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Thank you both! Craig - my '85 was an MX73 and the '81 is an odd duck and considered an MX63. The GE/W58 combo in my old car was an absolute riot! That car had a lot of get up and loved to spin donuts even with four people in the car holding on for dear life haha.
I don't have any big plans for it as of yet. My girlfriend bought it for me from an old friend of mine for only $400. It runs and drives, but needs some work to be %100 road worthy. We're going to clean the living **** out of it, fix it up, change the fluids, and just cruise it for the time being!
It sounds like a great plan for a beater daily classic restorer! A lovely present she got for you I won't lie-- I'm inclined to suggest the 2JZ-GE/W58 combo again (plus an MKIII Supra / GT86 / IS300 Torsen LSD swap) but there's so much more that car needs and it looks like a nice time capsule as-is! One step at a time and you'll know what you'll want to do with that nice Cressida
I still can’t believe she did it, haha, she’s something else. It makes me wish I didn’t sell my GE motor and that extra w58, I will say that haha. Oh well. Here she is after a good clean up and swapping the wheels out.
Very nice looking with those classic wheels, Rudy! Is it hard to order a new windshield for one of these early 80's models? That dash cluster plastic shield looks like it just needs replacing with another used part if available. Unless you can get this one put into a mold and recreate it new.
....wait a minute. That's two different clusters. You're already doing some plastic parts mixing to swap to the LED "digital" one aren't you?
The wheels certainly came in clutch! They're an old XXR model that I think still looks great on older/small Toyotas. I can still get glass, yes! That's most certainly on the list. As is swapping over to the digital cluster (that was a factory option, believe it or not) at some point once I can figure out how to replace the plastic!
I'm glad you guys get a kick out of it - I certainly do!
As far as SC troubles - the car has acted fairly normal lately. I've tried to drive it a lot to see what's going on with it, however, besides idling a hair low now and again it hasn't acted up one bit like it was doing regularly. So, for now, I still have the extra TB coming from Gerry to keep on deck. As soon as it acts up again I'll be swapping out TB's, and long term planning on going standalone when I have the time/money.
Hope all are happy and healthy - thanks for reading!
Seeing that classic Cressida get some restoration and personalization is really cool!
I'm glad to hear your SC has been behaving since your earlier troubles. Having that spare MAF from Gerry on hand will be a good backup when/if it is needed. He's the man
I think long term a standalone programmable ECU is a good plan to go with newer hardware and eliminate unnecessary/touchy electronic complexity. Actually I'd be interested in going that route myself if there were a way to program in custom control parameters for all the stock VSVs on the engine.
Craig - thought I replied to you, but apparently not. My bad! The Cressida is coming along very well, and I’ve been cruising it everywhere! It’s undergone a lot of maintenance and is driving quite well lol.
I also found time to install the new to me TB from Gerry on the SC. I simply installed, reset the battery, made no adjustments to any of the sensors, and started it up. So far the car runs great! It idles a little higher 650rpms or so, and idles more consistently which are both improvements from before. Only downside is that someone polished mine (along with the intake manifold and other parts) which this piece does not match. Fingers crossed it will solve the random revving issue as well. I’ll update after a few more miles of driving!
Glad to hear the Cressida is coming along well! It looks so good on those new wheels!
Here's hoping the VVT-i TB that Gerry got to you will solve the issues you've been having but it sounds like it probably has. That idle is still pretty normal I think for a 2JZ-GTE. The 650rpm idle might also have to do with the local atmospheric conditions while the engine is in vacuum but that's purely just my speculation.
By the way I just want to note that your engine bay looks really clean!
And I'm curious but I know I must have missed the details before-- what coilovers do you have installed?
Craig - thanks man! Those old Cressidas get me so giddy. It’s fun to have something cheap to tinker with and enjoy. The SC is now at a point where moving forward costs a lot more money haha.
Agreed - Gerry is the man and I have a feeling this may have already fixed the issue! Thanks for your compliments on the engine bay. I’ve managed to keep it pretty clean over the last few years and since it’s not my daily that helps a lot too.
The coil overs I have installed are Parts Shop Max and were another item stolen off the donor car in which the engine came out of! My buddy really threw and awesome deal my way on that car...
Wow.... First time seeing your Cressida pics. We bought one new in ‘84 similar (if not same) color. Lasted to ‘04 but donated it after the motor went out.
The pics of the unique instrument cluster and then the interior with the equalizer slides brought back fond memories of that car. Thanks for sharing and good luck on restoring it.
05-06-20, 06:21 AM
I won't lie-- I'm inclined to suggest the 2JZ-GE/W58 combo again (plus an MKIII Supra / GT86 / IS300 Torsen LSD swap) but there's so much more that car needs and it looks like a nice time capsule as-is! One step at a time and you'll know what you'll want to do with that nice Cressida 
