Celica GT-Four RC - Project56

[dimitri]

We need an Rally Retro day out in the mountains one day soon!!!

We do I guess my timeline on this is fully road legal in February and hoon ready by late spring. I'm sure a few knocks/bangs and surprises will make themselves known over the first few thousand kms, so I'm going to try to use it every dry day basically to shake it down for the summer.

I also need to find a child seat (to suit 12 months+) that suits deep rear seats. Access etc. not a problem as it won't be used regularly but I'd like to have the option. If anyone has any experience or suggestions I'm all ears. All our daily seats are isofix only.

[Cold]

The water spray is very cool, you should get that wired up (in time).

[deltona]

I've since done some reading and it's pretty easy wire it to a switch...

80's rally driver mode dictates a switch in the foot well by your left foot. For when you're in full on attack mode and your hands are busy with the wheel in full oppo 4WD 4-wheel drifts. 😜

[fortytwo]

Great progress dimitiri! fair play.

[davkav]

It'll be part of the homologation for the intercooler spray. The homologation regs just required the hardware to be fitted, but not functional on the road cars. So it'll be plumbed in but likely not wired. Quite common on Grp A homologation models.

The tank (or bag) was usually in the rear of the vehicle, so as it was away from the heat in the engine compartment. Water was sprayed on the outward facing surface of the intercooler to lower its temp a little further. The bags/tanks often ran with ice cubes floating in the water to so as it stayed cooler for longer during a stage run.

Provided Dimitri is referring to the back of the front bumper of course...

Well this is it, I read it as mounted to the back bumper, Doh!. Had I have read it correctly I would have known what it was for.

Didn't Evo 5's and 6's come with the intercooler spray nozzles from factor, little button on the dash for it and all?

[dimitri]

80's rally driver mode dictates a switch in the foot well by your left foot. For when you're in full on attack mode and your hands are busy with the wheel in full oppo 4WD 4-wheel drifts. 😜

I was thinking a limit switch at WOT But, thinking some more, it's probably the kind of thing you want running before you ask for WOT. I'm not sure how the actual systems were setup, one to try to find out. Maybe a set timed spray at intervals when on "stage" to maintain intake temps is the way.

Either way, I'm sure the rally cars had a bigger tank. I'd only be doing it for the lolz with the standard map and tank. But if things get extra boosty down the line, it might get more serious

[dimitri]

Didn't Evo 5's and 6's come with the intercooler spray nozzles from factor, little button on the dash for it and all?

I'm not sure on the Evos, but it sounds like something that would be there. I know for sure some of the STI Impreza models had them, complete with a large tank across the car behind the rear seats.

[dimitri]

The VRT appointment was booked before the end of the holidays, and much to my surprise the wait time wasn't more than a week or so. I arranged my insurance off the last registration & chassis number, printed off some A4 japanese registration plates and headed in for the first appointment on a Tuesday morning




Big thanks to the absolute gent that dealt with me on the day. I managed to have all my paperwork in order, the inspection of the car was fine as expected. The decision had to go to Revenue for approval, often the case with classics I was told, so I wouldn't have my details that day but no surprises expected. This called for a celebratory tank of MilesPlus on the way home that evening




Sure enough, the decision was in the very next day, so I returned to the VRT office and paid my dues. Then visited a few motor factors until I found one that could actually work the plate machine in the square format () and got some terrible looking but fully compliant plastic plates.

The car was on the motortax system the next day, and I splashed out for a years tax.

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[charlie]

Great write up. NCT the next milestone?
A great relief when the Calibra passed, although I did have nearly a years MOT on it when I got it.

Could start a club for 2 Ltr turbo 4x4 cars from the 90s

[dimitri]

Absolutely yes, the NCT is the next milestone. Now that I've been able to drive it a bit, it's clear it needs a front shock so I have them on order. It's also got an exhaust blow at a flexi.

So, I'm looking to get both of these fixed in the next fortnight and hopefully grab a first NCT attempt the first Friday in February. Hopefully they'll be able to keep the results on one sheet


Spotted your Calibra at Athlone charlie, we were driving in the access road behind you. Any Calibra is a rare spot these days. Yours is a great colour too!

[Auto_Motive]

Great work, great progress, great car, great thread.

Keep up the ehhh great work D!

[dimitri]

Cheers all. Sorry for dropping a few lines now and then between work duties

I'm up to date here now, so the updates will be less frequent as I tick off the remaining items from the list, and start on the next list no doubt. I have been getting a few miles in though and it has been fun getting to know the car. I'll go full Harry's Garage on it and get the sound meter app out some evening, but to be honest that's the only thing about the drive that'd let you know it isn't something more modern, and the glorious shamcannon out back isn't helping.






I got my nice pressed plates yesterday, a box of octane booster today and I see my front shocks are in the post for expected delivery next week. More updates to follow

[conneem]

Awesome addition to the garage Del. Loving reading through the "get to know you phase" of ownership. Well wear.

[dimitri]

Since the last update, there was another spell of parts gathering and waiting for boxes to arrive. The front suspension has Cusco topmounts added by a previous owner and it all sat a bit low, and the camber setting was all over the place. While I was trying to figure out that one evening, I noticed the first few drives had split old rubber on a droplink dust shield and the steering rack gaitor too. In the end I'd gathered two dampers, two new spring isolators, track rod ends, rack gaitors, four droplinks, new bumpstops.

Things didn't go super smoothly on the dampers, the top mount was fitted incorrectly on one side and mising a spacer etc. and there was a bit of figuring out to do rather than just parts fitting, but around about an hour past optimal bed time last Thursday night she was back on the ground. Friday morning, an alignment was booked and it was great to see everything on the printout turn green and thankfully all but one adjuster gave absolutely no trouble so I didn't wreck their heads too much.




Now, the Galway Rally was kinda a milestone on the project plan here, and it was on the Saturday. With work and other duties taken care of I found myself out in the cold wind washing the car after 10pm,




Before loading the glovebox with my 90s tapes and a few CDs, the boot with "just in case" tools, leads, rope and armed with my AA membership card we were ready for an early morning meet. All of the cars were on shakedown duty after winter fettling so the morning pace was cautious, there was much checking and fettling at the first coffee stop but we soon settled into a groove and could enjoy them.




It was a rough day out weather wise, but rolling around in the Group A convoy was special. As was firing them all up on a ditch to go watch the real rally cars do their thing for a few stages. It was my first proper run out in the Celica. Some of the dashboard gauges have self-healed, so hopefully that continues with more use and I'll have them all back before long and save myself having to get the cluster out. I've a bit of a knock in the front suspension still, but nothing that can't be sorted. The brakes even started to feel better as the day went on and they bedded in.




Gave it a full underbody power wash and a quick wash down when we got home and tucked it up in the shed to dry. It was an important day out, turning the Celica from a garage ornament to an actual car. A few things to be working on, but no show stoppers. It's time to start planning the next one

[Smythy411]

Great to see the car being used! I was disappointed I couldn't make the rally at the weekend, but it sounded like a wet day out. When's the NCT booked for?