celi_wabbit
New member
I think the radiator is 52mm thick instead of the 56mm other sells. I have one for a year now and I like it a lot.
Mike's '92 ST185 Teal in New York (Daily Driving It)
- Thread starter mike325ci
- Start date
phattyduck
New member
For the radiator top brackets - look at other similar year Toyota cars - there are a number of different radiator brackets that might fit better. I have a few different versions in my piles of parts and each set is a bit different. A quick trip to the junkyard might get you something that fits perfectly.
-Charlie
-Charlie
(wow I'm here and it's been less than a year since the last update, rofl!)
Couple of updates...
1. Battled starting issues (again, I know, it's almost like I have a vintage British car or something!), but it's fixed. Due to discovering that the starter doesn't turn the week before the MR2OC Bear Mountain 2013 Meet, I didn't get to bring my car this year-- so rode shotgun with a friend's nicely tuned Gen3 SW20. Turned out that the thick wire directly from the battery to the starter was corroded that it wouldn't carry the current. Replaced with marine-grade tinned 2-gauge copper wire and that fixed the problem. This episode made me realize that our cars are now 20+ years old and things are starting to go due to age...
Photo (New Starter Wire): http://www.coruxgroup.com/go/carpix/ST1 ... 28.jpg.php
Rest of the photos: http://www.coruxgroup.com/go/carpix/ST1 ... ork/page/3
2. That clunking noise that I noticed for a year-ish? I think my shocks are blown. Well, I noticed rattling/clunking also coming from the rear right as well. And it got really really bad 2 weeks ago, as if the whole coilover assembly is just free rattling and not mounted. So I got out of the car and wiggled the wheel with my hands and sure enough, the whole darn thing moves about an inch back and forth!! So I'm thinking, whoah, maybe a bolt fell off one of the control arms or the bushings failed? I looked under the car and that doesn't seem to be it. I think literally the shock absorber is disconnected or broken...? It scared me, so I drove it over to my sister's and parked it there (it was dark and really cold so I'm deferring troubleshooting that stuff until later. My first guess is that the shock absorbers are no long mounted onto the sleeve/housing (I'm using Koni Yellows and it's mounted on the bottom with a screw via a hole I drilled, IIRC). I'll find out when I get a chance to take off the wheels and inspect.
3. My left front and rear wheel bearings are shot. The fronts are totally gone. I can hand shake the wheels and it moves. The rears just started making noises last week. I'm thinking about just replacing all 4, since I'll have to take out the coilovers to inspect the shocks/clunking anyways, so might as well just take out the hub carriers... Toyota bearings the way to go, or is a Timken better?
It's never-ending with these cars, huh?
Still love driving it when it drives well. I'm guessing the not-driving-it-everyday + autocross/track duty is not good for the car... I'm seriously thinking about getting another car (despite not driving daily, I do drive weekends, and ZipCars are almost impossible to reserve on weekends), something new or newish. Thought about another BMW, but then I don't want to spend that much money. I'm actually thinking about a Fiat 500 Abarth, rofl. It's a tiny car, great for parking in the city, great gas mileage, cheap, and supposedly a hoot to drive. We'll see...
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
(edit: added links to photos I uploaded to my server)
Couple of updates...
1. Battled starting issues (again, I know, it's almost like I have a vintage British car or something!), but it's fixed. Due to discovering that the starter doesn't turn the week before the MR2OC Bear Mountain 2013 Meet, I didn't get to bring my car this year-- so rode shotgun with a friend's nicely tuned Gen3 SW20. Turned out that the thick wire directly from the battery to the starter was corroded that it wouldn't carry the current. Replaced with marine-grade tinned 2-gauge copper wire and that fixed the problem. This episode made me realize that our cars are now 20+ years old and things are starting to go due to age...
Photo (New Starter Wire): http://www.coruxgroup.com/go/carpix/ST1 ... 28.jpg.php
Rest of the photos: http://www.coruxgroup.com/go/carpix/ST1 ... ork/page/3
2. That clunking noise that I noticed for a year-ish? I think my shocks are blown. Well, I noticed rattling/clunking also coming from the rear right as well. And it got really really bad 2 weeks ago, as if the whole coilover assembly is just free rattling and not mounted. So I got out of the car and wiggled the wheel with my hands and sure enough, the whole darn thing moves about an inch back and forth!! So I'm thinking, whoah, maybe a bolt fell off one of the control arms or the bushings failed? I looked under the car and that doesn't seem to be it. I think literally the shock absorber is disconnected or broken...? It scared me, so I drove it over to my sister's and parked it there (it was dark and really cold so I'm deferring troubleshooting that stuff until later. My first guess is that the shock absorbers are no long mounted onto the sleeve/housing (I'm using Koni Yellows and it's mounted on the bottom with a screw via a hole I drilled, IIRC). I'll find out when I get a chance to take off the wheels and inspect.
3. My left front and rear wheel bearings are shot. The fronts are totally gone. I can hand shake the wheels and it moves. The rears just started making noises last week. I'm thinking about just replacing all 4, since I'll have to take out the coilovers to inspect the shocks/clunking anyways, so might as well just take out the hub carriers... Toyota bearings the way to go, or is a Timken better?
It's never-ending with these cars, huh?
Still love driving it when it drives well. I'm guessing the not-driving-it-everyday + autocross/track duty is not good for the car... I'm seriously thinking about getting another car (despite not driving daily, I do drive weekends, and ZipCars are almost impossible to reserve on weekends), something new or newish. Thought about another BMW, but then I don't want to spend that much money. I'm actually thinking about a Fiat 500 Abarth, rofl. It's a tiny car, great for parking in the city, great gas mileage, cheap, and supposedly a hoot to drive. We'll see...Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
(edit: added links to photos I uploaded to my server)
underscore
Well-known member
Whatevers happening with your rear suspension sounds pretty sketchy, I'd be sure to pop off the tweeters and check the top hat bolts as well, I know from breaking one on my bothers MR2 that they aren't always very strong.
Of course the most important question is, does it come in teal?
mike325ci":3a2nh02c said:
Of course the most important question is, does it come in teal?
underscore":3df3rjj8 said:
I did a quick check by taking off the tweeter cover, but the nuts were still there. It's literally the shock absorber shaft that's moving, it seems. The bottom of the shock housing to the hub is bolted solid and not moving... Yeah, I'll take a look this weekend if it isn't too cold out...
underscore":3df3rjj8 said:
lol the Abarth only comes in Black, White, Gray, or Red.
The regular Fiat 500s come in variety of colors... I have no real preference except I don't like red so much-- white with white wheels look great, but I know white wheels are hard to keep clean...
I'm borrowing my sis's beater car (a 10+ year old Hyundai Tiburon that's reliable as all hell) in the mean time, so I'll prob. put off buying another car as long as I can-- need to save $ and I want to invest it in building my business/website...
UtahSleeper
Active member
Good luck with building your biz. And I love the Hyundai's. My sis has a 2003 Tibby GT V6 that has been reliable as hell.
CMS-GT4":q0ak4cos said:
i know, i wouldn't either if i had a choice: look what happened to my car :/ an SUV hit and run my rear quarter panel, i have the infamous bumper scratches from people parallel parking "by feel" like bumper cars, and my wheel bearings and shocks are gone (part of that was from track/autox, okay
)UtahSleeper":q0ak4cos said:
yeah, i think in 13 years, the only non-routine-maintenance work the car required was wheel bearings (again, prob. b/c of NYC driving) and a leak in the exhaust pipe, that's what, $1000 of cost total? quality has improved so much since 2000-ish, it's surprising how quickly Hyundai managed to do that... they def. don't make them like they used to, and it's a good thing.
so i took a day off of work, but woke up late. with the sun setting at 4:30pm these days i didn't have much daylight to work with to check out my car. all i managed to do was remove all 4 wheels and put the car up on jackstands and started to tear down the clunking rear right shock assembly; and i found out the problem...
you were on the right path. i don't think i looked carefully enough-- the 3 bolts holding the top mount to the body is in place, yes. *but* the main bolt that holds the top of the shock absorber to the mount? it fell out or something, b/c all that was left was 2 washers and what used to be a circle hole now a big oval hole @..@
i tried to pull out the assembly and definitely confirmed that the whole assembly was just the springs without any shock absorbers-- it had receded into the housing (which means it's blown) and the inside of the tires had rubbed against the body since it was free-moving. oi... the top of the shock shaft threading was all worn off. it must have fallen off some time ago.
i failed to finish removal because i remembered that the tab that holds the break line doesn't have a slit/cut in it so i have to disconnect the brake lines to get it out. :/ i should have dremel cut it when i installed it, b/c that's a terrible design. and then it got too dark out, so my work ended there.
a friend suggested getting BC Coilovers so i might go that route, or just have my konis fixed/revalved.
in other news, i did finally get around to test driving the FIAT 500 Abarth. fun little booger, tons of personality. it was better than i had expected. the car comes without a muffler (it's a straight pipe from turbo back) from the factory, so it sounds mean as hell for little car, haha made me laugh. i could basically get one for around $20K, *but* i'm cross shopping a 1-series (new or used 2013 128i ~$27-32K) or :evil: a used 2005-06 E46 M3-- they can be had for $25-30K now so it's tempting. ideally want a 2005-06 ZCP (competition package) in interlagos blue but they are hard to find... in any case, good chance i'll have another car in another month or two.)
underscore":2m04gyjv said:
you were on the right path. i don't think i looked carefully enough-- the 3 bolts holding the top mount to the body is in place, yes. *but* the main bolt that holds the top of the shock absorber to the mount? it fell out or something, b/c all that was left was 2 washers and what used to be a circle hole now a big oval hole @..@
i tried to pull out the assembly and definitely confirmed that the whole assembly was just the springs without any shock absorbers-- it had receded into the housing (which means it's blown) and the inside of the tires had rubbed against the body since it was free-moving. oi... the top of the shock shaft threading was all worn off. it must have fallen off some time ago.
i failed to finish removal because i remembered that the tab that holds the break line doesn't have a slit/cut in it so i have to disconnect the brake lines to get it out. :/ i should have dremel cut it when i installed it, b/c that's a terrible design. and then it got too dark out, so my work ended there.
a friend suggested getting BC Coilovers so i might go that route, or just have my konis fixed/revalved.
in other news, i did finally get around to test driving the FIAT 500 Abarth. fun little booger, tons of personality. it was better than i had expected. the car comes without a muffler (it's a straight pipe from turbo back) from the factory, so it sounds mean as hell for little car, haha made me laugh. i could basically get one for around $20K, *but* i'm cross shopping a 1-series (new or used 2013 128i ~$27-32K) or :evil: a used 2005-06 E46 M3-- they can be had for $25-30K now so it's tempting. ideally want a 2005-06 ZCP (competition package) in interlagos blue but they are hard to find... in any case, good chance i'll have another car in another month or two.
)I got a bit side-tracked and ended up buying a '86 MR2 as a toy/autocross car. ROFL. My wife is not going to be too happy cos what we really need is a newish daily driver, not another vintage Toyota :evil: 8) But it was too good of a deal to pass up and I really miss my old AW11 and the simplicity of that car.
Not much news on the AllTrac front. It's been freezing cold here lately, so car is still sitting on jackstands as-is from two weeks ago.
BTW, this is the carnage that I saw in my rear wheel well, yikes!!
https://www.dropbox.com/s/9f9waxmk0xier ... .27.02.jpg
Not much news on the AllTrac front. It's been freezing cold here lately, so car is still sitting on jackstands as-is from two weeks ago.
BTW, this is the carnage that I saw in my rear wheel well, yikes!!
https://www.dropbox.com/s/9f9waxmk0xier ... .27.02.jpg
darthripley
Moderator
welcome back to the two & trac club!! 8)
is he blue? i need pics please!
that's some massive carnage in the rear ..
is he blue? i need pics please!
that's some massive carnage in the rear ..
Hahaha Ripley, I thought of you and your craigslist shopping... See, when you end up getting into the car shopping mindset you can't let a good deal slide by you... Not sure how you restrain yourself, hahaha... So took the car out for a drive today to my friend's place (former AW11 nut like me). Totally made him miss his old car. I said the car is open to codrives on any track or autocross, because it's a car that I believe everyone has to at least experience once. Such charm and personality, I can't believe I went 7 years without one (well minus the years I had the Lotus which was a good substitute, however there's something charming about a 27 year old car that's so simple and "manual" that still drives better, and is more fun, than most modern cars...
It's not blue (I looked at a '86 exactly light blue 8B8 as my old car, bone stock (down to the stock cassette player!), hardtop, 70k miles, for sale locally as well-- but ended up choosing this one over that even though I love that color the most cos it would need a lot of work to make it autox/track-worthy...). So it's the 2-tone "Sherwood Toning" color. I took some photos of it in the city today and just drove around Manhattan with no real destination, because I just wanted to drive it.)
Photos: http://coruxgroup.com/go/carpix/aw11-sh ... st-photos/
The MR2 has full adjustable coilovers. It's pretty harsh over our terrible roads... So I'm thinking of scrapping the coilovers for the Alltrac and either rebuild my Koni or just go back to stock/stock-ish shocks since with this addition to my stable I don't need to track my Celica any more...
It's not blue (I looked at a '86 exactly light blue 8B8 as my old car, bone stock (down to the stock cassette player!), hardtop, 70k miles, for sale locally as well-- but ended up choosing this one over that even though I love that color the most cos it would need a lot of work to make it autox/track-worthy...). So it's the 2-tone "Sherwood Toning" color. I took some photos of it in the city today and just drove around Manhattan with no real destination, because I just wanted to drive it.
)Photos: http://coruxgroup.com/go/carpix/aw11-sh ... st-photos/
The MR2 has full adjustable coilovers. It's pretty harsh over our terrible roads... So I'm thinking of scrapping the coilovers for the Alltrac and either rebuild my Koni or just go back to stock/stock-ish shocks since with this addition to my stable I don't need to track my Celica any more...
aus jd 2703
New member
Mike don't scrap the coilover ideas just buy good ones.
I swear my mate 185 with teins is all most stock smooth but firmer spring rates then my bouncy bc coilovers! So I feel quality makes a difference in this instance
I swear my mate 185 with teins is all most stock smooth but firmer spring rates then my bouncy bc coilovers! So I feel quality makes a difference in this instance
aus jd 2703":1bnumolg said:
You're saying the Teins > BC ?? Interesting... Teins are no longer made, though, right? Well, I need to examine the carnage first to see how many of my shocks are actually blown and then go from there. The new toy took all my free/car time this weekend.
darthripley
Moderator
It's tough to say "no" to so many cars I see for sale that I'd love to buy, own & mod but I have to be practical & keep my eye on the prize as far as saving up as much as possible for a new house with garage. As long as we have an AW11 & a trac then I am happy. I simply can't & couldn't go without owning & driving an AW11. It's a unique experience owning one but Joe & I have had in one way shape or form for over 10 yrs now all b/c we couldn't afford an AE86 as a project car back then lol
I love the Sherwood color scheme, very classic
Is he a hardtop?
I see he has a momo steering wheel, TRD ball shifter w/TRD short shift kit maybe & i'm guessing he's got uprated front & rear sway bars (high & tight or suspension techniques) and hopefully some twosrus endlinks in the rear.
Do you know the width & offset of the RPF01s on the car?
Coilover brand does make a difference to some extent, as well as the kg spring rate. Tein SS have a nicer ride than the old Tein HA. The SS are still made to my knowledge. HA was discontinued many years ago. I don't know the spring rates off the top of my head but if you can't find them lmk & I can look in my Hyper Rev.
I love the Sherwood color scheme, very classic
Is he a hardtop?
I see he has a momo steering wheel, TRD ball shifter w/TRD short shift kit maybe & i'm guessing he's got uprated front & rear sway bars (high & tight or suspension techniques) and hopefully some twosrus endlinks in the rear.
Do you know the width & offset of the RPF01s on the car?
Coilover brand does make a difference to some extent, as well as the kg spring rate. Tein SS have a nicer ride than the old Tein HA. The SS are still made to my knowledge. HA was discontinued many years ago. I don't know the spring rates off the top of my head but if you can't find them lmk & I can look in my Hyper Rev.
LegacyofDan
New member
mmm <3 the AW
Here's my latest update-- worked on the car this past weekend when it was really warm out (50s here in New York):
http://www.coruxgroup.com/go/ST185/whee ... 4-project/
Cliff Notes Version:
1. Shocks themselves are fine: not all shocks are supposed to "pop back out" when compressed! (Difference between hydraulic vs. gas shocks)
2. Rear Right shaft threading stripped-- either fix or replace. -- Keeping Koni Yellows all around-- not going coilovers route (unless a nice used set of Teins or BCs show up (let me know if you find any!) )
3. Front Left Wheel Bearings will be replaced
4. Brake Pads will be replaced to Porterfield R4S
5. Loose gland nut was causing the mysterious front right clunking (90% sure)
I'm currently waiting for a few more parts-- hopefully the next warm/warm-ish weekend I'll put all this back together and get the car back on the road. The MR2 makes a terrible winter car, I need my Celica back!!
http://www.coruxgroup.com/go/ST185/whee ... 4-project/
Cliff Notes Version:
1. Shocks themselves are fine: not all shocks are supposed to "pop back out" when compressed! (Difference between hydraulic vs. gas shocks)
2. Rear Right shaft threading stripped-- either fix or replace. -- Keeping Koni Yellows all around-- not going coilovers route (unless a nice used set of Teins or BCs show up (let me know if you find any!
) )3. Front Left Wheel Bearings will be replaced
4. Brake Pads will be replaced to Porterfield R4S
5. Loose gland nut was causing the mysterious front right clunking (90% sure)
I'm currently waiting for a few more parts-- hopefully the next warm/warm-ish weekend I'll put all this back together and get the car back on the road. The MR2 makes a terrible winter car, I need my Celica back!!