War against turd

Not a lot has been happening on the mod front lately, more so I have been spending some time and effort on the mechanical / maintenance side of things. Having to replace the blown welsh plugs brought to my attention the fact that the car might need some mechanical TLC, so as a matter of course, I recently installed a full regrind kit, new thermostat, coolant / radiator flush, got rid of the emissions crap on the carburettor, installed a fresh electronic distributor, and gave it a nice clean down with some degreaser. The car runs like a dream, and I can rest assured it won't likely experience any more hiccups.

I have spent the weekend attacking the doors with some VHT vinyl dye (satin black, not taxi-spec gloss), relocating the head unit, fibreglassing the dash / facia, and installing a 12" subwoofer and amplifier. The car looks and goes well now. Time to finish the interior now with fresh black carpet, VHT-dye the brown seats a light tan colour, recarpet the parcel shelf, and finally move on to the bodywork. After this the project will more or less be complete :)

Leaky Bastard!

Last week driving home I ended up stranded, though luckily one street down from my house. Initially I thought the worst - head gasket - as a mountain of steam poured out the back of my car and the temperature gauge rose. Being the preventative, pedantic driver I am, having had bad past experiences with my Soarer and Bluebird, the latter car rendered ruined due to overheating, and a warped head + block, I switched the car off immediately, and babied it home with a mate and a tow rope.

The initial diagnosis proved wrong - the head is still perfectly sealed, and I was dumbfounded as to why there was in fact steam coming out of the engine bay rather than being combusted, not to mention the car was not holding water whatsoever, even whilst switched off. I then discovered water leaking onto the starter motor, and dripping down directly onto the exhaust. Using a mirror, I found the cause of my problems - a leaky and badly corroded welsh plug.

The 35mm piece of metal which left me stranded.

Not content with the prospect of paying a silly amount of labor to have a $3 part replaced, I went and bought 3x35mm plugs, and 3x45mm plugs, and some loctite sealant, and removed the carburettor, and manifolds (all on the passenger side). Most of the time when a welsh plug goes, it is an engine-out job, but the beaty of the '55 is the 4K is so damn small, ample room is left for bashing out the old plugs, and replacing them. A few hours, and a lot of swearing and cursing saw the carb and manifolds off, plugs replaced, and car up and running once more.

Next stop, VHT dye the interior matte black, a custom stickerbombed dash facia (tastefully I assure you), LED cluster conversion, and maybe then I'll consider prepping my beast for sale. I have another project in mind in the very near future - the words Lexus, GS300, and VIP are relevant here.

Paint, stance and stickerbombing

Finally I have had the opportunity to get some serious work done. The '55 now sits 3" lower in the front thanks to some recompressed Pedders sports rider springs. The front guards and beaver panel have also been resprayed in the original Toyota 'AZ / buff'. I also had the chance to install some fender mirrors while the guards were off. It is really beginning to look the part (finally) with the new stance, and now that the car is actually the one colour.

Stance baby. Note the minimal guard clearance - simply guess work on my part. With some minor guard rolling, it worked out well.

The next mod is truly a love or hate thing. I picked up a KE30 rear bar for $5, though I probably paid $4.95 too much for it. Described to me first as "surface rust" before pickup, when it came to purchasing the bar, it featured rust holes the size of a 50c piece, hardly any decent chrome to speak of, deep scratches, random paint, and general neglect. So where's the attraction? -  It was straight (at least structurally). It was beyond repair, and could never be brought back to its former glory, but I thought I could do something with it. With some rust-kill, spot welding and filler, primer, a red basecoat, 20 sheets of "JDM EBay special" stickers/decals, and about 3 layers of clearcoat, I had a go at "stickerbombing" - a major love/hate trend, I'll admit, but I am of the opinion it can be done tastefully. Here's the result:

Love/hate indeed. It might look out of place now, but it will suit the overall look of the car eventually... Still beats the stock bar with ruined end caps.

Next stop: Dump the rear 3" on blocks so it doesn't look like a flatbed. The lower leaf mounts need to be drilled out to make way for the thicker u-bolts, but hopefully it'll be done by the weekend!

Back from the dead

As of today, I am back to modding, and consequently, back to blogging. The past 3 months were spent making sure I didnt have to spend a sixth year at Uni, and now that results are out and graduation pending, much more time can be spent on my '55 and getting back on track. The air horns were a success too, and I have scared the life out of many a pedestrian. Oil cooler has been mounted too; now I just need to fabricate some proper brackets for my relocated plates.

Rest assured, the time absent from modding the car, I did spend sourcing parts, including some KE20 LCAs (for a little negative front camber), some fresh front indicators, a rusted old KE30 rear bar (for $5 mind), an unmodified cluster surround with original stereo (so I can relocate my Alpine CDA near the shifter), a rear wing from an AE82 seca I will modify and add as a front lip, and various other bits and pieces.

I spent this morning trying to rebirth the original KE30 rear bar with countless amounts of Autosol, cutting compound, and 1200 grit, to no avail. Seems as though the rust is beyond repair. The rusted look can work on various rides, but is not to my taste considering my front bumper is mint, except for the side rubbers. With this in mind, I am experimenting with the idea of stickerbombing + clearcoating the rear bar, and retaining the number plate lights and bolts in treated chrome just to see how it looks. Honestly it is a fad which I love/hate, depending on the overall look of the car and the theme, but I think it could work with the rest of the plans for the car. Stay tuned for more regular updates, and finally, some progress!

A recent snap. Next step is to replace the side rubbers, Autosol the chrome bumper, and add my AE82 seca wing as a lip :)

Horny

I got around to mounting the air horns today before Uni, but I have yet to wire up a relay.

In fabricating a bracket, I drew some inspiration from the 6666 S13. I love this car. It seems to have mild cues of Bosozoku styling without being too over the top, such as the illuminated dice, and the musical air horns clearly visible through the front bar opening.

Not to completely rip Miura-san's idea off (okay well kind of), I fabricated a makeshift bracket out of strap, and mounted the horns downwards so as to protect them from water. I am still in two minds as to whether I utilise my stock horn button, or run a separate switch. If I'm going to get defected, at the end of the day, it will be for something a lot more serious than the horns, so I don't care too much for running another switch :)

Before I finish installing the horns, the bracket will be painted black for stealth and longevity, and the compressor and hoses will be mounted parallel.

Already I have decided the roof racks don't really suit the overall look I originally intended to go for, so they'll only be used of a weekend when Im cruising around from hill to hill with the Huffy Slider. Then again, the car is 3 different shades of yellow, 2 different primer colours, and has bogged rear guards, so i looks like crap right now anyway.

I also headed to my local wreckers and picked up a transmission cooler from an old Falcon. In true Bosozoku style, this will be mounted on the front bumper :)

Finally, I decided my blog needed some brightening up, as the old theme was looking dated. With the onset of a heap of assignments, work will probably halt again. Hopefully the project will be 99% done before the end of semester :)



Nice Rack

I finished prepping and painting my tip-shop roof racks. Notably the paint cost more than the entire setup. I went with metallic gunmetal for the inner bracket, to match my grille and side vents, and chrome plate paint for the outer brackets, to match my gutters. Unfortunately at stock ride height, the rolla looks grandpa-spec, but at least the cops might leave me alone for a bit.

I also snagged a set of air-horns from EBay for abut $35 delivered, so I'll be ready to scare some innocent bystanders! I sourced another front guard which actually fits properly, so once it, and my AE82 wing, is painted, it will look the part. I have been putting off lowering the car for way too long now, so hopefully I can work something out this weekend.

This is how Grandpa rolls. Hopefully when it is finally slammed it will fit together.

Fun times ahead as the local annoyance :)

An inspiration... from a HONDA!

So browsing the net today I stumbled across this little gem (at least in the eyes of the Jap rat-rod scene) - a Civic sedan from the UK which has taken styling cues from bosozoku culture, rat, and Euro, and it works very well.

I'm not a fan of the rust, but I suppose it compliments the style. Whilst the KE55 will stay true (mostly) to the bosozoku style (save for a ridiculous, massive kit), I think that by applying some styling cues from this ride to the '55 will look sweet. With the images of the said civic fresh on my mind, I headed to my local tipshop to grab a set of old school roof racks, with complimentary surface rust, for the measly sum of $5. Whilst there, I found a set of mint white venetians from somebody's house! Not being able to justify $200+ for a set of custom venetians for the '55, I grabbed these for a pittance - $5 also. I will work some magic with my trusty angle grinder and see how it goes - It sounds ridiculous and tightarse, but essentially if it doesn't work, what have I got to lose?

I also disovered that the much sought after GE Sigma lower control arms serve to give a KE55 2.5 degrees of negative camber (by comparison to the 5 degrees gained if the same LCAs are adapted to a KE70). With this in mind, I am seeking some Sigma LCAs, as 2.5 degrees will provide good stance without being too over the top. At $62 per corner, premature tyre wear isn't a big concern!
I have just started to clean up the racks with some rust converter, and they'll be seeing a nice coat of metallic gunmetal to match my restored front grille and side vents. To detract from the pensioner perception will be an AE82 seca rear wing, reverse mounted to act as a front lip, a common trend in Japan with the rolla boys, and the 3" blocks and springs will be going in. Once the venetians are in, the rolla will be a blend of bosozoku, Cali and classic JDM styling - I have slightly departed from what I had originally planned, but this isn't inconsistent with many projects. Rest assured this project will actually be finished, and essentially it's all for fun at the end of the day.

Watch this space for mad stance yo!