Tag: Toyota

This was only ever meant to be a quick and easy tidy-up. But, as we revealed in a world-exclusive back in March, when Toyota superfan Phil Jones and Corolla specialists AE86 World get together, a masterpiece of high-end automotive artwork is the result as this modified Toyota Corolla AE86 will now demonstrate.

From Fast Car. Words: Dan Bevis. Photos: Dan Sherwood

It’s often the case that one sole decision is enough to set off the domino effect that transforms a simple project into a really complicated one. For Phil Jones, it was the age-old AE86 question: Levin or Trueno? There are other considerations, naturally – three-door hatchback or two-door coupe; original ‘zenki’ or ‘kouki’ facelift – but the face is all-important… the Levin had fixed headlights, the Trueno had pop-ups. So you make your choice between lightweight simplicity or oh-so-eighties style.

The decision made here was to swap this Corolla’s factory-original Trueno nose for a Levin setup – something which, as you can see, didn’t happen. There are, of course, many checkpoints along the timeline between that point and this – suffice it to say that Phil has gone all-in. We’ll spare his bank manager the palpitations of revealing the total cost of the build, but let’s just say that for the same outlay he could have a shiny new Supra sitting on the drive right now, plus a new GT86 to match, instead of this old hachi-roku. Passion trumps logic every time, doesn’t it?

Whichever way it went down, however, Phil needed a Toyota AE86 in his life. And that’s not hyperbole – this was no mere frivolous desire, this was a deep-seated and fundamental life requirement. “Growing up in Ireland, in the middle of one of the greatest car cultures possibly anywhere in the world outside of Japan, meant that you couldn’t put the bins out without seeing something special passing by,” he recalls. “The car scene and the meets were huge, we would take over whole towns at the weekend. And one vehicle always stood out, and still does today – ‘the twin-cam’, as we called it, was just head-and-shoulders above the rest, and it was something every young car enthusiast dreamed of owning!”

At this time the import car scene was really exploding in Ireland, and through his twenties Phil owned a couple of AE86s as well as a Nissan 180SX, Toyota Starlet Turbo, MR2 Turbo, Celica GT-Four… the stuff that JDM fantasies are made of. And now, relocated to England and a decade or so more grown-up (in relative terms, at least), it was time for another. Sourced from Classic Imports in Bradford a couple of years ago, the latest acquisition is a 1986 Trueno; it arrived in fairly tidy condition, with a few interior bits missing but the potential to make a nice project.

The car in question is in GTV spec, and it’s worth a momentary aside to explain what that means. You see, various spec levels were offered in different markets, and in its native Japanese market you could buy the 4A-GE-engined AE86 in three levels – GT, GT-APEX and GTV. The first of these was the base spec, while debate has raged ever since about which of the latter two is preferable: the GT-APEX came with electric windows and mirrors, power-steering, foglights and a boot spoiler, while the GTV had none of those things. They also had different wheels, steering wheels, sticker packs, gauges, grilles and seats. In essence, the GT-APEX is the fully-loaded one, and the GTV is the more pure and motorsporty one.

“I originally intended just to change the front bumper and leave it at that – how differently things have turned out!” he laughs. “It’s consumed my life, every day in some shape or form, for the last couple of years.”

At this point, we ought to introduce the other key player in the story, Chris Gray at AE86 World in Ireland. Few enthusiasts can boast the hachi-roku expertise of this fella (see boxout), and when Phil first contacted Chris to order up a new front bumper, it was never destined to be a soulless transaction.

Chris takes up the story: “Rather than simply sell him parts for a Levin conversion, I talked it through with Phil to see what he actually wanted from the car. I persuaded him to keep the Trueno front, due to it being rarer now than ever. Phil was toying with the idea of building a show car; we hit it off and had regular lengthy chats about the show scene, AE86s, and Phil’s dream to wow the scene with his dream car. Fast-forward a while and we’re having a meeting in person to discuss a spec list, from wheels and kit to engine specs, and the overall look to go for. From day one, he’s been a pleasure to work with – we’re on the same level, and our ideas complement one another’s. Being in charge of this project to an extent let me also create one of the best AE86s in the world.”

Well, you won’t hear any arguments from us on that one. With a finger in every Toyota-flavoured pie, Chris had the contacts and the know-how to cherry-pick the best parts from the OEM and aftermarket options, and source them all from legitimate places to ensure the car could be done right.

“There were constant shipments arriving from Japan,” he grins. “Phil gave me full freedom to show just what we can do at AE86 World. Guiding him with the best parts available, we came up with a combination like no other: from Run Free Japan aero to carbon panels and custom-made parts, the detail in the car is incredible.”

Chris’s long history in the scene has helpfully given him a lot of clout, and AE86 World has real influence and a lot of direct connections; as a result, the guys were able to convince J-Blood to create a custom carbon bonnet at short notice, and once this had been FedEx air-freighted to Ireland, it wasn’t long before the new wheels were following on another plane. Phil had a very clear idea of what he wanted in terms of style, dimensions, fitment and finish, and Chris made it happen – he got on the blower to WORK Wheels Japan and had a set of one-off Meister CR01 split-rims made up, with WORK allowing them to leapfrog to the top of the order list. These connections, they pay off. You can’t buy your way into this sort of specialist treatment, it’s hard-won by honour and respect.

When it came to assembling the body into its fresh new image, MW Bodyshop in Olney was charged with the task of making sense of this supremely high-end and geeky jigsaw puzzle. “They did an incredible job,” Chris enthuses. “Phil and I both have such high standards that second-best simply would not do. It had to be right, and that’s why the project only involved the best in the country to build this car to this level. Just look at the detail! The CBY arches, for example – although they’re very good to begin with, they were never were made to fit like this; MW panel-gapped the car to perfection, and the arches and kit to the millimetre.”

With the bodywork done and painted in Toyota 041 White, thoughts turned to graphics. Phil and Chris shared a vision for the car, it needed to look fresh, unique, and like nothing else out there; a ’90s-style race car, built to a modern-day standard and finish. Chris only had one name in mind for the design, and that was Andrew at AWS Graphics in New Zealand; what followed were many, many hours of late-night calls, Skype videos and magazine research – they sketched, analysed, modified and altered, and finally nailed it. The graphics were fully designed up, and then they entrusted the application process to 3SixtyWraps.

“Having been involved in the car scene for twenty years, and running AE86 World, I’ve seen near-enough everything,” says Chris. “And I have no doubt that this is one of the best! Being a part of it, and working with Phil to make this car, has been my honour. Despite Covid-19 and more, we planned and made everything run as smoothly as possible, and for a build of this quality the planning paid off; I can imagine the spectators walking around the car at shows and just seeing more and more detail. With all the bespoke touches and rare parts inside, outside and under the bonnet, it’s a work of art. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I have being a part of it!”

There’s no doubt about it – there are AE86s and there are AE86s… and then there’s this modified Toyota Corolla AE86. An otherworldly, unique, astonishingly detailed and beautifully crafted example of the breed, paying respectful tribute to the past while looking toward the future.

The final word must go to Phil, as he stands beside the physical manifestation of his wildest dreams with a look of wonder on his face. “I’m really just a normal everyday guy,” he says. “I don’t have an Instagram following and I’d still rather call than text – I’m into old-school car modification as it was when I was a kid! I’ve never taken on a build to this standard before, and I think it’s gone really well for a first attempt… What inspired me to go this far? I got carried away and became obsessed with making it into the best possible example it could be.” And he’s not kidding. So fastidious is his quest for perfection that until the day of the shoot, Phil had never even sat in the driver’s seat. And not only that, but the immaculately rebuilt and modified engine has never been fired into life, as Phil doesn’t want the hot engine gases to tarnish the flawlessly fabricated exhaust manifold. Hell, there’s not even any fluid in the brake lines as he wants the discs to remain free from friction marks! This is truly a show build like no other, an exquisite piece of automotive artwork to be enjoyed with the eyes, rather than the seat of the pants. That’s right. If drooling over these pictures has you hankering to see this race-ready machine flying sideways, vapourising rubber and screaming like a banshee round some circuit or another, you’ll be sorely disappointed, as that’s about as far from Phil’s future plans as you could get. “For me, it’s all about enjoying the car for the flawless piece of sculpture that it is. I’ve invested so much time and money into getting it to this level and get such an enormous amount of pride and enjoyment just from looking at the thing, that I’ve really no intention of driving it. If that makes me a bit weird, then so be it, as I’ve built the car for me and no-one else. I’m just hoping that I’ll be able to get it to as many shows as possible this year, in both the UK and Europe, and have some fun. It’s been a long, hard slog to build it and my goal was always a Fast Car front cover. I think that’s secretly every car guy’s dream!”

Well, we’re pleased to oblige. This stellar Trueno has more than earned its place. Phil’s project was never meant to go this far, but we can all be very happy that it did.

Tech Spec: Modified Toyota Corolla AE86

Engine:

1.6-litre, 4-cyl, 16v twin-cam 4A-GE, Toda 82mm pistons, new 42mm Toyota crankshaft, Toyota gasket kit, ACL bearings, ported and polished head, Toda 272 / 288 cams, Toda uprated valve springs, new Toyota oil pump with Toda internals, Mikuni 44mm carbs, HKS cam pulleys, HKS timing belt, custom CNC pulley kit, Powercraft Japan Tornado manifold, Reinhard titanium exhaust system, Koyo radiator with twin fans, new radiator hose and brackets, carbon cooling panel, all new Toyota water pump, starter motor, alternator, brake and clutch cylinders, TRD ignition leads, TRD oil filter, fully dressed engine with all new bolts and seals, distributor heatshield, titanium bonnet prop, JAZ fuel cell with AN fittings, uprated fuel pump and filter, relocated Odyssey race battery

Transmission:

Toyota T50 gearbox, TRD gearset, custom billet shifter, Toda flywheel, ORC clutch, TRD 2-way LSD, 4.77 final drive

Suspension:

Blitz front coilovers with camber-adjustable top mounts, YZ Sports rear coilovers with custom springs, Panhard rod, Cusco front and rear carbon strut braces, full AE86 World bushing kit, rebuilt steering rack, new Toyota boots

Brakes:

Wilwood 6-pot (front) and 4-pot (rear) calipers, drilled and slotted discs, N2 servo delete kit, hydraulic handbrake

Wheels & Tyres:

9x16in ET-51 (front) and 9x16in ET-66 (rear) WORK Meister CR01 three-piece split-rims (custom bronze, polished dishes, matt centres, chrome bolts), 30mm spacers, 195/45/16 Toyo T1-R tyres, longer wheel studs and custom titanium nuts

Interior:

Painted in Toyota 041 White, custom Cobra Motorsport carbon seats with AE86 World embroidery, custom rails, full Candy Red Cusco rollcage, carbon dash, OMP steering wheel, custom CNC gearknob, gauges mounted to rollcage, Sparco Racing pedals, OMP plumbed-in fire extinguisher, custom air ducting, custom door panels and rear boot panels

Exterior:

Painted Toyota 041 White, full custom livery by AWS Graphics, Run Free Japan front bumper and sideskirts, custom carbon diffuser, FRP front wings with CBY N2 flared arches, CBY FRP bootlid and spoiler, J-Blood carbon bonnet, carbon roof, carbon doors, carbon headlight panels, carbon windscreen wiper cowl and rear spats, custom carbon mirrors, OEM Trueno grille, new Toyota corner lamps and clear lenses, redline rear lights, window seals, trims and wipers, custom carbon canards and splitter, custom carbon sideskirt extensions, front and rear tow eyes, tinted Lexan windows

After owning a string of nineties and early noughties Jap icons, Will Sanctuary decided that, when it came to selecting his next project car, the best way forward was to go back… We take a nosey around his modified Toyota Corolla KE30.

Fast Car. Words & Photos: Dan Sherwood

“I’d always been into old Japanese cars,” says 28-year-old Will Sanctuary, the owner of the eye-catching Tiffany blue Toyota Corolla that finds itself in front of our camera lens today. “They’re dripping with the kind of character you just don’t seem to get in more modern machinery.”

And he’s right, of course. With the abundance of platform sharing and parts bin raiding that goes on in today’s motor manufacturing, it tends to give everything a similar look, with few new cars breaking the mould and truly standing out. So seeing a late ‘70s classic on the street, with its chrome bumpers and bullet-shaped mirrors protruding from the front of the wings, it really is a welcome sight!

“The Corolla was just an itch I wanted to scratch,” laughs Will. “I’ve owned two Honda S2000s, two Nissan Skyline R33 GT-Rs, a Nissan 350Z, a Rocket Bunny S14 and an EK Honda Civic in the past, but as good as they all were in their respective ways, the Corolla is the one that puts the biggest smile on my face. With only 83bhp on tap from the 1.5-litre engine it’s far from the fastest, but if you buy a classic car for the way it performs, you’re kind of missing the point.”

But even with a long-held affinity for owning a Japanese classic, Will admits that he never set out with the intention of actually buying one when he did…

“I’d just sold my S2000 and was scrolling through the cars for sale on Facebook marketplace to see if anything took my fancy.” he explains. “To be honest, nothing was really floating my boat, but then I saw a flash of Tiffany Blue that caught my eye.”

The 1978 Toyota Corolla KE30 sedan was offered for sale through Japanese import specialists Fast East Classics.

“Tiffany blue is one of my favourite colours,” reveals Will, whose day job as a painting and decorating professional gives him some clout when it comes to selecting the perfect pigment. “The fact it was a rare model Corolla was cool, but more importantly, priced at £6.5k it was within budget, so that really sparked my interest.”

Will had dabbled in trying to secure a Japanese classic before when he decided to bid on a Datsun 240Z at a local auction. However, the guide price of £10-12k soon rose to well over £20k before the auctioneers gavel dropped, putting it firmly out of his price range.

“When I collected the car from Far East Classics’ Stonehenge HQ I was surprised at how good the exterior was,” recalls Will. “The paint was a bit faded but there were no bad rust areas, so that was a relief. However, the interior and engine were both a mess! So the first thing I did after handing over the cash and sealing the deal was to take the Toyota down to my mate Lezi who works at my local garage near Kings Lynn for an assessment, service and MoT.”

Surprisingly, the 40-year-old Corolla sailed through the test with the only snag being a new set of brake lines needed. So, with a clean bill of health, Will got cracking on sorting the car to his high standards.

“The first port of call was to bring the dull paintwork back to life with a full respray by Rich Heil from DV8 Automotive in Kings Lynn,” says Will. “Rich did a cracking job of matching the old paint colour and now the blue really pops with a flawless finish that offsets the chrome perfectly.”

Next up was to remove the old worn out interior, carpets and soundproofing and file them safely in the bin! “Unfortunately, you can’t just go and pick up a new carpet for a 78 Corolla off the shelf, so I ended up having to source one from Australia!”laughs Will.

Other parts were equally hard to come by, which led to Will using scouring the globe to get his new ride up to scratch. A new dash and wiring loom were found in Ireland through Will’s friend Leo, a deep front splitter and duck tail rear spoiler came from Thailand, while a brand new, old-stock grille made its way over from Portugal.

“Having to pay shipping for many of the parts I’ve needed has really upped the cost of the build,” Will sighs. “But that’s often the price you pay for owning a classic, as it’s part and parcel of the ownership experience, so I can’t complain.”

The interior now complete with a new retrimmed dash, seats, door cards and headlining, plus a cool Grip Royal mahogany-rimmed steering wheel, Will moved on to alter the Corolla’s ride height by modifying the stock suspension with a set of coilovers up front and a tweak to the stock rear leaf springs. Combined with a set of adjustable lower arms and tie rods, plus a quartet of hubcentric spacers, the stance is spot on.

“The car originally had a set of Rota wheels on it when I bought it,” Will says. “Now, I’m no wheel snob or anything, but they were just too modern looking for the age of the car, so I replaced them with a set of 14in SSR Mk1 alloy wheels with Falken Azenis tyres that I bought from Jason Grant at Rusty Rimz. I think they really suit it.”

You’re not wrong there, Will. We love an old school rim job too! And with the stance sorted, Will could move on to more pressing matters…

“The wiring of the car was a state and a real fire hazard,” remembers Will. “The new loom obviously helped a lot, but there were still some electrical gremlins to sort out before everything would work properly, so I handed the duties over to Nuffy at King’s Lynn Auto Electrical.”

Sometimes it’s best to let the pros take the strain, especially with stuff like electricals, and Nuffy had the Toyota working sweetly in no time, which left Will trouble-free to start tidying up the aging engine bay.

“When I bought the car it already had an engine and transmission upgrade,” Will highlights. “The standard 1.2-litre 3K engine and four-speed gearbox had been swapped for a more powerful, larger displacement 1.5-litre 5K unit complete with five-speed ‘box.”

Still no powerhouse, but at least now some rice puddings would fear for their skins. With no real desire to try and extract more ponies from the puny lump, Will focussed his attention on making the bay look as good as possible and enhancing reliability by replacing the decaying rubber hoses with blue silicone items and fitting a set of matching blue NGK HT leads. He also swapped the brittle and discoloured fluid bottles for fresh new ones and mirror polished the rocker cover.

“While I was under the bonnet I decided to do a partial wire tuck and shave of the engine bay,” Will points out, propping the bonnet up with a matching Tiffany blue baseball bat. “I plan on doing a full tuck and smooth job in here in the future along with another engine swap to a more potent 1.8-litre MX-5 engine on motorbike throttle bodies.” That should endow Will’s machine with a bit more muscle, plus add in a wild soundtrack to boot, but in the meantime, he’ll just have to make do with the sweet sounds from the Corolla’s custom exhaust system.

“The exhaust was made my Wisbech Engineering and Edwards Motorsport and features 2.5in pipework with a mid-silencer and a twin-exit backbox with upswept, slash-cut tailpipes,” he says. “It doesn’t make a lot of power gains with the current engine, but it should liberate a few more bhp from the future setup, and it sounds great too!”

So with phase one of his Corolla project complete, how is Will liking his new life as the owner of a Japanese cult classic?

“It’s great, if a bit expensive at times,” he chuckles. “You also have to get used to living with their various quirks and antiquated technology. Things like using a choke to keep the revs up while the engine warms up. Once it’s warm though it runs like a champ!”

Will admits that, as a bit of a perfectionist, his Corolla will never truly be finished, but will continually evolve and grow as the years go by. And with plans for a tucked screamer of an engine, plus a possible rollcage and bucket seats still to come, we can see that this is one slice of old school cool that looks to be growing old disgracefully, and that’s something we can all approve of!

Tech Spec: Modified Toyota Corolla KE30

Engine:

1.5-litre, 4-cyl, 8v Toyota 5k-c engine, custom 2.5in stainless steel exhaust system with mid silencer and twin exit back box, single carb, polished rocker cover, polished air filter housing and K&N filter, all new silicone hoses on radiator and fuel/air lines, all new fluid bottles, NGK blue HT leads, NGK sparkplugs, air con delete, part smoothed and tucked engine bay

Transmission:

Rear wheel drive, K50 5-speed manual gearbox

Suspension:

Lowered 75mm on custom weld-in coilovers (front), lowered 80mm on flipped leaf springs and lowering blocks (rear), adjustable lower arms and tie rods, new OEM bushes, custom strut brace

Brakes:

Full freshen up of existing set up, standard front caliper rebuild with upgraded Ferodo pads and vented discs, new master cylinder and custom brake lines, rebuilt rear drum set

Wheels & tyres:

6.5x14in ET0 (front) and 7x14in ET0 (rear) fully polished SSR Mk1 alloy wheels with Falken Azenis tyres all round with permanent raised rubber tyre writing, Superforma custom hubcentric wheel spacers, custom chrome wheel nuts

Exterior:

Fully resprayed in Tiffany blue, widened metal arches smoothed into body, custom metal chin spoiler, custom metal rear duck tail spoiler, new old stock front grille, chrome wind deflectors, chrome trim on bonnet, chrome bumpers front and back, chrome bullet wing mirrors, colour coded side vents, chrome headlight bezels, chrome door handles

Interior:

OEM dash retrimmed in period correct vinyl with diamond stitch, new silent coat sound proofing, underlay and new carpe, seats, door cards and headlining all retrimmed in vinyl, custom OEM-style parcel shelf, Grip Royal mahogany steering wheel and HKB boss, fire extinguisher, aftermarket gear knob, centre console removed.