My '93 Corolla From New Zealand

I took the sedan for a bit of a drive today, before stopping off for a few obligatory photos on the way home:

damn that's a sick as looking rolla. love the front dude. take some interior shots man

Your wish is my command!

Aww Gold, you were thinking of me? That's adorable . Hopefully my latest posts have turned that frown upside down


I didn't have a whole lot to do today so when I realized that it had been 3-years since I had taken some actual interior photos I decided to whip out my camera and post a much needed update. It was quite tricky getting even lighting inside the cabin, without the use of any studio lighting etc, but these photos didn't come out too bad

looks real nice dude props.

I love those crazy 80s/ early 90s interior patterns!

Cheers guys. Gotta love the 90's interior design. Makes today's interior look rather bland, lol.

I just finished installing these pillow ball spherical bearings into the stock shifter cables and after a road test, the difference is very noticeable. Previously the gears used to slop into place due to the factory rubber bushings, but now the gears have a much tighter feeling, clicking into place during each shift. The benefit of using spherical bearings over solid brass bushings or skateboard bearings is that the natural twist of the cable as it's going through the range of motion isn't lost, so you get the same effect as the solid bushings except without any of the additional effort required to change gears.

Earlier today I also removed the original rubber shifter base bushings from inside the car, along with the metal sleeves, and bolted the shifter housing directly to the floor. This also gave the gears more of a "snik-snik" feeling, with no more mushiness at the end of each shift or when hitting the shift gate to go into 1st or 2nd.

As a result of both modifications there is no longer a squishy, sloppy, floaty feeling when changing gears, but instead something that really makes you feel more connected to the car and improves the overall driving experience

After running 110mm velocity stacks (trumpets) for almost 2-years I decided it was time to try a set of 100mm stacks instead, in an effort to gain more clearance between the clutch master cylinder and gain slightly more top-end power. So after a short wait these shiny new billet velocity stacks arrived from Australia, made by SQ Engineering. Let me start by saying that the build quality of these are AMAZING. They're machined from a single piece of aluminum alloy and this set is designed especially for the 20v Blacktop. For anyone who'd like to watch a set getting made (50mm shown in the video) check out this YouTube video:

I now have more clearance between the #1 stack and the clutch master cylinder, the sound they emit doesn't sound so raspy like my old ones due to the much thicker alloy construction (spun vs billet) and the pull from 6,000rpm-8,500rpm is noticeable stronger than my previous 110's. You sacrifice a little bit of earlier/low-end power due to being 10mm shorter in length, but it more than makes up for it in the top-end. As an added bonus, these new stacks are incredibly shiny and resist scratches and fingerprints really well. If anybody wants a set, contact SQ Engineering on Facebook or through the website as they do a number of different sizes for both the Silvertop & Blacktop engines, and also offer an equally impressive spun/rolled type for slightly less $$$.

Some Really good mods there.
I was always skeptic of them trumpets as I do not know how you keep the dirt and stuff from going through into the engine.
Is there some sort of filter?
Im sure there is going to be some new orders from SA when once the boys sees your posts.
Well done

There are a few options when it comes to the way you run trumpets - No filtration like I have, inside an airbox/plenum or filtered using foam socks or a Pipercross/ITG filter. Sadly there's not a lot of room behind my trumpets since being a RHD and a manual it has the clutch master cylinder right behind the #1 trumpet. I have considered relocation the reservoir, but the actual cylinder would still be an obstruction. Sock filters are notoriously bad for robbing engine power, so a Pipercross/ITG filter would be the ideal choice if the space allowed for one.

I don't run any filtration whatsoever. That may make a lot of peoples toes curl due to the thought of all sorts of dirt/debris entering the engine, but so far I haven't had any problems in the 2-years I've had them fitted. If some dickhead drives on the shoulder of a dusty road and creates a dust storm I always quickly chuck it in neutral to keep the trumpets closed until I go through it, but apart from that driving is no different than having a proper air filter fitted . I guess it comes down to the attitude of the driver too. In my instance, while I do care about the health of the engine it's not such a big deal if something ever went wrong as a result of running the trumpets unfiltered as the 20v Blacktop engines are very easy to obtain here. Whereas someone in the US who might have a hard time finding that particular engine and could spend thousands to get it would likely be a lot more cautious and wouldn't risk running the intake unfiltered. If I was ever to open up the engine and upgrade it internally I'd likely never risk running without filtration again, but as it stands right now if it blows I'll just chuck another one in

My latest additions - OEM metallic black stereo and driver's vent surrounds. These were only available in Japan for the late model facelift AE101 Corolla BZ Touring wagons from 1998-2001. They're not an overlay or sticker, but the effect is actually 'painted' onto the actual plastic, likely using a hydrographic printing process (the same process Toyota used to achieve the wood-grain effect on other models). I've wanted these for quite some time but it was only a couple of weeks ago that I had the chance to get my hands on a set in good condition. They were a direct swap with my existing flat black ones and look amazing in direct sunlight due to the metallic flecks underneath the clearcoat. They don't add functionality or anything like that, but it's the small details like this in the build which sometimes make the biggest difference

Is there anything rare you DONT have yet? Lol

^ Yep, the digital dash


Insanely Rare JDM AE101 Optional Rain Sensor

In Japan they had all sorts of crazy and quirky optional extras for the AE101 Corolla, and this optional rain sensor is definitely in the top 3 in terms of it's rarity. For almost 6-years I've only ever been able to see a tiny picture in the original sales brochure of the rain sensor and have never come across one in real-life, until early last week when I stumbled across one myself! . The only other one I've ever heard of was back in 2005 on eBay so the rarity of these are truly off the scale. It works by sensing the intensity of rainfall and automatically controls your windscreen wipers, varying the speed without the driver having to even touch the wiper stalk. For a full and very interesting read-up on how it works check out this link: http://www.fujitsu-ten.com/business/technicaljournal/pdf/2-7E.pdf

It was made in Japan by Fujitsu Ten for Toyota Motor Corporation back in the early 90's as an optional extra for a small selection of Toyotas and likely would have been a fairly expensive add-on. It simply plugs into the existing wiper connector for the combination switch and 'watches' for rainfall, while still allowing you full control over the wiper speed using the stalk if you prefer.

I very rarely drive my Corolla in the rain, so I'm still deciding whether I'll install this or sell it to someone who will get more use out of it, but either way it's a really cool thing to have found and another thing to cross off my 'optional extra bucket list' . The photos showing the sensor on the hood are how it's intended to be installed by Toyota, but if I was to install it on my Corolla I'd mount it on the cowling as seen in the other photos, as I feel it'd look a lot cleaner that way.

Yeah I have thought about painting it black, and you're definitely right about regretting it if I sell it. Hmm, decisions decisions.....Thanks Chris, food for thought for sure

Yep, it works 100% automatically and independently of the wiper switch. So without the switch turned on it will take full control. I already have variable intermittent speed built-in to the wiper stalk from factory, but with this sensor I won't have to constantly change the speed/interval based on the rainfall

I think it would override the rain sensor if you had the wiper stalk clicked on to any setting, whether it be intermittent or constant. It's a bit like the conlight, it won't turn your headlights off if you have the headlight stalk clicked on

Here's something else a little bit different, and as usual, very rare - These are optional AE101 ultrasonic sonar parking sensors, available as an optional extra for the AE101 Corolla SE-G in Japan back in the 90's. I've had these sitting in a box for over a year, complete with the computer module, matching display/clock and all of the clips/wiring. I personally don't like the look of them being fitted to the corners of the front/rear bumper as intended by Toyota, but in future I hope to discretely mount them underneath the bumpers instead. This is only the second set I've ever seen outside of the factory JDM sales brochure and I haven't had the heart to sell them due to how rare they are, but one of these days I'll put them to good use

Because I figured that they'd be better to document online rather than just sit in a cardboard box being forgotten. So even though they aren't being used, it's useful information to enthusiasts who may come across a set themselves and wonder if they're factory or not. As they say, knowledge is power . Also, it's a good incentive for me to hurry up and consider installing them. I guess when it comes to things this rare and items that aren't plug-and-play I hesitate to install them due to worrying about blowing them up with incorrect wiring etc. It's easier to tell myself that one day I'll end up installing them rather than forever live with the fact that I short circuited something that I'll likely never find again. In all honesty, when it comes to parts like this the thrill is in the hunt. While it's a great feeling to actually install the options, it's also just as satisfying to merely possess them . The standard digital clock and this one are the only two clock types I've ever seen. I never even knew it existed until I found the parking sensors, so it was lucky I spotted there was a difference or I may have accidentally left it at the junkyard.

That's the plan . Would have to be careful when exiting driveways for the ones under the rear lip though or I'd knock them off in no time, lol. For the fronts I'd mount them inside the bumper grille. They're very inconspicuous in their greenish/grey color already so I likely wouldn't paint them

Here's some latest photos. The first two were taken today (about 4-hours ago) and the last one is a cellphone shot from last Sunday

Here's one more shot from yesterday that made the cut:

My latest addition is this Blitz Access ECU. This is a standard 4A-GE 20v Blacktop ECU that has been 'chipped' but Blitz in Japan, and offers more aggressive fuel mapping, a rev limit of 8,500rpm, no speed cut etc. Straight after installing it I could feel that the midrange power was noticeably stronger, allowing the car to get into it's power-band sooner and pull consistently until redline. The performance is similar to the 6-speed ECU I was running previously, but this one has a noticeable 'kick' to it when you put your foot down. I have to give the ECU some time to adjust to my mods and driving style, but so far the upgrade seems to have been worth it

Nice addition! If you can, you should do a vid showing the difference in ECUs.

Holy shit. Your car is on point man I recently picked up a 1999 Chevy Prizm aka Toyota Corolla just as a daily but after a 1.5yrs of having it I decided to start doing some little things to it since its been such a good reliable car to me. Again your car looks great hope to see more pics

I'd make a video as a comparison but it's really something you can only feel by driving it to be honest. There's a big difference in VVT activation and it pulls harder to redline, but probably not something that a video would really be able to show properly unfortunately.

Thanks man! . Sounds like you'll have fun with the Prizm. I'd be keen to see pics of your progress


Happy New Year to all!
First photoshoot of 2015: