KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

Thanks Rudy! I haven't been in a position to consider a new car in years until now. Since the need for a new primary car came up I really want to enjoy one of these last basic to basics fun 86's if I need to choose something. In a way it will be closer to how I set my SC up before my engine swap only in a smaller chassis with a smaller engine purpose built for NA fun.

It's not a 2JZ but no other engine is and it's a fun small coupe that can haul what I need it to

I have to admit that I really like the light "Neptune Blue" color. I said to the sales rep that I'd prefer black, white, light gray or dark gray but want to avoid red or the darker blue ("Trueno Blue") and the lighter "Neptune" color. Yet I have to admit that even for a car I plan to use as a practical daily I may call him up and amend that color into the ones I'm open to... depending on what they get in when my name comes up in the waitlist.

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The GR Corolla is in much smaller supply compared to the GR86 or GR Supra. That Morizo Edition I was able to see the other day.... well... it's not THAT different from an optioned Core w/Performance Pack LSDs or Circuit Edition with the nicer hood and wing. Plus... with either of those you actually get usable back seats and a rear wiper

As long as you insist on the LSD package (which is quite expensive to buy in parts to convert an open diff car-- I have looked this up and it's yikes money to do yourself) you will have pretty much everything already. If you and your wife want to you can always buy the Circuit Edition hood and USDM-only Circuit Edition rear spoiler and add them on later.

Same for the Morizo wheels and tires... or just buy an equivalent aftermarket set.

The only things that are truly Morizo-specific are the shorter final drive ratio inside the transmission and the ECU with a tune that gives the extra stock torque. The engine is VERY stout and is known to handle 500whp before you just need a stronger head gasket so really any mild tune could meet or exceed a Morizo's stock tune. That said I'd go with an already well proven tune if that even comes into play at all. The Australians have done a lot of trial and error on that G16E-GTS engine already tuning the GR Yaris on their shores.

The CF roof on the Circuit and Morizo is the only other thing that would be too difficult to swap over. But that also has special care instructions compared to the standard metal roof on all the Core models.

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I am wishing you and your wife good luck! It helps to shop around to find the few dealers who will work with you at MSRP or not much above it. Most dealers are charging $15k-$20k over list on any GR Corolla... ugh. There are deposit and waitlist dealers out there who will do MSRP.

I have made an extensive list of dealers within Florida and those elsewhere in the country who will work with out of state buyers. If it can be of help to you both I'll send it over via PM. I made it by scouring many forum posts to gather word of mouth, by browsing Google Docs files made by people in the market looking for reasonable dealers and by looking up Google reviews of each of the dealers I narrowed down.

Let me know if you'd like my notes. Being in line and waiting is unfortunately what we all have to do with these GRs. Toyota doesn't do orders, only allocations to dealers.

....

My SC will get fixed soon. I've just had some other things going on that have kept me from digging into it again.

I have been studying the TSRM pages on servicing the stock FPR and how to test that it's okay. I've never done that before and they don't seem to have a clear instruction on where and how they want you to hook up an old manual fuel pressure test gauge... but the normal/ok PSI readings that a good stock FPR needs to be within are listed. So I just need to learn how a traditional fuel pressure test gauge hookup needs to work. Maybe I've missed the relevant TSRM page that shows exactly how to hook up a test gauge.

Or... I just replace the old one with the new OEM one and assume the old one is going bad.

The OEM fuel filter I just assume is old enough as it is and should be replaced at this point anyway. I have a new one on order.

I'll update once I've got all of that done. I'm absolutely impatient inside that I haven't been driving the thing ;D

RudysSC

I don't blame you for being excited!! I've never had a brand new car and I'm sure it'll be an awesome feeling. The reviews on those are absolutely awesome and it's a lot of fun for the money from the sounds of things. Be sure to post some pictures when you get a chance - I can't wait to hear what you think about it! Same goes for the SC - keep us in the loop and I've got my fingers crossed for you so that you can get that bad boy ready for summer cruising!

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

It is an awesome feeling! I'm pinching myself actually to check that it's actually happening, haha! I am sure that you feel the same way! But I am rooting for you and your wife that an allocation will present itself to you sooner rather than later! You're both going to enjoy the hell out of that turbo AWD Corolla!

Just this afternoon I checked with my dealer sales guy (a very nice straight up fellow who was recommended by GR Supra buyers) and in the last few weeks I've gone from #6 in line on their waitlist for a GR86 Premium Manual to #1. I'm still waiting for their next allocations to show up in their system but I was expecting a much longer wait than it seems I'll be in for... which is an unexpectedly lucky thing. It'll be an interesting next month for sure!

I've already got my list of things that I want to do to it. The main ones are a Billetworkz short shifter, swapping in a 2017-2020 4.30:1 rear end (up from 4.10:1 stock) and gathering all the parts to convert to the 2017-2020 BRZ factory Brembo brakes front and rear. There won't be much else though apart from very minor stuff like paint protection, etc. I want to leave it mostly stock. On dynos those cars put out closer to 240-250hp at the crank which is good for their size and weight.

Oh, and that fake engine noise is going to go immediately I'll either have the dealer turn it off with their Toyota Techstream plug-in tool or I'll unplug the module from the passenger side just behind the dashboard.

....

My SC is ready for my attention for the next round of service. I've just been distracted and focused on getting a lot of work done at the house to get ahead of things this summer. Even after so many months there have STILL been post-hurricane issues to address and get cleaned up back to 100%. Finally it's nearly all done now.

I will certainly post more pictures again, lol! I think I'll wash and wax my SC before doing so however

I JUST put brand new coolant into it and I'm looking into setting a small diameter hose onto the radiator drain opening so as to better prevent overspray while draining and recover the nearly new coolant for re-use.

Usually I just dump used coolant but it's about $120 for enough jugs of the factory 50/50 Toyota Pink. I have a massive high capacity FLO TOOL catch basin which I have only used to catch coolant so my plan is to see if I can reclaim the fresh coolant for this small throttle body off job. I'll probably run it through a strainer before eyeballing it to verify that it is still good and clear enough to re-introduce to the engine.

RudysSC

It sounds like you've got a heck of a few weeks ahead of you! I've got my fingers crossed on the GR86 to show up sooner rather than later! I may have missed it - what color are you hoping for, or do you have a preference?

My SC is also due for a nice wash and wax... I've got it caught up on all the fluids, new plugs, and new coils as of about a month ago so it's time to shine her up for the year. However, I'm in the same boat - spring means go-time when it comes to house and yard work around here haha! I've got a couple weeks of that ahead of me and then it'll be full blown SC summer

Barbary

^^^
Guys, it's so Kool you are both getting brand new rides. Is the term "pocket rocket" for Hi powered compacts still in use? Back in the day we loved them. Had one kind of, the 60's bigger engine VW bug, ha ha. Lot of fun. I've had the Bullet so long wouldn't know what to do w a brand new ride. Congratulations!
BTW, you might want to slip your guy a $100 bill and a Jack Daniels. You never know what might show up and when, used to work wonders
All the Best___Joe

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

Summer weather means more frequent washes and waxes for our cars! And the same for taking care of house projects!

Colors.... I like but am against red... dislike and don't want the deep "Trueno Blue".... and love but am apprehensive about actually selecting the gorgeous "Neptune Blue" color for a do-all daily driver.

Colors I am VERY open to are Raven Black, Halo White, Steel Gray and Pavement Gray. Conservative colors I know.

My top choices are the Raven Black, Halo White and Steel Gray.

Here's hoping that you are right about sooner rather than later!

RudysSC

Joe - we shall see sir! It would be my wife's car, and quite honestly, I'd rather her have something new/safe/reliable (and cool as hell to boot lol). I'm perfectly content driving my SC and old Tacoma for the time being.

Craig - love the color choices... You can't ever go wrong with white - it never fails to look good on everything! Can't wait to hear more about it!

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

Joe -- In this case I went through an exhaustive search for dealers (and their salespeople) in my region who would work with me at MSRP. Ultimately where I am at the options were very slim but I found a good dealer a couple of hours from me. Unless you have the money to throw away at markups it is what people need to do in order to get a somewhat fair price on a GR86 or GR Supra and especially the very low production GR Corolla (which are often marked up as high as $15k-$30k over list at some dealerships!).

The GR Corolla isn't exactly small enough to be called a "pocket rocket" but it is absolutely a "hot hatchback". Do some reading on it and you will find that it has the same drivetrain from the foreign market GR Yaris street legal rally car with its motorsport developed intentions. The GR Corolla (and GR Yaris) are much more special than your average "hot hatchback" for that reason.

The GR86 is more of a "basic sportscar" while the GR Supra is a high performance GT sportscar.

Rudy-- I agree about white! I'm partial to another black car too. We'll see when the time comes!

Barbary

Kahn, sounds like a dream car
Awe! pocket rocket sounds soo good
If I only knew what a Yaris was ha ha

I know of the trials and tribulations of buying a car now a days, even used ones.
I was thinking more of slipping your guy a bill or 2 with the Jack without the dealership knowing...He's probably already got a few bills in his pocket____he's a car dealer
One other thing*** black, white, or shades of grey are not colors, they are non-colors...Hey just having fun, love you guys
anyway 90-80% of cars are those no-colors. Good choice

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

Just do a google search or youtube search for "Toyota GR Yaris" or "Toyota GR Corolla" and read or watch any review article about either car. The GR Yaris is 90% NOT like a regular Yaris-- it is designed as a ground up rally homologation special street legal rally car. Similarly the GR Corolla, while sharing a bit more with the standard Corolla, is heavily changed and upgraded from the factory in its chassis and the entire driveline.

We used to get a Yaris in the U.S. but it was discontinued several years ago. We do not get the extremely unique GR Yaris here... but the rest of the world does. We only get the GR Corolla in the U.S. in limited numbers (about 6,500 per year total).

The reviews of both these hot hatch road legal rally cars tell all.

Haha. These days it's usually just a landscape of mostly high dealer markups. You either find the few dealers who will *only* go $1k-$5k over MSRP in addition to the distributor add-ons that you cannot remove or you find the even fewer dealers who will actually work with you AT MSRP... plus the distributor add-ons that cannot be removed. It did take me a lot of legwork and research finding customer testimonials and forum recommendations from Toyota GR buyers to build my own list of dealers to start calling and feeling out before I found the one I started working with. I did find a sales guy and general manager who will work with me on the level... with a deposit to be on their allocation waitlist.

You cannot order anything from Toyota just FYI so all you an do is pay to be put down on a waitlist with the options you most prefer. Every dealer handles that in whatever way they see fit. Toyota just sends them whatever inventory they want to and the dealers have no control over that.

LOL. They are good colors, just not super fun colors I do really like GR86 in "Neptune Blue" and red the most.... but for me this is intended as a daily driven car that I want to blend in with traffic with a bit more than those two beautiful colors would allow me to. If not for that I wouldn't be focused on black, white or one of the gray colors.

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

A little update. I finally broke down and had my SC towed into a good local shop to have them take care of the low fuel pressure issue, replace the IACV (my old used one isn't bad I think but I bought a brand new one anyway just to cover that base) and to get my leaking lower oil pan replaced at long last.

The car had been sitting since January other than periodic startups to warm up the engine and get everything flowing. I just couldn't get into repairs of an involved nature after a while.

We knew it would happen but my father finally passed away a couple of weeks ago. His health had been getting progressively worse and it was pretty much all we were focused on as a family. We knew we didn't have much longer with him. As we took care of him in his own home we were by his side and before he went we were able to tell him how much we loved him and how proud we were of him. It was very tough when it happened and nothing can truly prepare you for losing a parent but in the end as sad as it was we were relieved that he was no longer in pain and could be at peace finally.

Following that just a few days later I had to undergo another follow-up surgery building upon my last one (not quite as intense this time) and I'm still healing up from that as of this writing.

I was finally glad to let another JDM car expert with a full shop and who struck me as being honest and very much on the ball handle my current SC repairs for right now. With all that has happened recently I just couldn't do it myself for once. I know the vehicle is in good hands this week.

In other news I'm still waiting for the call when my name is up on the waitlist I am on for a GR86 manual model. That is definitely a deal I will be going through with soon whenever it happens.

My SC stays of course but gradually it's going to be treated more as as the non-primary classic car that it is. And that will make it possible to get started on the rest of its cosmetic restoration in the near future.

I'm okay and so is my family. If I am honest I am still emotionally processing my father not being around any longer. Life goes forward of course but I know it will be a thing I will grapple with for a long time. For any of you who have had to say a similar goodbye to a parent I am sure you can relate. Life is to be lived fully and my father always reminded me of this and so I take that wisdom to heart : )

Bimmerbill

Craig,
My heart goes out to you and your family. I am right there with you walking down that same path. I have loss both of my parents and even though they have been gone for a while you never get over it, but it does make you stronger. If by chance I can do anything for you on this end please let me know and take care of yourself for your family's sake.
My prayers are with you and your family,
Bill

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

Bill, thank you so very much for your words and heartfelt support. It means a lot. And yes I feel this is something one grapples with over time throughout one's life.

RudysSC

Oh my god Craig - I'm so sorry to hear about your father. My best wishes go out to you and your family in this awful time. I truly dread losing my parents and can only imagine what you guys are going through. And then a surgery to boot, sheesh man. I hope that things go ok for you over these next few weeks.

Keep us posted on life and the car - you'll be in my thoughts and prayers!
Rudy

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

Rudy, thank you very much. We're doing okay all things considered. We had a very, very long goodbye with my father as he has been in our care at home for these last few years (all during the time I have had started my SC's engine swap) and I consider myself lucky to have been able to reconnect with him during this time even as hard as it became for him and for us as home caretakers of him (a care home was out of the question for us-- he needed to be with his family and in the better care we could provide... plus his visiting nurses who would come to help us every week).

It's never something you can prepare for Rudy but whenever the time comes just treasure the time you have with your folks. In the end we are okay and the love we all shared outweighs our sadness at the loss. You've got to see it from a positive side too-- all the good time you have had with your loved one

As for the SC... I stopped by the shop today. The stock FPR and IACV had been replaced as we suspected those but the issue is getting narrowed down to something wrong in the fuel tank at the pump itself. I don't suspect the fuel pump since it's a very new Denso but perhaps the clamps I used or the fuel safe line it came with were not up to proper spec. I'll know more tomorrow.

Needless to say I'd never have suspected that might be the culprit if it is true. I have learned a lot about building these cars and diagnosing some things but there are still some gaps in my general automotive knowledge that the more seasoned folks are more in tune with than I that leads them to the right solutions much faster.

The oil pan will be addressed as soon as the fuel system is fully sorted out again. I am very glad that my SC is in good hands at this time.