Meanwhile, I acquired a disc rear end T-series from a JDM AE86.
Then went on to rebuild the callipers:
Got the diff and rebuilt gearbox in during July 2011.
I learnt along the way that AE86 handbrake cables don't fit an AE71, had a nightmarish time getting cables done. Several return trips to the brake place, missing bolts from calipers, holes in my floor, finally got out of there with a semi-decent job and will never go back.
From there I drove the car for another year.
Then the unthinkable happened (September 2011):
I was just casually sitting at red lights with a space either side of me when a guy from Thailand on an international drivers licence slammed into the back of me. No insurance of course.
Luckily I was insured, and I didn't pay a cent to fix it (Shannons = Awesome).
As you can see, the damage wasn't bad, but it put a crease in the RH quarter panel and munched the rear bar.
Seeing as the rear was going to be repainted, it seemed stupid not to do the rest of the car. So I paid extra and had all the dents in the car fixed and the entire outside resprayed in the same factory red, but in 2 pack with extra gloss. I also had the tiny amount of rust that had just started cut out and repaired.
I stripped the car myself for the most part so that it'd be painted properly not just everything masked up:
A photo at the panel beaters, windscreen was also replaced and the rear screen popped out for the spray: