hi,
im not sure if this is in the right section...
so anyway, after selling my sr20det s13 a while ago because of starting uni, i really want a performance car again. i am considering an ae86 but not sure if what i want from one is realistic.
basically it will be a daily driver that i can have some fun in should i get the chance. Im NOT planing on drifting, draggin or circuit racing, but rather just some fun (safe) street driving, with maybe the once in a millenium, skid pan day, or sprint day. I ONLY want a NA car, no superchargers or turbos (insurance costs) and im not sure if a decent little ae86 can be had like this on a budget. It must not cost me an arm or a leg either! (i was quite surprised how expensive they are due no doubt to takami) But also, are tehy reliable? i mean they are old so but then again toyota are know for their quality, im not the one for time and money(the reason i sold my silvia) on fixing stuff...
I must admit while knowing quite allot about the bigger imports, i have never really learnt much on ae86's. Any links to an info site would be great!! Im quite confused to what year the ae86 is, the differences between aus and JDM, and also the engines. i dont want to end up with a "hachi-go"
I would prefer to stay away from engine conversions due to the cost involved unless it is cheaper in the long run...?
Whats the deal with importing? With the change of the import rules ae86's can stil come in as they are so old, has anyone imported? is it worth it?
alas i fear that i may have to scrap my plan as i thik what i am after will be too expensive...
Sorry for seeming like a "newbie" but i can assure you i am not a "young idiot" that will crash a great car such as the hachiroku is! And i greatly appreciate your comments thoughts and opinions!
how much are u plannin on spendin...?
For ur car to be fun...i'd budget at least 5 grand...
I beleive the Hachi is a very reliable car if ur not racing or drifting....
If u want some good info... u can go to
My suggestion...a simple 4age 16v with at least some form of a LSD.
when you say 5k do you mean 5 k on complete car or on mods? Ive really only seem heavily modded fully resprayed cars and they seemed to go for ~10-14K ive been checking the local car ads and on te net and i can get a normal 1982-1984 corolla for cheap as! ~$500!! but obviously there is some differnece from this an a proper ae86... (i know they have a 1.3L engine, is this the 4ac?)
i've been doin a bit of reading (but would still appreciate any links to more detailed site) and the 4age 16v seems to be the go.
Whats the deal with the 4age20v? was it ever an option or just a conversion people do? What did the ADM's come with?
you can do an adm one for 5 on the road thatll be fun, but you gotta know your shit, do your reasearch, and do pretty much all of it yourself.
adm cars are 4ac, no ps, s series rear end (not compatible with jdm lsds) shitty trim, no ac, less castor, worse brakes... theyre basically sr5 in usdm or ae85 in jdm terms.
if you can get an import its by far the easiest and smartest way to go. try importbitz.com, jon is for sure your cheapest way into an import.
if youve got say.. 6800 or so. theres one i know of. adm with jdm conversion including engine and box, dash, ac, ps.. some old trd suspenion, jdm brakes, open centre jdm disc brake rear end. only catch is its faded brown and has a few dents. but its still a very good deal. and with paint and panel itd be fair to ask over 10k for it. its engineered and has rego.
pm me if youre interested. or anyone for that matter.
hey man sounds like ur on the right track here........
aus spec Ae86's only ever came with the shit 1.6L 4ac carby motor....so no 20V was not an option..unfortunately
To give u an Idea...... I picked up my 86 about 1 year ago for $2300......it had the import 4age 16v motor (albiet highly thrashed - I knew the prvious owner and his driving habits...I will say no more) despite this the motor does not miss a beat.....starts 1st time everytime.....dosnt use oil ect....does need new valve springs though.
It also came with Rims and a few other bits n pieces.....body was in fairly good condition..save for a few rust spots...nothing to major.....
so if u can find urself a standard aus spec sprinter....for around $3000 if ur lucky..old people))
budget around 4-5k for a new engine...4age 16V.. plus some suspension work and whatever else u can get...u should have what ur looking for........
if u have a budget, scrap the idea on importing one as they can cost up to $10 for a rusty thrashed one. As the for ADM's they come with a 4a-c single cam engine, it also comes with a s series axle and if u want to upgrage to a lsd u will need a t series axle, the stock suspension is like a jumping castle and when you are driving hard it might be pretty easy to roll (from what ive heard). But yeah if u got a ae86 done some little suspension mods, and done a 4age conversion you would have a really good car to drive around the city and good for going to track days or whatever.
Hi guys,
Thanks for all your replies and valuable info!
Im still a little confused about a few things...
ok, first off all im getting confused with models and versions ect. I thought the ADM sprinter also had the 4age and that only the 'normal' corolla version had the 4ac? how does it work? ie. does the actual sprinter model mean it is better than a normal corolla? what does ae86 actualy cover? (what years, what engines) i know theres levin and pop up light trueno. Is it ONLY the JDM ae86 'sprinter' that that had the 4age from standard?
what did the ADM sprinter (as opposed to the normal corolla) come with?
Also i have seen hatchback and sedan(with a boot) versions. Im only after a hatchback, what can you tell me about them? (ie. are all the hatchbacks sprinters? or maybe all the "sedans" are just normal corollas?)
well i emailed importbitz, so im gonna see what they reckon prices are around for importing.
DRFT-86 - How did u get one for $2300?? i assume there was some sort of catch?
lastly, i was thinking last night and then thought, if i was going to do a conversion on a ADM to a JDM spec, it would involve getting engineers certificates, and as far as i understand i would legally (in QLD) have upgrade my brakes to match and maybe some other stuff. so im not sure about doing my own converison (because it seems like allot of hassle) thought i looke through some of my old magazines and found some places selling 4age engines for $750?? could this be right? thats SOO cheap?? im used to seeing sr's and rb's and such for thousands! then i saw another ad with a half cut "corolla 4age20v" for $1750..? I guess once you put labour into it it works out pretty expensive, not to mention i would stil have ADM interior, brakes, diff/axle...
anyway, sorry for all the questions but im learning a lot. Its strange how little info there is about ae86's other than myths and legends involving mountain racing!
ADM sprinters only ever came with the athsmatic 4AC carby version. The JDM version was the only version to come out of factory standard (discounting the USDM versions). There was a Trueno released here in AUS but was a AE85 model, crappy trim, 3AC, AUTO. Extremely hard to find.
The Ae86 covers from 1983 to 1985 here in Australia. In Japan they cover from 1985 to 1987. All the "hatchback" versions as you put it are sprinters over here, I have not seen a ADM "coupe" (2 door with boot) version here.
John from ImportBitz () is a champ, he imported mine over here for me and I can say without doubt that im more than happy with it. Whilst Breno is correct on pricing (to a point), you wont get a thrashed, rusted out one unless you buy with your eyes closed.
The 4age you see in the papers/wreckers for sale are the fwd version found in the AE82 onwards. IF you buy one of these it requires either getting a rear wheel drive manifold of a JDM hachi, or cutting and shunting the fwd manifold (moving the throttle body to the front and blanking the rear off.
As for the brake conversion, will not be needed as both the 4ac and the 4AG are 1.6l capacity engines. 4AGE is simply fuel injected and a much better engine. and are both good places to search some info too champ
The ADM ae86 is in fact that. An ae86. not ae85.
Its exactly the same as the jdm levin and trueno but there are differences in some parts of the car.
JDM had better brakes, ventilated front and solid rear discs.
ADM had solid discs front and drum rear.... which aren't as bad as some people say they are.
JDM had nice trim and seats
ADM has crappy trim and seats.
JDM came with the option of 16v 4age in the gt apex/gtv etc etc models and a 4ac in the lower spec GT (i think) etc models. They also came with an optional auto tranny and an even crapper motor for the ae85 version which was even worse than the ADM version. I think it was a 1.5 pushrod peice of sh&%$
ADM came with 4ac which is a carby 1.6 with like 40kw at the wheels. Its really slow but rock hard and wont ever die. Some people are very surprised how hard it is to blow them up....
JDM sprinter came with better suspension stock
ADM came with jelly. (but that doesnt matter... you'll need to spend some money on the old crappy jelly to make it handle well anyway.
JDM good models like gt apex and gtv came with "t series" diff when aus ones came with "s series" diff in which the center is smaller and open, meaning its no fun getting power out of corners and cant really go sideways. The jap models came with an optional factory lsd but most are worn and almost like an open center. To buy and utilize a jap LSD for a bit more fun, you need to purchase a t series diff, I think they came from some kind of corona and a t18 (wierd 2 door camry thing). They can be bought anywhere from 100 to 400$$$ from a wrecker. Then you can buy an lsd and fit it straight up.
To make an ADM sprinter good, you need:
1. Better motor.
Common swaps are the 16v 4age which comes from ae82/ae92 corolla in fwd format but are easy to convert to rwd. Also put in is the 20 valve motor out of the ae101/111 which is a little more powerful and has a really nice higher rev range. these are more expensive and you need custom work on waterlines etc as well as converting to coil packs or something like that
Theres also the 4agze which is a supercharged version of the 4age. stil 16 valves but a lot more power, mostly mid range. easy to install as well but needs custom fabrication for intercooler etc.
2. Descent suspension.
3. lsd or locker (illegal and destructive yet fun)
and to be honest im waaaaay too hung over to be writing this thing so I hope I helped you, if you need more info search for bills website on gooogle. its billzilla.org.au or something like that. he covers everything on there
i dont want to end up with a "hachi-go"
ive been checking the local car ads and on te net and i can get a normal 1982-1984 corolla for cheap as! ~$500!! but obviously there is some differnece from this an a proper ae86... (i know they have a 1.3L engine, is this the 4ac?)
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