I'm a car junkie. On any given day, I'm surrounded by several amazing vehicles, which is dangerous-like an alcoholic working in a liquor store. Currently, the run down includes three MR2 turbos, an Integra turbo and a GS-R, a Civic Si and of course the Corolla (AE86). Also I'm in charge of Turbo's Project Celica.
However, of all these cars, the Corolla is always my first choice when it comes to the daily commute. It's not the fastest, nor the best handling (not to mention the speakers are blown and the A/C doesn't work either), but these shortcomings don't stop me from driving it.
Carving the corners is thrilling, although the Corolla is probably going slower than it feels. There's no explaining this feeling unless you drive an AE yourself. I'm sure I'm not the first to feel this way about the AE, considering there are thousands of dedicated Hachi-Roku owners throughout the world.
It's time to update those of you following Project AE86. I know there's plenty of you, judging from the sheer volume of e-mail I get. I performed a compression test on the engine and found the number three cylinder is low compared with the other three, so it needs "freshening up."
I obtained a donor block from a friend who bought a used Japan-spec blue-top engine and only used the top-end of it. Since I know the new bottom-end of the engine is still good, I plan to put a rebuilt head on it and stuff the engine into my AE. This engine combination is only going to be a baseline engine to test some key performance parts such as exhaust, header, cams, intake, etc.
We're also in the process of building a high-comp naturally aspirated engine, a turbo-prepped powerplant as well as a 3S-GE option for possible future use.
As for the driveline, the current transmission is shot, along with the clutch. Let me tell you-trying to get the Corolla into gear requires some heavy finesse. I picked up a used transmission from a Pick-A-Part yard for $125 and I'm crossing my fingers, hoping it's in working order.
Currently, there are primer spots all over the shell from the dents that were removed from the 17-year-old body; the old-schooler isn't a pretty sight. The paint and bodywork will be the first to be addressed. Although the AE86 Project is going to take longer than I'd like due to several other projects I have going, it's still moving forward. Until next time, keep those 4AGs revving.