Building a Celica 'vert for the auto-x
 

My friend just bought a Celica GT convertible for $100. The engine was blown and he already has a deal lined up on a new one. But we need to make it fast, and handle better. Basically, an ultra-low cost auto-x car.

We already know it has one thing going against it. It's a convertible, so it's heavier than it should be. It also has the base model 3S-FE, only 110 HP. However, it's a 5 speed, meaning that power will be put to good use.

We figure what we're gonna do is remove all the carpet and tar, maybe the back seat (if it's not part of the body, if it is we'll just remove the padding), A/C and power steering (how exactly do you do this?) and then that's it, I think, unless there's something not crucial that we can remove.

Once we have that done, we might have a tiny amount of cash to spend, but not much.

So what's your guys' take on this?

Don't you think you'd have better success posting this on a Toyota forum?

You could use the 5S-FE for a better base powerplant. I think it has something along the lines of 130 horsepower. It powered the GT and GT-S cars.

There was someone making a turbo kit for it a while back. If you do some research you can probably find them. Of course, this might be more than you're willing to spend.

Most likely, but none of this stuff is Toyota-specific, it's mostly general knowledge.

What class are you going to run in? All of those mods you described take you out of any cost effective class entirely. You're better off swapping in a good set of non adjustable (i.e. cheap) shocks, a front swaybar, and go run it in the stock class (G stock I think)

PaulC

why don't you just drop a junkyard engine in it and sell it to buy a car that will actually be competitive in autox?

Because that's not an option.

I'll look into the shocks and stuff.

would it be possible to remove all of the convertible mechanisms and run the car as an open-top racer with a roll bar? if class doesn't matter, i'd do that and throw a GT-4 powertrain in there (if you've got the money). or you could sell the car and get something else. i'm not trying to be a dick, but it's also an option. the boxy celica's (right before the generation with the round headlights) with the 3sgte and awd setup are pretty damn quick cars.