Where to start??? need help with 4age conversion

[Drift_Dan]

Hi guys just bought an 84 AE71 and wondering where i should be starting with the setup of the car. The car is currently completely stock and is minus motor and trans, it used to be an auto and i think it has a 4k crossmember in it but apart from that i dont know anything else about the car. The main things im concerned with are....

*Diff options and mods
*Suspension options and mods

in particular what works and isnt overly expensive to do. The car is going to be a dedicated drift car so being street legal is not a problem. Thanks for any help you can give me.

Cheers
Dan

[ke70dave]

a 4kc crossmember isnt much good to you, you dont want a 4k...

best off heading over to the members ride section and see what everyone else has done. then come back with specific questions(Y)

[rthy]

budget is a good start?

[Drift_Dan]

Ok well budget is yet to be determined lol i dont want to spend a fortune, if i wanted to do that i would keep my s13 and make that a drifter, really just after some reasonably cheap fun. Basically the plan is to fit an sr20det and 5 speed which i have already along with a few other sr bits and pieces.

I would mainly like to know what the best way to go with the suspension would be? I was thinking adjustable camber tops and coilovers in front but not sure how to bolt it all in. Also heard that you can bolt in sr20 turbo front knuckles and brakes but does this mean i need to use an s13 xmember? Will be doing swaybars front and rear and replacing rubbers with nolathane on everything i can. In the rear im thinking just some heavy duty adjustable shocks and stiff springs will do the job along with adj pan hard rod. Since its gonna be a dedicated drifter i will prob just weld up the diff. I have heard that an r31 diff assembly will bolt up under the arse end with no mods needed, is this true?

[buddyparts]

If your going sr i would be talking to fast Eddie on these forums for a start.
And same for suspension and diff options his car seems to be strong and competitive. The best thing you can do is progress from a fairly basic suspension and upgrade as you go.

[Drift_Dan]

Thanks for your help guys, i contacted fast eddie and will be popping out to see him and have a look at his car. Thanks again.

Cheers
Dan

[Sam-Q]

I have moved this thread to the tech section and made the title more descriptive. Now Dan your new so I will go easy but you need to do some searching on here as I know it's sometimes a bit much to find info sometimes but all the answers you have asked can be found on here.

A small tip though, even though guys will say they use it and love it running S13 coil-overs/knuckles or anything like that messes up your suspension geometry, this is a proven fact. How much real world effect this has is where the opinions lie.

Also there might be a few articles on my website you might find interesting

s-86.com

the main thing is to read and read some more.

[Sam-Q]

just thought of something, are you sure it's an ae71? hey post some pics on here

[Drift_Dan]

Hi Sam, thanks for the info. Checked outyour site, will have to spend me time doing some reading in your artices section. Here are some pics of the car, it says AE71 on the vin no etc so i assume that what it is. Let me know if iots otherwise.

http://www.ae86drivingclub.com.au/dcimages/3/4/1/3/34687.jpg
http://www.ae86drivingclub.com.au/dcimages/3/4/1/3/34688.jpg

[Sam-Q]

can you post an engine bay pic? specificly the passenger side near the crossmember

if it says ae71 then it's that unless someone has been very sneaky with a grinder which I would doubt

[aaron_86]

Some psychological advice, beer is your friend when working on toyotas. Things will pop up every now and then which will frustrate the hell out of you. I recommend a cold six pack is on hand.

[redsprinter]

welcome to the forums . off topic but why didnt you just keep the s13 for drift . its a proven format. and 9/10 times it works out cheaper to mod then any toyota E series chassis.

for a budget . i would start with the basics :

motor - 4age 16v stock rebuild
gearbox- t50 reco
wiring - standard jdm loom .
diff- locker . or t-series + 4.7 c&p +2way

suspension- HSD coil over kit front and rear. +adjustable pan hard rod + wheel alignment

tyres: 14s or 15 wrappedin bridgestone re001 or something on par with it .

more then enough to get it track drift ready .

use this setup until you maximize it, and spend you time off track reading and researching about fine tuning your setup.

learn to walk before you run . will save you coin and allow you maximum track time .

my biggest mistake was getting caught up on the best setup and now im finding my self going backwards and spending more money then i needed when it could be spent on track days.

[Drift_Dan]

http://www.ae86drivingclub.com.au/dcimages/3/4/1/3/548876.jpg

Heres an engine bay pic Sam, dont know if its close enough for what your looking for.

Thanks for the advice Aaron, scotch on stanby!!!

Hi redsprinter, i didnt use the sil cos its a real neat example and id hate to slam it into a concrete/tyre wall and ruin it, plus id like to do something different, everyone has nissans these days and dont get me wrong they are awesome cars but id like to build something thats a bit more of a challenge than just buying stuff and bolting it on. I hear what your sayin mate, i dont wanna spend money on things i dont need, just itching to get stuck into it and get it out for some fun.

[Jonny Rochester]

Some psychological advice, beer is your friend when working on toyotas. Things will pop up every now and then which will frustrate the hell out of you. I recommend a cold six pack is on hand.


You obviously havn't worked on any cars except for Toyotas. And the AE71/AE86 is amoung the most basic cars left on the road. (KE10 - KE30 are slightly simpler, but not many left).

[rthy]

looks like a 4a crossmember

i vote s13

[Sam-Q]

yeah 4A cross-member for sure

also I have to agree with Jonny, AE's are usually so easy to work on. Well unless you include pedal boxes or heater cores

[Drift_Dan]

Great this was an auto so i will have to fit pedal box, i have already seen prices of them:unseen:. Are they hard to fit or something?

[Sam-Q]

yours was an auto? ok I take back what I said, go buy some more grog in advance.

they are a bloody nightmare to fit, requires a significant portion of your dash to fit. Also I heard that even in the ae71 models the threaded holes for the trans mounts are different, if true your in trouble

[Drift_Dan]

Wow, well the s13 is looking like the better option all of the sudden lol

[rthy]

yup could bought a s13 sr20det with the money i spent on the ae71 lol

took me about 2hr to fit mine in, paid $200 for the pedal box with hydraulic
just make sure u get it right the 1st time, i spent most of the time line up the pedal box

please see link below for convo guide
http://www.toymods.net/forums/archive/index.php/t-2059.html

[Drift_Dan]

So the pedal box is not a direct bolt in job then??

[Sam-Q]

well you need to drill 3 holes in the firewall, it's not so bad. I can provide a template for you on that one.