GTIKole's 1987 Toyota Corolla Levin GT-V.
Name- Akuma
Engine.
-20v AE111 4AGE Engine.
-TRD head gasket.
-APR head studs.
-Toda Valve Springs.
-Super Tech valve seals.
-Toda Timing belt.
-MRP fixed Tensioner.
-T3 75mm Intake Trumpets
-SQ 20V RWD Coolant Conversion Kit.
-Samco Radiator Hoses.
-Distubtror Relocation Kit.
-MSD Over Sized Plug Wires.
-Jazami 16v header.
-16v to 20v Exhaust Manifold Conversion Plate.
-T3 Test Pipe.
-HKS Sport Exhaust.
Drivetrain.
-Exedy Stage 2 clutch.
Braking.
-Porterfield Track Pads.
-Stainless Steel Brakelines.
Suspension.
-Fortune Auto 500 Coilovers with True Rears.
-Fortune Auto 30mm RCA’s.
-T3 Panhard Bar.
-Cusco Rear Sturt Bar.
Wheels/tires.
-Rota RKR’s, 15x9 -15.
-195/45r15 Toyo T1R’s.
-15mm Rear Spacers.
-Skunk2 Extended Lug Nuts.
Exterior.
-OEM Zenki Levin Front lip.
-Runfree 30mm Rear Fender Flares.
Interior.
-Buddy Club P1 seats.
-Buddy Club Seat rails
-Nardi Rallye Sport Steering Wheel.
-T3 Shift Knob.
-Rear Seats/ Interior removed.
Hey Stanceworks, Long time no log in.
After some poking around today I realized that these forums are still running & still seem pretty active. Figured it was a perfect time to get back on here and have a place to update on my new build.
For those of you who don't know I use to be very active on this forum & shared a lot of my builds over the years on here. Here are a few some of you may have seen.
Now lets get into the new story..
A few years ago I got bored of the Corrado & wanted to try something new to build instead of building my 19th VW. I have always had a little obsession with the AE86 Corolla from Toyota but never got one because I was so focused on Vw's and was nervous to try something new. We'll after finally being ready to sell the Corrado & finding an new owner it was time for me to search. So I started searching for a Japanese Levin AE86. I found an importer in Florida who had one that I liked & tried to purchase it... but its hard to purchase a car that is already sold.
After that bummer I kept looking for a bit & found nothing. Frustrated & ready fro something new I decided that if I could not have a AE86 then I would get the next best thing, A Scion FRS. I owned & built the FRS in about a year.
I was loving the change of community & style of car but on thing did happened that has changed me since.
I found out I really love driving on track.
I had a fw friends get me into autocross & doing track days. This totally changed what I had loved in cars. I use to be about shows & just building something that looked good & was stylish. Once I started Going to the track that changed. I will say some on my "stance boi" still follows me around to more motorsport based cars. I loved the FRS & enjoyed daily driving it & going to the track on the weekends.
Then I had a conversation that with a friend that changed everything...
I friend told me had a contact in Japan that could help us purchase & import cars to the US ourselves. This really got my gears moving & wanted to learn the process but also it meant I could looking at getting a Corolla again.
So after a long debate with my girlfriend (now wife) I decided to put the FRS up for sale. I posted it with a price tag I thought on one would jump at because I had no issue just keeping the car but wouldn't you know it.. I kid came with the money & the FRS was gone like that. I had to move fast & buy a beater daily so I had something to get to my jobs. Once that was taken care of I started searching for a AE86.
This process took much longer than you would like. I think I looked every day for about 2 months straight. I would bid on cars that came up & always loose when the auction would end. I lost about 5 cars & was becoming extremely frustrated loosing cars that I wanted because you could wait weeks for another clean car that was worth purchasing to show up. Then one evening a new listing popped up. A clean All Black 1987 Levin GT-V with low miles (around 60k). The card said it had a AE111 Engine engine swap but had no pictures of the engine bay to see if that was true. I had my contact inspect the vehicle & it came back with a clean bill of health for a 30+ year old Corolla. So I placed a max bid & waited with only these pictures to go off of..
My phone rang at 2:30am on a Friday morning. It was my contact to tell me..
WE GOT THE CAR!!!
Super excited about finally owning a AE86, I spent the next 3 months as the car was being shipped over seas learning how to do all the importation paper work & getting everything ready for it arrival. 3 months later the car finally showed up at port & a few friends & I went to pick up the car in Baltimore (a nice 10 hour drive from Indianapolis, IN). Once I got all the paper work sorted I was finally able to see my car in person. At the port you'll run into others who are picking up there cars as well & they tend to ask what you are picking up. I told them a AE86, which then one of them said "you mean the black one!" & then started telling me how clean it was as he had already been in the lot to pick up his skyline. This got my excitement super high & was honestly in disbelief when I finally saw the car in person. I could not believe I bought a car in another country & it was now here & I owned it.
A few days later we where back home.
I got a chance to get the car on the lift at work and really look it over & see what condition the car was in. We were amazed how clean the whole car was & how clean the underside was. Parts I order a few month back starting to arrive as well. First thing was to put on a OEM zenki Levin lip which required some modifications to fit the kook bumper. I also got a center console that was missing when I got the car from a nice gentleman in Cali.
A week or so later my Fortune Auto 500 coilovers came into the shop. I went which a true coiler rear setup with 8/6K spring rates & fortune auto gives you 30mm RCA's as well which is awesome. I also went ahead & added in a T3 adjustable pan hard bar to recenter the rear axle once the car was lower. Everything went super smooth amazingly for a car that is 30+ years old. I lowered the car down as much as I could on the 14x6.5 Wats. The car looked ok but I knew wanted some more aggressive wheel & tire wise.
It was time to really make this car my style...
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