Uhhh... I'd say about 2 inches. It's pretty freaking low. It's advertised as 1.5 with the Sportline, but I assume that's 1.5 out of the box new. This is over a year old.

Before:




After:



I don't have any good before pictures.

I'm trying to make it as clean and OEM as possible, but still semi JDM and fun? I don't really know how to explain it. I don't like the gauge bezel I have and will be changing that ASAP. I will also be ordering custom fab brake pedals, dummy pedal pads and whatnot in a brushed aluminum. Ones that are designed for heel-toe. Or, I'll buy the WRC pedals that lift the gas pedal up to a height roughly the same as the brake pedal, and extends over towards the brake. (Roughly 200 to my door for the whole assembly)

This post has been edited by RabidTRD: Jul 3, 2011 - 11:32 PM

What kind of paint did you use on the valve cover? Looks great!

This stuff:



Also used a grey primer by the same company and type under. It worked great on the Camry I used to have, so I did it on this as well. 500 degrees and ceramic.

Thank you very much!

Photoshoot time!
Decided to go out with my Canon 20D DSLR and a tripod and snap some shots. I then realized after returning home that there was a bug on the lens...

Nice colour chosen for the stock wheels. And all red taillights too. Noticing alot of rust on the doors =[

This post has been edited by whatthe: Jul 5, 2011 - 12:57 PM

Yeah... up here in upstate NY we like snow with our salt. This car was abused before me. Apparently this is clean for how old it is. I'm going to be working on the rust next after I get this camber figured out and the exhaust on. Then comes rims from a 05 TC and after that I'll be trying to get my hands on a OEM lip kit. Hopefully SS-II splitters for the front and TRD for the rear with the OEM facelift skirts on the sides.

Let me start by saying... ****.

So about 5 days ago after work, I started my car and black smoke came out the exhaust. I looked behind me and went outside to check and see how dark it really was. Got to the rear and it went away...

...Okay. So I figured it was just some crap that got into the cylinder and burned off. I brushed it off and went along for the past 5 days without it happening again or any problems.

Today I got bored, so I decided that I should check the gap on my plugs and, just to make sure, see if there was oil in the cylinders. Took out plug 1, whew, nothing. On to plug 2, again, nothing and gap was perfect just like the first. So then comes plug 3. Again, nothing to worry about. At this point I'm happy and just like, "oh well everything is fine, I just worry too much." Plug 4. ****! I pull the plug out and oil drips off and onto my finger. Plug smells like burnt oil. Wonderful, so I dry the plug off and run a few extensions down into the cylinder to see how much oil is in there. The oil only left residue on the tip of the extension.

I call my boss and ask him his opinion (If you guys haven't already figured out, I work at an autoparts store and the top on in our division at that) on what I should do. My thoughts were that my piston ring is leaking. So I ask how much would labor and all of that cost? His response, "you have to take the whole bottom of the engine apart, so you might as well swap the engine out at that point or replace it." Grrreeeaaat. I can't afford that right now. I don't know how to do that on my own and I don't have a cherry picker or a stand. My friend does, but I doubt he'd want to help me with this. I'm already suffering from depression, I have had a recent breakup with a girl that I devoted myself to for 3.5 years that decided to tell me that we have nothing in common and we should break up. I'm also trying to deal with my mothers death and my father re-marrying...

This damn car is the only thing keeping me sane right now besides my friends and alcohol. I work on it when I feel upset, I tinker and I forget my pain and feel free for just a small amount of time. In that amount of time I feel happy, I know what I'm doing and I know I can fix it. Right now, I'm lost. I don't know if I should rebuild it, replace it, do the 3S-GTE swap that I really wan to do, or make a hybrid engine with a 3S-GTE head and a 5S-FE block... (That one always intrigued me.)

I'm losing my mind and I don't even have enough money to go buy some beer to just calm down. My dad yelled at me after I told him to pray for me because I might need to replace the engine and told me, "You've already spent too much on that piece of junk car." That again crushed me. I hate when people call my cars "junk." I proved with my last one that anything was possible and even the junkiest of cars have life left in them and deserve respect and love. I honestly feel like crying right now because this car is my only love. I can't lose this one too.

Just an example of what my Camry came from when I first got it:


I then turned it into this:

A 160hp BMW killer.

feel ur pain man, somewhat the same story with my car, ppl dont understand what it really means to us (well atleast what it means to me)


just a tip, dont get the ebay rebuild kit, i got it and within 1200 miles , bearings failed (it might be the mechanic to blame but) i can tell u now the quality doesnt feel too good....people warned me but i was stubborn and still got it, just a heads up

sucks to hear that dude life is already hard enough as is but hey if you love that car then revive it. it wont happen over night but as long as you get something done on it you ll feel good my celica engine blew on me and also need a few other things and i still have it i didnt let it die before i wont let it die now. besides theres other ppl in this forum that are from the same area as you( im one of them) that probally wont mind giving you a hand i already found someone who will help me whit my swap for my celica (when i finished saving up for the engine that is >_>) so take it easy and good luck whit your car

I actually may go another route. I've found a guy on Toyota Nation that seems to know a lot about 5S-FE's. He is building a 200 hp one that is NA. I may buy another engine and follow his advice and see if I can build one with at least 170.

At this point, I'm trying to figure out what is most worth while. There is a local guy that has a 3S-GTE swap that I really want to meet up with and get some advice from.

thats cool to know theres also a guy in the are that has done a 3sgte swap on his celica ive seen it once in person(which was awesome) he seems to know what hes doing plus hes also a member in the 6gc.(hes the one that told me about the site) hes name is JDcelica pm him he might be able to help you out whit any imformation you need

how do make your lights that color? the bulbs in mine are burnt out on the sides.

>

He is actually the one I am talking about haha. He has the black 3S-GTE hatch. I'm trying to meet up with him soon to talk.
>

Which lights? The highs have yellow 9005 bulbs at 60W, and I painted the interior bezels black with engine paint to handle the heat. The rears I used VHT Red on to get the pure, candy apple red. The front signals and the side markers are Depo Smoke lenses with amber bulbs inside. They run on ebay for around $70 for the set and they even include sockets and bulbs! Make sure you get the ones specifically for your year though. I almost bought facelift lights by mistake!

lol what a small world

Yeah, I honestly had no idea anyone from Rochester had any decent 6GC's. All the ones I see here are dented, rusted and neglected. There are a crap ton of RIT students with 6GC's. I was hoping to get some kinda local meet going and post info up at RIT for them to all come. There is a black one there from Vermont that has TRD calipers and a few mods. We chatted once when he pulled up behind me to get gas at a gas station and we stared at each-other and just laughed and said, "Nice car!"


If you ever need any parts, stop by the Advance Auto Parts in the city of Rochester. The one at 527 Monroe ave. It's on the corner of Monroe and Goodman. You can see my white Celica parked in the back and probably a MK2 Red golf, a MK1 GTi Rabbit and soon a blue VW Corrado (yeah I work with a bunch of VW heads.) If you see the white Celica, I'm working haha. Just don't come in hoping to chat for too long if the black Rabbit is there. I'll get in trouble because that's my GM. And please don't show up on Fridays, as we have to put truck away. Otherwise, stop in for parts, to chat, whatever. I've got lots of experience with basics on these Celicas. I don't know much about engine swaps though hahaah.

Also, I may have figured out what the oil in the cylinder is. I may have a bad seal at the base of the spark plug tube. I forgot to check that in my fury and it took a guy at Toyota Nation to make me think haha.

This post has been edited by RabidTRD: Jul 8, 2011 - 10:17 PM

lol yeah you dont see these cars alot in these area although mines its beat up but not not bad but for a car that i got for free i cant complain which in the end im just making it into my little project and hopefully i could swap in either a 3sge beams or the 3sgte although im still in a debate on which one to choose cause of the fact on turboing the beams but im also a n/a motor fan so im still undicided hopefully for next summer i could do a swap on mines

lol thats kool to know mabey ill stop by someday if i have time though life pretty crazy these day so choosing where to go is sometimes a hassle >_>

This post has been edited by beams78: Jul 8, 2011 - 10:22 PM

Have you ever thought about building the 5S-FE? If you don't like turbo that much... it's the easiest way, especially if you don't want to spend a bunch. I'm planning a cam upgrade soon.

yeah i would have done that but to bad my is an st model not gt so 7afe no good lol

You can still build the A series engines to a pretty satisfying state. In fact, you've just got more room to work with haha.

So I took the time to finally rip the top off my engine. Well I sourced the leak issues and there was oil leaking into tube 4. Nothing on the inside this time! So it must have just collected around the base of the plug and when I pulled it, it all seeped into the cylinder. Thank freaking God. Struggled getting the tube out and ended up using vice grips on it, but it came out and I polished it up.

Pics:






Got it all together and decided to clean out my engine bay:


Before and after:

Next on the list is to get an allignment and the exhaust finally on! Then I'll be doing body work and looking for the TC rims. After that, Webcams!

Received my 6gc.net stickers today! Put them on as soon as I got home from work haha.



Then I found another package that arrived while I was working. I finally got my gauge bezels! These things weren't cheap, so I'm glad they actually turned out like I had hoped.


You just round out the back side of the aluminum to make it hook and it stays in place. Pretty good idea!




Had to modify them a tiny bit to get a super flush fit.




And the end result is this:


Much happier with this than the previous bezel. That one is up for sale if anyone wants it!

Inside the car:



I have to get a shot of how sexy these things are at night.


More stuff on the way.
- Polk Audio speakers (in hand, waiting for install)
- Strut tower bar (this is one that crosses over the center and fits under the OEM one to stiffen it even more at $75 instead of the $300 pricetag on the TRD one)
- 07 Scion TC 17" rims
- Godspeed dual core aluminum high performance radiator with red silicone hoses
- 4 new calipers and SS hoses
- Cross-drilled rotors.

This post has been edited by RabidTRD: Aug 6, 2011 - 6:04 PM

thats actually pretty cool gives the dash a new look

nice gauge , its 100% perfect

love the car ....... clean looking

Got my Polk Audio speakers in. Tweeters are so much better than factory that it's not even funny. I actually had to turn my highs down because at louder volume, my head started to hurt. The mids that I have in the rear now (6.5") are much better than factory, but lack the bass I was hoping for. This also may be because of the gauge wire I used. I realized after I put it all together that the wire was smaller than factory... quite a bit.. So I'll have to re-do those before giving an opinion.

Brother gave me his dual 12" Kicker subs and told me to have fun... (le sigh) too much bass for my liking and the box for them is huge. I may sell them and get a bass tube. At least that way I can take the subs out when I need to transport anything or auto-x.

Anyway, pics!




Taking out the rears




Rears are a PITA to take out compared to the fronts and tweeters lmao.

Found a set of Euro fogs and installed them with my own custom switch and wire harness:



I got tired, and sloppy last night in the dark and managed to scratch the area around the plug. Going to touch that up shortly

And photos of them working with the parking lights (they're wired into the side parking lights so I don't have to have my headlights on and can cruse with these on instead):


The custom plugs I made to fit into the OE female plug:


Very happy with the look and extra light. Going to put in yellow bulbs next to optimize the foglight effectiveness.

This post has been edited by RabidTRD: Sep 9, 2011 - 7:50 PM

Just saw the bezel, very nice and how are you liking the led's?