So, after venturing out into the world of adulthood and joining the United States military, I found myself in Japan. After having just watch Initial D, boy did I want an 86. Looked around all over Oki for ones for sale, all were rust buckets, sadly. Well, then I wanted an FC and talked to a friend on mainland and asked him to look for one. He found me this instead.
While it wasn't my first choice, I'm glad I bought it.

It's been about a year and a half since I picked up the car and I have yet to start one of these threads. So, I figured I'd start today. I'll try to keep things as chronological as I can.

The build is pretty straightforward as I'm more of an "OEM+" kind of guy. So, on with the pics and notes.

These are the first pics I got of her. I'm the second driving owner. I got lucky and it didn't come off the auction floor like a number of others that have had issues down here. A ripe old 42,000km on the clock

 

Got her back, all registered and clean



I really like the tones from this catback





Stock AF

 

So what's the first thing to change?



Steering wheel





pretty simple



but still a pain in the butt



Annnnndddd I don't like it. Love the wheel, hate the release

 

Got me some new parking lights



Quite a bit nicer



my buddy had an accident, so, while his car was at the shop, I got to rock his CR Kais for a bit. I like them. The fronts are so flat, though



Then, one evening....<br/>Some genius cant be bothered to use his rear view mirror and backs into me under the streetlight..



sad times...



I'm lucky my friend was there to deal with him and the police otherwise I would have been arrested for assault.

 

Last batch for tonight. I just realized I got a little bit out of order here. Need to sort my pictures a little better on my computer.



And then i got better parking lights



They blend so much nicer



I also picked up blacked out pretty much everything else







Should probably pop some LEDs in there

 

Got some work to do this day



"new' ARC airbox, CST coilovers, and diff cluid change, because who knows when that was last done



such a large hole



fitting



it's in! (twss...)



I think it looks pretty nice



stock stuts



Spirit R seats!<br/>JK... I wish. <br/>This was a test fit for my buddy who owned them and trying to sell them. A bit out of my price range



CSTs installed



How she sat afterwards



another view from another day. Replaced the side markers too. This is before the previous post

 

Got some more goodies in the mail



Took me forever to actually put this thing in





New shift ****. RE Amemiya by Razo



nice





Also... A nice upgrade since I was doing a cat delete soon









Guess I gotta take the old one out



Cool. Now I have to get a holder

 

Day or two later, new pads



Hawk HP+<br/>Turned out to be very dusty. Very nice stopping power, though. Loved them. Wait til the last second before a turn on the touge.



Well, eventually my friend needed his wheels back, so I decided to paint mine. Powdercoating was gonna cost just a bit too much



details



One finished



Nice look, I think.



The disgusting wiper arms need cleaned too.



Sanded them all down, metal primer, paint and clear. Much better



Also picked up some nice new LED headlights (and games)



Nice, pure white

 

Coilover upgrade yet again.<br/>K-Sport Super Sports



By a considerable margin, better



Up for work, K-Sport coilovers and new braided steel brake lines by HEL









These were a considerable PITA to get in. Had to file the front bushings down because they were almost 2mm too thick on either side

 

Decided I wanted a bit more room in the bay. Maybe enough to fit a V mount



So, Rotary Works airbox





most was pretty easy



one of the hard pipes made getting this in and the previous one out a little difficult



Me, making some last minute hookups.



Installed. I like. Better than the ARC

 

Decided it was time for a little rationalization. So I had a friend's wife outline the name of the car on the airbox cover



Gasai Yuno. If you've ever had the opportunity to watch Mirai Nikki (Future Diary) shes the pink haired one



I figured it was fitting considering she is the very definition of Envy. I feel the car is the same.



Treat her right, she'll love you like nothing else. Treat her wrong, she wont hesitate to kill you. Or at least blow up.



Took the dremel to this piece because I didn't want the paint to scratch off



I think it turned out quite good, for my first time doing this.



Very nice

 

On the eve of my buddy with the Hachi leaving, we decided to go for a little drive and get some pics



Here are the best of them



it's almost like past and present. The FD's lines are so nice



And, I think the owner's personalities match relatively well, too.



Finally got a holder for that commander



Got a sandwich plate for later gauge additions

 

Installed those stockers. All black



All black



Got a new battery in



Rather small



New midpipe!



gosh thats big

 

Got that battery in. Also installed freshly powdercoated strut tower bar



Diving into something a bit more complicated here



vacuum simplification for sequential twins






In this last one, I also installed the new UIM my buddy Shane made coated in wrinkle black with the double throttle eliminated as well as the nipples on the right side blocked off. Not the most ideal situation since I actually needed three nipples for my boost controller, the MAP sensor, and the vacuum chambers. So, the boost controller is hooked up to one of two on the back and the MAP sensor is on a T with the vacuum tubes. Can't decide if I want to modify this setup at all. The boost controller and FC commander often read differently. Don't particularly like that, but don't know which should get the dedicated line.
I suppose it should be the computer, since it actually needs that more than I need to see it. Maybe I'll change it one of these days.

 

Speaking of the boost gauge. Greddy Profec. And a line of Defi Advance CR gauges



Including fuel pressure for when I get an FPR and upgraded rails/injectors



Also got an AFR. AEM X-Series.



Pettit Racing column gauge hood



Looks like it belongs



Decided on a brake upgrade. HPS's this time, hopefully cut the dust a bit.



EBC rotors. Couldn't stand the rust on my stockers. Hopefully these look good for a while.

 

Nice build!

 

Very nice. Have you decided how you'll be putting together the Column Pod? Silicone?

 

Build is coming along nicely

 

Thanks. I'm enjoying it more and more all the time. More pictures to come once I get the time.
I'm happy to say today was the first day that I've ever had problems with her. Wouldn't startup this evening. Took a look at the spark plugs. Caked in black. I guess I seriously do need a tune at this point. The base map for the PFC just isn't cutting it. I'm far too rich right now.


Well, unless it's not made quite right, I figure it'll just snap together like the stock one. If it don't, I reckon I'll go the silicone route so I can just cut it if I ever need to take it off

 

Recently installed Pineaplle Racing BT idler pulley. I liked the discreet look of this more than the standard idler



New radio. Simple upgrade from old Pioneer unit to new with a USB port



Moved it for the next day's project



Assembling pedestal for gauge install



Gauges installed and working. Looking good. I kind of wish I put the water temp sender in a different spot, though. It doesn't show the temperatures correctly until the thermostat opens. I hate that.



New strut tower bar I picked up



Lo and behold, it actually goes on the rear, not the front. Silly me

 

Last build progress for the moment. That's pretty much everything for now



So I did a thing.....



T04Z





Small experiment



put the gauges in the cluster



I think it looks pretty darn good. Now to just make it work



Sometimes the small things need looking into



Something as simple as a repflector



old vs new

 

Here's just some nice pictures of the car to round off the most current updates for this thread.




Back when my buddy with the Cosmo was here and the previous iteration of my friend across the hall's FD



She think she can play with the big boys. Not yet baby girl



Fresh and clean



Looking nice



One of my favorite night shots I've taken



Rolling shots from my friend AJ



Leading the pack

 

Must be easy to source parts since you live in Japan. What was the cost of those Defis?

 

awesome! you need an IC duct tho, otherwise it becomes an interheater...

 

FYI (and you may already know this by now), the Pettit column pod does not have the factory pegs so you either need to glue it or tape it. Also they are made for LHD. It should be usable, but the opening for the turn signal and wiper will be off a little. RE Amemiya made a RHD version that is much better construction with factory pegs. You may be able to find some over there used (not sure they are made anymore)