Hi from Australia

Post about yourself, your Tercel, or your Tercel projects in here, share pictures of your Tercel, or post trip threads!
driftke70
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Posts: 37
Joined: Sun Aug 10, 2014 5:10 am
My tercel:: 83 wagon 4wd stock

Hi from Australia

Post by driftke70 »

Hi all, my names beally,
I hail from queensland Australia

I plan on building quite a nice little tercel.
I picked up a one lady owner 83 4wd interstate, currently waiting for it to turn up on the truck.
Anyways heres some pics .
$_57.JPG
$_57 (3).JPG
$_57 (1).JPG
Its pretty tidy for its age.

I have 2 plans currently for it which all depend on how I go with the tape measure upon its arrival.
First plan is to put an st205 front in, including struts and hubs and brakes etc with custom A arms etc and keep it 4wd, beef up the rear diff with an f series with a trd 2 way.

The second plan is to just do a rwd beams 3sge swap with a beefed up diff and the 6 speed. Front end will all be swapped out for a mixture of ae86 and custom stuff.

Here a some of my other builds so hopefully you dont think im a dreamer!

This ones a complete ground up built ke70 drift car, has a gen 3 3sgte, equal length 4 links, full cage, completely gutted out, mid mount motor etc.
I have had the car for almost 10 years, and I dont think I could ever part with it!
rolls2.jpg
rolls3.png
Image
Image
Image

this is my 60 series land cruiser, another mint one owner that i use to tow my rolla and go camping to fraser island etc
it has a few nice little things that make it really nice to tour with, such as an engel fridge and a rhyno rack foxwing awning (swings the whole way around the car)
I plan to eventually repower it with something a bit nicer than the 2h, such as a 100 series 4.2TD.
Image
Image
Image

Last is my little ae86, the thing is my road car that I drive to work when the weather is a bit poo (i normally ride a gsxr to work)
I use it for little spirited mountain runs and getting coffee in the hills or meeting up for perfectly legal driving events with acquaintances on coincidentally quiet windy roads.
To others it probably doesn't even remotely seem like a road car seeing as it has no fan or heater or radio or interior etc. It also has a full cage, all rose jointed suspension, a black top
20v 4age, bucket seat, trd shocks etc. I got lucky with the number plates!
Image


ANYHOO i look forward to chatting with you tercel chaps and hope that I can learn a thing or two. Im in the middle of trying to buy a house so all my car stuffs on the back burner but Ill keep this thread updated with any work on the tercel.
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Goldie Forever
Posts: 6369
Joined: Sat Apr 30, 2005 1:52 pm
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: Hi from Australia

Post by ARCHINSTL »

Welcome to the Club!
That T4WD is certainly clean, both i/s and o/s - and it still has the luggage cover!
But I gotta say - why not do your mods to car that is - umm - less than perfect?
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"
"Now and then we had a hope that, if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates."
Mark Twain
driftke70
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Posts: 37
Joined: Sun Aug 10, 2014 5:10 am
My tercel:: 83 wagon 4wd stock

Re: Hi from Australia

Post by driftke70 »

3a is far from perfect.
If the car looks the same in every way inside and outside. It matters little that it can slide in 3rd.
AndrewL
Newbie
Posts: 9
Joined: Tue Aug 12, 2014 9:10 pm
My tercel:: 84 SR5
Location: Sydney, Australia

Re: Hi from Australia

Post by AndrewL »

That car was about 45mins from me. Nice buy. :)
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Petros
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Posts: 11930
Joined: Sun Jan 28, 2007 6:31 pm
My tercel:: '84 Tercel4wd w/extensive mods
Location: Arlington WA USA

Re: Hi from Australia

Post by Petros »

welcome to the Forum!

looks like you plan some serious mods on your T4wd. I did not quite follow you on where you were going to get a 4wd trans to substitute of the marginally adequate stock trans, what kind of vehicles does that trans normally come on? how you going to make it fit?

I always thought the ultimate Tercel4wd would be with the 20valve 4age, and replace whole rear axles assembly, including the rear body pan, with one from a mid 80's GTS celcia, which has independent rear trailing arm suspension and rear wheel disc brakes. You get a much more durable center diff, and as a bonus, limit slip differential. It would take a lot of cutting and welding, but the floor plan no the Celica and the TErcel are almost exactly the same, excpt the rear axle monts.

love to see your progress on this ultimate sleeper.

Good luck.
'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)
driftke70
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Posts: 37
Joined: Sun Aug 10, 2014 5:10 am
My tercel:: 83 wagon 4wd stock

Re: Hi from Australia

Post by driftke70 »

Thanks!

yeah the celica gt4 st205 is already awd, so once you mount the motor AND gear box, you already have drive to the rear wheels, ditch the transfer box, run a one piece tail shaft to an upgraded diff.
I use a corona mk2 diff in my conversions, as it is a live axle diff, is nice and narrow, and has the f series center that is also found in supras and the altezza, meaning good ratios and off the shelf 2 way LSD differentials.
The celica IRS rear end leaves much to be desired and is a backwards step for greater complication. A well setup live axle performs excellently. The IRS celica rear end need new custom made arms and everything to alleviate issues surrounding weird toe and camber characteristics.

If I ran this setup, I would run the hubs and brakes and all from the celica st205 in the front. I would use rally style bilstein suspension front and back that I will adapt once I get an idea of the weights and lever ratios etc.

The 20v 4age is a very good motor, I have a blacktop 4age in my ae86. But this is neither here nor there as far as conversions go. By the time you put in a decent fuel pump, make a new wiring loom, plumb cooling, adapt a radiator to suit etc. You are still only left with 100kw of power and a weak gear box and transfer. As opposed to the 250kw I get from a 3sgte.

You can get an idea of this motor setup in this video
http://youtu.be/UA1q3p3Iq74?list=UU7biP ... _wUrp6UeqQ

I do want the ultimate sleeper!
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Petros
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Joined: Sun Jan 28, 2007 6:31 pm
My tercel:: '84 Tercel4wd w/extensive mods
Location: Arlington WA USA

Re: Hi from Australia

Post by Petros »

that is the transverse engine installation from the all-trac drive train. the frame on the tercel is like 4 inches more narrow than the corolla/celica that used that drive train. while i agree you have a lot more strength and more parts/mods available, It seems it would also be much heavier, and would take a lot of cutting and welding to make it fit. Is there going to be anything left of the old Tercel?

Good luck with that, sounds like a really big job. seems going with the early 4x4 truck trans, which has the same configuration (but larger) would be an eaiser swap.
'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)
driftke70
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Posts: 37
Joined: Sun Aug 10, 2014 5:10 am
My tercel:: 83 wagon 4wd stock

Re: Hi from Australia

Post by driftke70 »

Wont need to cut anything.

You guys are paranoid
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irowiki
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Location: Farmington, NM

Re: Hi from Australia

Post by irowiki »

I think "been there, tried that" is a more apt description.
Former Tercel Enthusiast (not a practical family car anymore but they still have a place in my heart)

Site administrator, if something is broken, PM me!

87 Corolla FX16, 105k
94 Jamboree RV (Ford E-350), 90k
95 Camry Wagon, 170k
97 4runner, 275k
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Goldie Forever
Posts: 6369
Joined: Sat Apr 30, 2005 1:52 pm
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: Hi from Australia

Post by ARCHINSTL »

What might be easier - and better - would be to mount the Terc body on a 4x4 chassis of your choice; that has been done.
There is a photo of it here somewhere.
More pix here, although I know this is not the one (or perhaps a different one) that is on our site: http://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/cc- ... terrunner/
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"
"Now and then we had a hope that, if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates."
Mark Twain
driftke70
Member
Posts: 37
Joined: Sun Aug 10, 2014 5:10 am
My tercel:: 83 wagon 4wd stock

Re: Hi from Australia

Post by driftke70 »

Im not sure how you got the idea of mounting a tercel onto another 4x4 chassis from anything I have said.
What I am building will essentially be a drifting tercel. Rwd, High power. Race car suspension.
If I have more time I will be building a rally car style tercel, based on a celica gt4.

The car will be getting lower not higher.

As someone who has actually done basically the same swap before I think I have some idea of what to do.
The only issues are converting to a hydraulic clutch, and moving the dizzy from the "back" of the motor to the front.
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Mattel
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Posts: 1788
Joined: Tue Aug 17, 2004 12:11 am
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: Hi from Australia

Post by Mattel »

Hey DriftKE,

Sounds like a neat project!. if you are going transverse a cheap option maybe a corolla 4wd transmission as the back end is the same as the tercel and will probably bolt in (apart from some fabrication of the panhard rod i believe) and there is a whole range of 4age engines etc that bolt up to it. I'm not sure but I believe the 'e' series gearbox on the corolla wagon is the same as the celica at least internally although you may have to check about the bellhousing and the particular motor you are after. you could find some advice if you talk to Jed at https://www.facebook.com/Corolla.Ae95.4wd

sounds like a fun project. Most of the regulars on this forum would be surprised at how many of these cars are around rust free and cheap over here.

cheers mate, keep us posted!
Previous: 83 Tercel SR5 4wd, 84 Tercel SR5 4wd
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
User avatar
ARCHINSTL
Goldie Forever
Posts: 6369
Joined: Sat Apr 30, 2005 1:52 pm
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: Hi from Australia

Post by ARCHINSTL »

driftke70 wrote:Im not sure how you got the idea of mounting a tercel onto another 4x4 chassis from anything I have said.
What I am building will essentially be a drifting tercel.
Sorry - I missed your objective.
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"
"Now and then we had a hope that, if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates."
Mark Twain
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Petros
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Posts: 11930
Joined: Sun Jan 28, 2007 6:31 pm
My tercel:: '84 Tercel4wd w/extensive mods
Location: Arlington WA USA

Re: Hi from Australia

Post by Petros »

so you will be taking a little 4x4 wagon, ripping all the guts out to make it into a RWD drift car? that would be a shame and a waste, best do that with the otherwise worthless underpowered FWD version of this car. There is not much of a market for the 2wd version of this wagon or the sedan, the 4x4 versions are actually increasing in value as there are fewer available to restore.

It would be very interesting to build your "monster" Tercel and retain the 4wd capability. putting a corolla all-trac (or celica all-trac) drive train in it would be the way to go, and make for a very different type of drift car. Do that and you actually made the Tercel better!
'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)
driftke70
Member
Posts: 37
Joined: Sun Aug 10, 2014 5:10 am
My tercel:: 83 wagon 4wd stock

Re: Hi from Australia

Post by driftke70 »

Petros,

I like the shape,
I like the interior,
I like the charm of the car.

But there is nothing to like about a 3ac and a glass gearbox and transfer, or soggy understeery front wheel drive handling characteristics.

Firstly, there is no front wheel drive version in my country.
Secondly, "ripping all the guts out" is a horrible way of saying what is essentially "upgrading"
Thirdly, im not sure what motor the fwd versions have for you to consider a 3ac as a higher spec to the "underpowered FWD version"
Fourthly, we dont get the sedan
Fithly in australia they are not going up in value, and they are actually readily available and usually end up getting trashed by teenagers for first cars etc, taking a car, restoring the exterior and interior, and upgrading the motor, gear box, suspension, differential, brakes etc, is hardly reducing its value.
Sixthly, the 4wd capability you speak of is more of a "traction aid" not so much as a 4x4. Its meant to help you in snow (we dont get any), sand (i would never take such a clean old girl on sand), mud (I would never take it in mud) so it seems like a null feature over improved steering response, better handling, better highway cruising, better hill climbing, better dynamics in every single way.


Anyhoo, when its all done the engine bay will look like this
Image
Which in a massive turn of events clearly shows no cutting except a small 15mm hole for a hydro clutch.
The car here shows similar stance and ability and purpose to what I intend to build
Image
Which doesn't seem to be destroyed, or ruined, or in need of a 4x4 ladder chassis, or a tercel wasted.

I cherish my cars, I am meticulous with their condition, my tercel will not be any different. Even my drift car, which has only been used for drifting for almost a decade, has never sustained any panel damage, never been in an accident, has never had any component failure, and is as straight as it left the factory if not straighter.
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