New topmounts for rear suspension
- Seam weld the rear turrets to the floorpan
Celica GT4 ST165 Sprint Special. GT3071@2.0bar

andycaca
Posts: 740
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:35 pm
Location: Suffolk

Post by andycaca »

small update today. i havent worked on the car much because ive been so busy working on alex's 205, helping him rebuild, replace and diagnose "everything" to get it back to perfect condition.

WRT my car, the bodykit is now mostly reattached but a few mounting brackets have rusted away :( so a few edges are having to be secured with self tapping screws.

i should have recieved my new 4-pot calipers and new discs by now, but the guy getting them to me is being lazy so they havent arrived yet.

the car WILL be getting painted sometime over the weekend. i hope to do the first colour on saturday inbetween the trackday at RAF woodbridge and the GP - and then paint the second colour on sunday

no pictures, because the car is in a shocking state at the minute.

in other news, i am soon to be getting another non-running 165, which will be seam welded and fully caged up over the summer and then the good bits from this car transplanted over winter. i really need some storage space :)
Celica GT4 ST165 Sprint Special. GT3071@2.0bar

markeyturbo
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Joined: Wed Mar 07, 2007 1:05 am
Location: bury st edmunds
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Post by markeyturbo »

re-spray?!?

that'll be the day... its been in primer longer than i can remember 8)
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andycaca
Posts: 740
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:35 pm
Location: Suffolk

Post by andycaca »

only for ummmm....i think we started to rub it down last autumn - its probably been like this for 5 months now :)


hope to see you on saturday ;)
Celica GT4 ST165 Sprint Special. GT3071@2.0bar

markeyturbo
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Joined: Wed Mar 07, 2007 1:05 am
Location: bury st edmunds
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Post by markeyturbo »

we'll be out in jess's new toy. the 5 went on sunday but her new car is a bit of a weapon out the box 8)
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User avatar
RX7
Posts: 5727
Joined: Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:16 am
Location: Norwich

Post by RX7 »

Wow this thread is great mate, really like those seats. I think the oil and dirt added to the effect of the car !!!!

Well done on the welding.

Look forward to hearing more on this.

andycaca
Posts: 740
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:35 pm
Location: Suffolk

Post by andycaca »

the respray is nearly finished, it just needs touching up in a few places

this is with the white base coat nearly finished.
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part way through applying the sun beams here.
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i had to climb onto the top of our forklift truck to take this picture :)
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the stickercharging still needs to be applied, if the red has dried by tomorrow i will start compounding the final coat and put some stickers on it :)

in other news, i have fitted my 4-pot brakes :). still havent seam welded the rear turrets tho...
Celica GT4 ST165 Sprint Special. GT3071@2.0bar

andycaca
Posts: 740
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:35 pm
Location: Suffolk

Post by andycaca »

oh, with regards to my previous posts about the ringlands going (rather excessive oil consumption), it wasnt them at all.

oil was literally pouring out of the block where the filter screws on to the block, out of the compression seal between filter and engine. due to the unique way my FMIC pipework is routed, i can only run a very small Blitz filter which has recently started to leak. i solved this problem by fitting an oil filter relocation kit. i also have a large oil cooler radiator which is surplus to requirements (too big for my engine) so i will be getting smaller 13 row cooler and somehow fitting it behind the front bumper along with the engine rad, gearbox rad, FMIC and powersteering cooler.

fun and games :)

also, i have been reliably told by adrian of fensport fame that my exhaust is severely restricting the power of my car. he said "if youre getting 300bhp from a 2.25" exhaust, changing to a 3" system will immediately give a large power increase", so thats one of the next things on my list.

edit: the engine has a rather strange sounding tickover when the oil filler cap is removed. i think the top end was starved of oil during the above mentioned "troubles" and the valve shims have worn excessively
Celica GT4 ST165 Sprint Special. GT3071@2.0bar

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