1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

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bryanthompson
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My tercel:: 1983 4WD SR5 Wagon : "The Brochure Car"
Location: West Hollywood, CA
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by bryanthompson »

Hey guys.

Okay, so we have our first diagnosis and parts request.

I'll share the initial feedback from the builder below.

This is a call for any parts you guys may be able to offer. I can also post the list in the parts section of the forum, if that's better.


THANK YOU Here we go!

PARTS LIST:


-oil change
-air filter
-drive/accessory belts
-coolant reservior
-fuel filter
-battery (already replaced)
-spark plugs
-spark plug wires
-front & rear brakes (pads, rotors, drums, shoes)
-all new suspension bushings (sway bar, control arms, etc)
-left & right front drive axles (may be rebuild-able, just need to see what availability is)
-new shocks all around
-front knuckles (possibly rebuild-able as well)
-brake calipers
-timing belt replacement
-radiator (possibly)
-tie rods

FEEDBACK FROM BUILDER

Brian,
Just wanted to give you a little update on what I've been able to go over on the car thus far. First things first, I did get another battery for it so that we could do all the testing we needed to do without having any voltage issues. I did attempt to and turn the car over, it came somewhat close to starting but no such luck just yet. I did do some looking around and began my original inspection, going over the car from front to back. As you can imagine this is going take a little bit but we've got a descent start. One thing I think we should do fairly soon is get the car to the body shop (once its running) to see what they think about fixing the damage done to the front end from the accident. This will give use reassurance that everything else should be a go and we arent going to be spending a lot of time on something that we may have potential issues with due to the frame or something related. That being said, just looking at the damage that was done I dont think it should be an issue and seems to be something that we will be able to get repaired without an issue. The majority of the damage seems to be to the radiator support which is repairable providing we can get the parts and all is good with that as you know. So here is a list of just some of the things that I think we should start with to get the car going, some of which probably seem obvious but I wanted to include anyway.

-oil change
-air filter
-drive/accessory belts
-coolant reservior
-fuel filter
-battery (already replaced)
-spark plugs
-spark plug wires
-front & rear brakes (pads, rotors, drums, shoes)
-all new suspension bushings (sway bar, control arms, etc)
-left & right front drive axles (may be rebuild-able, just need to see what availability is)
-new shocks all around
-front knuckles (possibly rebuild-able as well)
-brake calipers
-timing belt replacement
-radiator (possibly)
-tie rods

So, the main concern is going to be all of the moving components under the car as the whole underside has quite a bit of surface rust on it. The body itself seems to be fairly well preserved from what I can see which was honestly my main concern before seeing the car. The main thing will be just freshening up the un sprung weight of the car being as that is what will make the car enjoyable to drive as well as reliable. The motor mounts look fairly solid but that may be something we decide to just go ahead and replace later on depending on how in depth we end up going in the engine bay and whether we end up removing the motor to send it to the body shop or not. But that is something we can deal with later on as we continue to work on this project. Hopefully this gives you a little more of an idea of what were looking at and at this point Im pretty confident in getting it running fairly easily. I dont want to jinx anything by any means but it all seems pretty basic right now. If you have any questions feel free to ask. Have a great weekend and we will be in contact soon.
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bryanthompson
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My tercel:: 1983 4WD SR5 Wagon : "The Brochure Car"
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by bryanthompson »

First look underneath is reassuring. No significant rust, and you can even still see blue overspray from factory two tone.

I guess we never had any optional rust protection in Arizona!

Will most likely replace or restore all suspension components, and will def make sure underside is spotless, but this is all good news:

http://youtu.be/qzxXJN2oH5I
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ARCHINSTL
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My tercel:: Goldie is a 1986 SR5 attualmente con Weber/also owned the first T4WD in STL in late '82
Location: Kirkwood, a 'burb of St. Louis

Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by ARCHINSTL »

WOW, but that is clean underneath!
Tom M.
T4WD augury?
"Oh, do not ask, 'What is it?' Let us go and make our visit."
T.S. Eliot - "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"
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Mark Twain
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bryanthompson
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by bryanthompson »

ARCHINSTL wrote:WOW, but that is clean underneath!
Tom M.

Tom, I'm so happy (and relieved). Just you wait until we get him cleaned up; I think we can get him to look just about new under there.

Thanks!!
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bryanthompson
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by bryanthompson »

Question for the group:

What parts of the car are marked with the VIN?

I'd like to keep the car as pure as possible, but will consider replacement parts when necessary. Is the VIN on these cars stamped on the engine? The transmission?

Thank you!
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Petros
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by Petros »

there is a number stamped on the side of the block near where the bell housing bolts up, there is a number I seem to recall stamped on the transmission case and bell-housing-diff case as well (the tran-axle assembly has three major components, front diff-bell housing, main gearbox case, and transfer case on the rear, I have not seen a serial number on the transfer case housing).

In the body there is the vin number stamped on the firewall into the body metal, and the same vin number visible through the windsheild on the dash on the left side, and the same vin number on the riveted ID tag as well on the fire wall, and perhaps on the door column tag. there is also a separate tag with the color number on it. I do not remember ever seeing any serial numbers on the rear diff or axle housing.

These numbers from the engine, transmission, and body Vin number should all correspond to an "original equipment" list from the manufacturer, if one can be located from Toyota. Most sports car and European car manufacturers make these production records available to collectors, I am not sure about toyota's policy on making the production records available. They have always been kind of private about this kind of information.
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
'85 Tercel 4wd DLX auto(daughter's daily driver)
'01 Honda Civic (other daughter's daily driver)
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bryanthompson
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by bryanthompson »

Petros wrote:there is a number stamped on the side of the block near where the bell housing bolts up.

Thanks, Petros.

I'm going to do my best to retain the original drivetrain; Will have a better understanding of its conditon soon.
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Petros
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by Petros »

Most engine parts are still available new from aftermarket sources (and most of those use the same original supplier that Toyota used, so most of the parts are truly factory equivalent). If the transmission is good, you can find just about everything else for the drive train as far as normal replaceable parts (seals, bearings, u-joints, carrier bearing, even parts for the rear diff) to allow you to completely recondition the whole drive train. You can also still get all the seals and larger bearings for the trans as well, so if the syncros are all good and there are no damaged "hard parts" (gears, shafts, forks, etc) you can make the trans good as well. A few of us also have a small stash of transmission parts if necessary, but some parts, like good used first and second gear syncros, are hard to come by. I think I bought the last trans overhaul kit (that included new syncros) in North America about 4 years ago (and it was not cheap).
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
'85 Tercel 4wd DLX auto(daughter's daily driver)
'01 Honda Civic (other daughter's daily driver)
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Mad_Marx
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My tercel:: 1986DLX (K.I.A. by a Texting Driver, currently being uses as a parts car) 1986 SR5 AC, Cruise, Sunroof a.k.a. TERC II Electric Boogaloo (restoration in progress). 1984 SR5
Location: Boise, ID

Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by Mad_Marx »

Sweet, sweet plaid!
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bryanthompson
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by bryanthompson »

Hey folks!

Here's an update on the Tercel restoration.

Today, he's finally alive and kicking. I'm happy to report that the engine runs strong, and we are now focussed on getting the car roadworthy.

Video of First Start: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmARGZQXO1c

I had it pulled from the shop in Long Beach because I wasn't satisfied with their progress vs the charges over the last few months.

The car is now in LA and I have the mechanic who handles all my vehicles taking care of the mechanicals. Within days of its arrival, he had it up and running.

Most of the work so far has been mechanical, and the list of replaced parts is extensive, too long to post here.

I have also sourced a flawless donor car, and will transfer the needed components once we establish all that we can keep original in my car.

Once we get it in our new studio, and I can see the two cars side by side, on my own time, I can actually do some of the project myself, like transferring body components deep cleaning, etc.

So there you go! The saga of the world's most beloved Tercel continues...
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4wdEconoBox
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My tercel:: 1985 Toyota Tercel SR5 4WD
Location: Talladega, Alabama

Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by 4wdEconoBox »

Heck yeah, definitely sounds like the engine is running good at least!!
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bryanthompson
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My tercel:: 1983 4WD SR5 Wagon : "The Brochure Car"
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by bryanthompson »

Nothing visual to share today, folks, but I did have an update that the car should be road worthy by Friday. He'll still look brutal for a bit, but mechanically, he's a real car again!

More soon,

BT
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bryanthompson
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by bryanthompson »

What a great day! After a massive amount of mechanical work completed, and replacement parts installed, I got to take the Tercel on its first drive in over a decade.

The feeling is almost indescribable. To give some perspective, I learned to drive on this car, in a field where my dad operated a landing strip for ultralight fabric airplanes. I was twelve, and he would let me go run free in the car, and learn to operate it over varied terrain. To see it back on the road again, after all these years, is really quite an exceptional experience.

This is the car that made me want to become a car designer. I can still see it, in my memory, sitting on the show room floor at Scott Toyota, in Scottsdale Arizona, a special delivery "brochure car" with all the options. We bought it on site, and the effect that cathedral-like, airy interior had on my design aesthetic became a life-long influence.


The car runs and drives very strong. I loved hearing that signature "Tercel transmission whine" and all 73 or so of its horsepower galloping as fast as they could.

Here is a video of the experience: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBwx2-mSypo




The next step is to have the frame straightened. Then we can begin to take components from the donor vehicle.

This was, by far, the greatest highlight of this long saga, so far. More to come!

BT
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dlb
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My tercel:: '87 sr5, '83 dlx parts car
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Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by dlb »

that's really cool, bryan. i can only imagine the thrill of driving such a cherished thing that you've been separated from for so long. congrats on getting it this far, and looking forward to the rest of the restoration.
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Mattel
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My tercel:: 1988 Corolla 4wd Wagon (AKA Corolla All-trac) 5speed, AC, Power Sunroof, Windows, Mirrors, Steering, Locking, Diff Lock, 14" Corolla SX Alloys with Silica Hankook Tyres, 4afe, King Springs, Upgraded Headlights, Full Synth oils, 210,000kms
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: 1983 Toyota Tercel 4WD SR5 : Life in Pictures / Lost & Found: RESTORATION DOCUMENTED!

Post by Mattel »

Fantastic Bryan! It looks much better already. apart from the fenders and most of the panels look ok! As an architect I tend to lean to designs that are functional, flexible and economical and a little fun. I believe this may have been informed by driving the Tercel for ten years!
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88 Corolla 4wd Wagon 5speed, All power options, Fact Sunroof, Diff Lock, 14" SX Alloys, Hankook Tyres, 4afe, King Springs, Upgraded Headlights, Full Synth oils, Tow Bar, 210,000kms
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