'84 Tercel4wd, automatic DLX for sale

[Petros]

This is the a/t Tercel4wd that belongs to forum member Tercel4wdrules from Los Angeles. It was difficult to sell down there so I drove it up last month and have done a number of repairs, which are now completed.

It looks great, silver color. Interior is also decent. all the glass is good. All of the suspension, bushings and ball joints are good, I did a detailed check before I drove it 900 miles from LA to Seattle. Steering, brakes, ride is all excellent. It was originally a California car, spent most of its life there, but at one time it was take to Montana, where it got a block heater installed (nice feature if you live in a cold climate). They put a tow bar on it to pull behind a camper (It is welded on or I would have removed the mount), and it has a trailer hitch receiver too (as if you were going to tow something with an automatic trans car with 62 hp). It has an A/C system but it does not work (I took off the belt so it was not dragging on the engine), I have never felt the need to have A/c around here so it seems an unnecessary burden on the engine. Or if you want the A/C you can have the compressor rebuilt and than install new seals and get it to work since it is complete and the compressor did engage and turn when you pushed the A/c button (before I removed the belt).

it has about 226k miles on it if I recall, except actual milage is unknown since the speed was changed by the PO, but many of the miles was likely behind a motor home. It always starts and runs good, there is a list of recent repairs/parts.

Tires are near new, recently rebalanced so they run smooth, I had them all balanced before the trip north.
-exhaust manifold (new manifold gasket)
-Fram AirHog performance air filter
-rebuilt carb (+new mounting gaskets)
-junkyard EGR valve
-head pipe gasket
-new catalytic converter
-new spark plugs
-new distributor cap and rotor
-new fan belt

New rear brake cylinders, all fluid flushed, all the rest of the brakes are excellent, lots of life in the pads
New rear wheel bearing
Front end alignment recently done before the trip.
New head gasket
Trans fluid changed
New radiator, hoses and thermostat
New valve cover gasket (old one was leaking).

I have gone through all of the suspension parts to make sure they were all good and tight before I hit the road, so all the ball joints, rubber parts, steering rack, tie-rod ends, shocks, etc. are all in great shape. It could use a new radio since the old factory one is pretty rough sounding, but I was able to listen to it on the way home. It also has the rear cargo cover for those that like those things.

It looks so nice I was considering advertising it for $1,900. I will sell it AS-IS to any list member for $1650.

see the pictures below. That is my yellow daily driver next to it, that is not for sale.

[TURTCEL]

Wow Petros the Terc looks great. You did a really good job cleaning it up and what a great detailed list of now done fixes. If it weren't for being and AT I would consider expanding my fleet but gotta pass on that highway dog.

I have seen this car at Petros' place and it is a really nice Terc. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a commuter car that couldn't get you a speeding ticket if it was shot out of a cannon, but has nice traction during the winter months. Manual shifting in lower gears is always an option when playing around in the woods with an AT too.

Good luck on the sale guys.

Peace

[keith]

Kinda curious here, can the AT handle more torque than the MT? And since the AT uses a flex plate instead of a flywheel, could a 4AGE engine be hooked up to it easier than to the MT? Could be a heck of a project car if the above are both yes.

[Spacecholo]

Good day Petros!
First off i want to thank you for all your helpful information and dedication to this funky lil car.
I have an 84 dlx that just blew up badly. i don't mind how slow these lil friends are.
do you have any pictures of the other side of the car?
thanks so much
eddie

[Petros]

Welcome to the forum Spacecholo,

No pictures of the other side, I can take some tomorrow, but there are no dents or damage to the other side, it looks the same as the passenger's side. Some of the clear coating came off drivers side fender (you can see it doing it on the hood in the last pic), I have since touched it up with similar matching paint and put some clear coat over it. It is not perfect, but it protects the metal under it and looks much better than it did before. the rest of the paint is in remarkably good condition.

[Spacecholo]

Awesome! Is the tecel still registered in california?
Thanks
eddie

[Petros]

yes, I have the title for it. You just get the DIN inspected and they issue you a local state licence, plates and registration. I did not get a chance to take any pics, I have some major problems with my daily driver. Looks like it is time for a new engine...4ac here I come!

[TURTCEL]

Well Petros, the engine swap has been in your plans for a while now. Too bad it wasn't a swap that was on recreation time instead of necessity. I did not notice or hear you mention that you had a 4AC sitting around when I was at your place, do you have one on hand already?

Is this considered to be a weekend time frame swap for you since it is an almost direct change over? I would be interested in helping out if you need a hand doing the job as long as my weekend is free. It is definitely the swap that is most appealing to me but I would love to even have something along the lines of Larry's "Rocket"...haha I'm dreaming. Let me know if I can help out in any way.

Peace

[Spacecholo]

oh wow sorry to hear that. But sounds like it will be a fun project way more power once its all done.
The reason i asked about the california plates is i live 50 miles south of los Angeles and was considering flying up and getting that car off your hands if its still available? i'm in need of another turc and a little adventure. Where are you located?
Thanks
Eddie

[Petros]

I am about an hour north of Seattle, about an hour and half north of Seattl-tacoma airport, there is a shuttle bus that comes up to a hotel in my area. But one of the reasons for selling it in Washington is that, as a California car, it will still have to meet CA emissions standards, and it will likely be difficult to do because of its age. It does have a lot of new parts, but I think it sill may need some more costly work to make it meet the new California standards. So I am not sure this is practical to do. IF you want to take the risk, you are welcome to spend a night at our place, I will pick up up from the shuttle stop and than you can drive it home. one way flights are only about $100, you will spend about that much in fuel getting it home. So about $200-250 travel expense, plus where you spend the night (bring a sleeping bag and you can stay in the back. It is a bit of a long haul to drive so so. Cal none stop, I have done it. leave at 5 am, only stop for fuel and restrooms, and get to the destination at about 1 am. About 20 hours of road time. I usually go through a six pack of low carb energy drinks to help me stay awake. But I would not recommend it unless you like long drives.

[Spacecholo]

Hey Petros
Thanks for the heads up.
I got a bit antsy over the weekend and found a motor for my terc for an ok price.
So it looks like Blue Thunder will roll again.
Im sure you will have no problem selling it.
Have an awesome day.
eddie

[tercel4wdrules]

One more addition to the list of parts replaced is a new voltage regulator.

[irowiki]

Okay, I'm interested in this because the wife would like an auto so she can drive it, and we need AC in hot New Mexico. The trailer hitch is nice too, for bike racks or the hitch shelfs!

How is the mileage on an AT at 65-70 mph? I know the engine is revved fairly high, but does it suffer mileage wise due to gearing? I'm assuming light off roading is still possible by putting it in 2nd and 1st.

You mentioned the ac would need the seals replaced, how intensive of a job is that? Just the compressor seals, or the whole shebang?

Since it is a DLX, a SR5 cluster is an easy swap?

How are the back seats?

This is something that could potentially replace our Buick completely!

[dlb]

mark has a 4wd automatic and he gets around 30 mpg, though most have reported around 25 mpg. the 4wd is still great because that is largely due to the car being lightweight and being well-balanced.

you can swap an sr5 cluster in easily but there's not much point with an automatic. with a manual, it's nice to have a tach to watch your revs but you obviously have less control over that with an auto.

[irowiki]

I just like watching the revs on any car, even my automatics!