Ownership Verified: 1989 Corolla, this is a car.

Conan

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 6, 2010
Messages
530
Location
Thailand
Car(s)
Mazda 2, Toyota Corolla
About 9 months ago I sold my W124 after getting fed up with trying to sort all the electrical gremlins on it. I was looking at a Volvo 850 Turbo but looking at the immediate previous sentence it'd be a bit ironic. Besides, the one I wanted was very specific and the owner had health issues which meant I couldn't take a look at it for months.

I bought this instead.

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It's a basic commuter thing. Literally a car. 1989 Toyota Corolla GL 1.3.

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It's okay condition wise. Not much rust. The jack point is a bit bent but that's all. It's done 172,000km when I got it and I put 8,000km on it since then. Basically brand new, right?

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Interior is in good nick. Not minter but well kept. Smell like every single old Toyota I've ever been in. A few broken plastic here and there which are readily available second hand for very cheap. Everything on it works because there's nothing to break. Also giffer dash mat.

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A dog.

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I even have navigation system with updates!

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No issue passing yearly inspection. Very good mechanically condition. I only needed to replace the outer rack ball joint and rear shock absorbers and the suspension bits are basically all new. As I said, no rust! Has some sort of aftermarket period correct 15 inch wheels for better tyres availability too.

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With period correct tax disc and insurance details. Because I'm that sort of person.

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Obscure cultural reference. Relevant to this forum.

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Has brakes too. It stops very well.

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It's been a happy 9 months. I use this thing as a daily driver all the time. Always a fun ride. Despite having a manual transmission it has ease of operation and driving one in traffic doesn't bother me at all.

I love the build quality on it. This was clearly made when Japan could pour endless amount of money into everything. It's very well built despite being average commuter thing. It's also surprisingly fun! It drives good. Also lightweight and with decent suspension geometry so it's not bad in the bends either. If a little bit tail happy but that's why people likes hot hatchback, right? The rear spring are from Corona which is a bit too stiff if there's nothing in the back. I will sort this out soon.

It also got surprising amount of power if you'd believe me! It goes pretty well for a 1.3!

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Ah. This may be why.


To conclude. It's a reliable little car. Nothing more than that! :D And it's good having a car that could be fix for peanuts.

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And it really is mine.
 
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You saved the best til last, well written :)

I love the grille on these, it's more regal than the base one we got.
 
It's charming. I like it!
 
I wholeheartedly endorse this purchase. Congratulations!
 
YESYESYESYESYES
 
A basic old car in mint condition? I approve of it very much! I'd personally try to source some original wheels, but I get that aftermarket 15" ones are better concerning tyre availability.
 
You saved the best til last, well written :)

I love the grille on these, it's more regal than the base one we got.

Thank you!

I reckon they did so because typical Yuroopean would considered the regal grille to be kitsch. It's a cheap compact after all.

It's charming. I like it!

Glad you like it!

This is fantastic! Love it!

Thanks! :D

I wholeheartedly endorse this purchase. Congratulations!

Thank you! Been enjoying it a lot.

YESYESYESYESYES

Can't handle the JDMTYTE goodness? :p

A basic old car in mint condition? I approve of it very much! I'd personally try to source some original wheels, but I get that aftermarket 15" ones are better concerning tyre availability.

Thank you!

The original 13 inches steelies with matching hubcap is in my backyard. There's no good tyres in 175/70R13 size and it wouldn't fit over 63-28 caliper and 275mm disc brakes. So it cannot be use.
 
Can't handle the JDMTYTE goodness? :p

Corollas are some of the best ordinary cars you can buy. I still like the Corolla a friend of mine had, was a 98 iirc, and 1.3 aswell. The 5 speed gearbox in that was as slick as an MX-5 gearbox. And the engine was really peppy!
 
It also got surprising amount of power if you'd believe me! It goes pretty well for a 1.3!

View attachment 3555137

Ah. This may be why.


To conclude. It's a reliable little car. Nothing more than that! :D

Yeah, the 1.6L 4A-GELU Blacktop someone swapped in will tend to account for the power and excellent reliability. :p Depending on what the donor was, it should make about 163hp and 119lb-ft of torque.

Not bad for a daily runabout at all.
 
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Ultimate plot twist would be if it only had the 20V camcover.

I suppose - but as far as I can recall, it has to have one of the 20V heads in order to fit the 20V camcover as it won't bolt to the 16V or 8V heads. Been a while since I looked at 4A-GE swaps/interchangability so I could be wrong. :p
 
What does the temperature lever do? There’s no red, which I assume means there’s no heater core, and no AC button as far as I can see.
 
this car looks in like its in perfect condition for its km's, and as i have only seen the rusted finnish examples this looks like some sort of advert pics from the era.
 
Good car.

Thanks!

Corollas are some of the best ordinary cars you can buy. I still like the Corolla a friend of mine had, was a 98 iirc, and 1.3 aswell. The 5 speed gearbox in that was as slick as an MX-5 gearbox. And the engine was really peppy!

You know it was properly engineered when similar designs ran from 1983 until 2001! They might look different on the outside but parts interchangeability is absolutely great! The engine swap pretty much bolts right in.

Yeah, the 1.6L 4A-GELU Blacktop someone swapped in will tend to account for the power and excellent reliability. :p Depending on what the donor was, it should make about 163hp and 119lb-ft of torque.

Not bad for a daily runabout at all.

Thank you! I cannot say for sure but I believe this engine is from a Corolla BZ-G as it's a black top with 6-speed non-LSD transmission. So 160-165hp ballpark would be about right. What I know is that the first gear traction is limited and that's good enough. :p

You know it's a reliable engine design when it revs to 8,000rpm all day and doesn't use oil.

Ultimate plot twist would be if it only had the 20V camcover.
I suppose - but as far as I can recall, it has to have one of the 20V heads in order to fit the 20V camcover as it won't bolt to the 16V or 8V heads. Been a while since I looked at 4A-GE swaps/interchangability so I could be wrong. :p

The engine picture is off another car. Ain't no rule said I have to write a paper and stick it on the cam cover! 16V FE head is so small that there's no way the cover would fit. :)

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Entirety of first gear is wheel spin.

What does the temperature lever do? There’s no red, which I assume means there’s no heater core, and no AC button as far as I can see.

The level adjust the air-conditioning compressor thermostat. So it actually has some sort of temperature control although not by much. And you're right that there's no A/C button as that's integrated to the lever. This doesn't have a heater core indeed. Very basic HVAC.

this car looks in like its in perfect condition for its km's, and as i have only seen the rusted finnish examples this looks like some sort of advert pics from the era.

Thanks! Our climate is not only good for holiday but also preserving regular cars. ;) The car's been resprayed a few times in it's life. And it was crashed into around new year. But the repair job is good.
 
The original 13 inches steelies with matching hubcap is in my backyard. There's no good tyres in 175/70R13 size and it wouldn't fit over 63-28 caliper and 275mm disc brakes. So it cannot be use.

Whoops, it took me a while to realise that it had some extra beef under the hood... :LOL:
 
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