1972 Toyota Corolla TE27
AKA "Mango"
Diary
Renovation Pictures
More recent updates have moved here
The first time I recall seeing one of these cars modified I decided I was going to own of these cars. The Mango I purchased has been passed around more than a cheap whore on prom night. Everyone has added a few mods and removed a few when they sell it.
Day one: Tuesday March 25th 2003
I was anxiously waiting the arrival for over a week but due to one of the worst Colorado blizzards the week prior the shipping company had to wait for the roads along the state line to open back up. The car was delivered around 5:00PM. I quickly gave the car a once over to make sure all was as well as it had been when I saw the car a few months prior. HMM I can't remember, OH well off to the car wash I went to remove the thousands of miles of road grime before the car rusted out and withered away.
after a semi-complete once over I noticed allot of small things that needed to be fixed the priority was the starter power feed shorting out on the header and a few wires getting caught up in the fan.
March 26: After several hours of contemplating what I should do with the rats nest of wiring that has almost once led to a fire I decided it was time to do a quick clean-up job of the wiring including new positive 4 gauge wire from battery to starter, 8 gauge ground to motor and from battery to chassis ground. while I was also attempting to get the battery to sit in the tray properly I noticed the battery tray was only half bolted in. So another trip to the local auto-parts store and $7.00 for a battery tie down bracket and battery terminal covers Now the battery area will officially pass SCCA Tech inspection, even though I am not happy at all with the wiring
March 28: after a quick spin to the local 7Eleven to get my refill of Mtn Dew I decided to push the cars limits a bit on a few corners. That was a hellacious experience, I almost spun out! the U bolts for the rear diff needed to be tightened. I quickly did so and took it for another spin. this time on a nice open road to get a better feeling for the car. Once again the car wanted to drive it's own way and I noticed a hellacious vibration above 50MPH from the ass end that would not go away at any speeds. Further diagnosis leads to uneven caster adjustment up front and a bent axle in the rear, UUUUURRRRRGGGGHHHHHH :( Toyota still stocks the rear axles at a tune of $275.00 a piece and there are none to be found locally used. I suppose I will just be patient and hope to find one soon. While doing some night driving The high/low headlight switch would flash oncoming drivers when I hit a bump. also the same night I started the car and then proceeded to turn on the headlights and then rev the motor enough to start off in first gear and both of the headlights blow out. no blown fuses and two bad headlight bulbs. Diagnosis faulty Voltage regulator. I luckily know where their is a TE72 with a internally regulated alternator at the local junkyard. Cost $15.00 with the plug/wires.
March 29: Went and pulled alternator from TE72, went to local Toyota dealership and made copies of the charging circuit for the 72. also went to hell and back to find TE27 electrical wiring book. I made a couple of phone calls and found out the Toyota books are no longer available. I just might know where one might be. 75 miles one way just to look through a booty of old Toyota repair manuals......I found one I consider myself lucky. cost of 12 old school service repair manuals $10.00 and 5 gallons of gas roundtrip in the AE92, peace of mind knowing I will have all the info I need to do the install properly: PRICELESS :)
April 6: It appears the ignition switch contacts are non existent for the starter feed wire. previous owner(s) rewired starter wire from a constantly powered source through a trunk release button and then through a cleverly disguised bypass switch AKA auxiliary cigarette lighter. removed all sign of prior wiring and added low current switch with relay, no more intermittent starting issues! stage two of the daily wiring consisted of rewiring the Fuel Pump circuit. Removed 16 gauge wire coming from un-fused ignition switch and replaced it with a fused and loomed 10 gauge wire. I also added in a low current switch powering a relay to turn the fuel pump off when the ignition is on but the car is not running, also added rollover cut-off switch removed from a Ford just to be safe. I don't want the sweet TE27 Image to be turned into the harsh images of the pinto's explosion on impact or roll!
April 20: I have finally mustered up enough ambition to install the "new" TE72 internally regulated alternator. it all went pretty smooth after rewiring some more of the battery wiring and removing the regulator and all the wires associated with it. install time was 2 hours including rewiring. if you are not as much as a freak about wiring as I am, look to do this swap in under a hour. While I was at the battery again, I upgraded the power wire for the Jacobs Ignition. removed 14 gauge wire and installed 10guage fused and loomed going directly to the battery. I also added a relay to make the power feed a "switched" source. I also updated, fused wiring for the horn circuit directly from the battery. Is anyone starting to see a trend here? FIRE FIRE FIRE HAZARD!!!!
April 21: Car would not start due to Fouled out plugs. Damn I forgot I have to get the carbs rejetted so I can pass emissions:( front suspension issues have turned out to be a sloppy steering box and a poor alignment and suspension. I am looking to add some shorter stroke shocks since the suspension travel absolutely sucks up front and is hindered in back but their is nothing I can do with the rear unless I lift the car back up to normal ride height(+2 inches). I am still doing some research but it appears I can add the TRD AE92 short-stroke shocks and modify the current housings to fit with no big hassles. the rear will most likely consist of the AE86 TRD adjustables also.
April 27: Finally had some time to bleed the brakes and look over the suspension once again. the rear leaf springs are a bit rusted and the front ground controls need to be installed a bit better. come to find out the shocks are adjustable. the tire wear on the right front is pretty bad. I have found a TE21 to get some parts from thankfully at a local junkyard. all I need is money $$$
MAY 3: fixed high/low headlight beam problem. turns out the stalk for the turnsignal and high/low beam has been modified already. replaced the pin the stalk pivots on and readjusted/cleaned the contacts for the high/low beam all works fine! front end sloppy when driving is getting worse time to tear down the front end and see how bad the problem really is
JULY 26: finally got a chance o get under the car and replace the outer Tie Rod ends and balljoints. this did only help a bit with my steering issues. it appears I have go completely go through and replace the inner TieRod ends, Idler Arm and Pitman arm. Tuned the Carbs in a little bit better but the car runs so damn rich at idle that their is no way it will even come close to passing emissions so I will keep a eye out for a EFI setup and maybe some TWM's. if all else fails I will be dropping in a Modern engine with more reliable/streetable power! Suspension is still up in limbo not sure if I want to buy some TRD shocks or go with a custom Koni, whatever setup I choose I will be short stroking the front considerably due to the current setup bottoming out.
September 21: OK it's been a while since I have posted up but I have lots of progress to report. the front end issue is fixed! after replacing all of the crapped out inner/outer tie rod ends ball joints and just about all the steering components . I had just about written of this car as a street only car. I noticed I had some sloppy control arm bushing syndrome. Called up Josh at http://www.185performance.com and ordered up new bush! once I had the time to get out to the garage and get to work I thought it was going to be a pain. once I removed the control arm the bushings fell out they were so trashed! once the new bush went in all is well(so far). I am scrapping the Carbs and going ITB's and EFI. and 2TG. I have the 42MM TWM's and All the stuff except for the EFI which I will have soon. Pictures will come soon!!
December 26: Waiting for Autronic SM2 stand alone hopefully the week of new years I will get started. ordered and installed brake master cylinder that fixed most of the stopping issues. adjusted rear brake shoes now the cars pulls to the left, will have to fix that! I replaced all oil. that was depressing, the rear end oil was nothing much other than metal shavings! Adjusted Valves of 3TC and engine now idles better! the other big purchase was Sylvania X6024 HID. Damn, things are finally starting to come along!!
Found one of the past owners of the car on Club4ag and had received the low down of the car while he owned it. lots of information was given to me. and now I have set my mind a bit more at ease!
December 30: Participated in free Test & Tune Day at the local Road Course. Mango was doing great with the few exception of bolts and brackets that hold Alternator falling off and the Jets inside the Mikuni's not staying seated properly. the last run after dusk was not a good one! the 3TC developed a really bad knock and barely made it home, now the TE sits in the driveway waiting for the next motor! I am not sure what I will do. I can rebuild 3TC bottom end or buy a 2TG, we will see. I will have all the EFI stuff next week and I am over budget so we will see!!!
January 3 2004: Started Tearing down the engine compartment getting ready for 2TG and EFI install. removed intake manifold and noticed carbs were sucking gaskets in through intake runners. most likely the demise of the 3TC! I may just take my time and paint the engine bay while I have most everything out, depending on budget!!
January 9: Decided I need to paint and remove rust in engine bay! another hour spent on removing componets in the engine bay. all that is left is fender bumper, valance steering rack, suspension and front crossmember. I should be able to get all of that removed on the 10th so I can get started on removing paint and rust! I will be using POR-15 for the bascoat and PPG Acrilic Top coat. Their appears to be more nooks and crannies in the engine bay than I anticipated so this will be a fun one!!
January 10: What a pain in the ass it is removing the steering rack. well it would not have been that hard but the drivers seat needed to be removed and that was a total pain in the ass due to the lack of room and Ghetto install that was done! as of now the front is really bare! nothing but metal chassis, no crossmember nothing on the firewall but the engine bay harness. the looks pretty bleak! The rust overall is not to bad except for the frame rail below the battery. I have to get in with the wire wheel on the die grinder and see how bad it really is but no holes and the tinny sound is still there so it may not be as bad as I imagine. so far the repaint budget is around $400.00 including strippers, solvents, paints, primers and sand paper. I have yet to buy a GOOD spray gun but will do so in the next week or so.
A casual reminder if you ever want to restore you cars paint be sure to get a good respirator. the one I had was old and needed the cartridges replaced, what a mistake that was to bust out the Airplane stripper and go to town on the metal! Spend the $20.00 and get a disposable one for painting chemicals and use it fast if not buy a couple and be certain you will not be ill for days!! I am so over budget on this car I hope this all turns out for the better!!
More to come!!