So, I got my first Corolla...

[Sine Deviance]

...and actually my first Toyota, too. The best part is that it was free! Here's the 'Rolla in question:





You can see my Jeep Wrangler sitting beside it in the second picture I'll have more pictures of the Wagon later on.

It's a '94 DX Wagon with the 1.8L 7A-FE and automatic. It has 161,000 miles. I put new battery terminals and a new battery in her today, nothing else so far. She cranks right up and seems to run and drive great.

My plan is to replace the dented body panels and grille, and the driver's side headlamp assembly. Then I'll need to pull out the frame in the front. It got pushed back an inch or two on the driver's side and pushed the radiator back with it, the radiator doesn't seem to be causing any problems where it's at though. And then I'll get some new hubcaps and tires. And I'll clean it up. Then I'll drive it and park my Jeep except for recreation. Gas is just too expensive and older Jeeps need tons of maintenance.

I know next to nothing about Corollas... besides the body and radiator are there any other common problems with these cars that I should look for? I do not have the service history of this car. I guess I should probably plan to replace the timing belt and do a valve clearance adjustment, and a tune-up, but is there any other major stuff I should be planning for?

Thanks!

[Rip The E Brake]

I got news for you... be prepared to replace that rad support. Even a low speed impact can do quite a bit of damage on these cars

[Sine Deviance]

Originally Posted by Rip The E Brake

I got news for you... be prepared to replace that rad support. Even a low speed impact can do quite a bit of damage on these cars

Thanks for the tip, I'll plan for it.

Do you know a good place that I can order the support from? I'm sourcing the other replacement parts from Rock Auto but they don't seem to carry the radiator support.

EDIT: Scratch that, found it on Rock Auto. I just wasn't looking in the right section. I have to say that I already love this car; a brand new radiator support is only $37. Just incredible.

[Rip The E Brake]

You'll need to junk it. I paid about $110 shipped for mine. It requires cutting and welding... but if you can just remove the rad and pull it out with a tow strap and a truck, go for it, then just replace the bumper cover...

but replacing the rad support... really isn't an easy job...

[Sine Deviance]

Originally Posted by Rip The E Brake

You'll need to junk it. I paid about $110 shipped for mine. It requires cutting and welding... but if you can just remove the rad and pull it out with a tow strap and a truck, go for it, then just replace the bumper cover...

but replacing the rad support... really isn't an easy job...

I found a brand new radiator support at Rock Auto for $37. No junkyard scrounging required

Still, I'll probably try to pull it out with a come-a-long or my Jeep. I don't want to have to get into welding on this thing. As long as I can get it straight enough I'll be happy with it.

[modernage]

Sweet wagon man. I got a wagon too. Best part about these cars is that replacement parts are cheap and it's pretty reliable so you don't have to worry much.

[Sine Deviance]

Originally Posted by modernage

Sweet wagon man.

Thanks. Tax returns are supposed to come in next week, after that the work will begin I'm gonna try to get it roadworthy by mid-March. Hopefully it'll be nice in a month or two. The only drawback to this car for me is that it's an automatic. I absolutely despise automatics. A manual trans swap is quite possibly in my future.

Originally Posted by modernage

I got a wagon too. Best part about these cars is that replacement parts are cheap and it's pretty reliable so you don't have to worry much.

No doubt, man. I can get a new driver's side fender, door, and the front bumper cover and grille for about $110 total. I am already starting to like this whole Corolla thing and I've only had the damn car for one day

For comparison, a fender for my Wrangler runs at least $125 and a new half-steel door runs around $350 WITHOUT the upper soft door section, which is another $125 or so. And that's not even mentioning the normal maintenance that my Wrangler requires, and even THAT isn't counting the maintenance my mods require. The difference in price for OEM-compatible aftermarket parts is just incredible.

[modernage]

I didn't know it was THAT cheap. Hopefully it's not too cheap where the body parts won't align together. Are you gonna paint it too or just leave it like that? I'm saving to paint my car which is a good thing cause it'll give me a lot of time to decide what color I want to paint it.

[Kiwi-Corolla]

Congratulations. Looks like it's got a few dents in places, but that's to be expected from a 16-year old car, not to mention one that was free . I'm sure it'll be looking mint in no time. I quite like the color, would come up great with a good polish. Keep us updated on your progress .

[vmax84]

Hey, that looks really good!! I pop the distributor off mine on occassion and clean up the rotor and the 4 "contact" points on the cap........seems on mine anyway the carbon builds up pretty quick.

Walmart has hubcaps..................you get 4 for like 16 bucks. I picked up a set for the Corolla I'll be giving my daughter next month for her 16th birthday.

Way to go!

vmax84

[Rip The E Brake]

Originally Posted by vmax84

Hey, that looks really good!! I pop the distributor off mine on occassion and clean up the rotor and the 4 "contact" points on the cap........seems on mine anyway the carbon builds up pretty quick.

Walmart has hubcaps..................you get 4 for like 16 bucks. I picked up a set for the Corolla I'll be giving my daughter next month for her 16th birthday.

Way to go!

vmax84

Agreed on hubcaps. I wouldn't suggest them if your wheels weren't rusted since I like the look of the black wheels.

[Sine Deviance]

Originally Posted by modernage

I didn't know it was THAT cheap. Hopefully it's not too cheap where the body parts won't align together.

Heh, with my luck they probably wouldn't align correctly

Originally Posted by modernage

Are you gonna paint it too or just leave it like that? I'm saving to paint my car which is a good thing cause it'll give me a lot of time to decide what color I want to paint it.

I'd definitely paint it. The only thing is, I'd use the unconventional Rustoleum roller brush method. That way I can paint the entire car for about $100. The method is tested and proven by quite a few guys so far, and very easy to do. Here's a few examples, check it out:

http://www.rickwrench.com/50dollarpaint.html
http://www.instructables.com/id/Pain...ith-Rustoleum/

Pretty amazing that a roller brush can do that, huh? And you can use any color you want. The downside is that there are no metallics or otherwise specialty colors. There's a website that is dedicated to this paint method but I can't seem to locate it. I'll post back if I do.

Originally Posted by Kiwi-Corolla

Congratulations. Looks like it's got a few dents in places, but that's to be expected from a 16-year old car, not to mention one that was free . I'm sure it'll be looking mint in no time. I quite like the color, would come up great with a good polish. Keep us updated on your progress .

Thanks, and I will

Originally Posted by vmax84

Hey, that looks really good!! I pop the distributor off mine on occassion and clean up the rotor and the 4 "contact" points on the cap........seems on mine anyway the carbon builds up pretty quick.

Alright, I'm gonna do a tune-up on the car already but I'll keep an eye on the points.

Originally Posted by vmax84

Walmart has hubcaps..................you get 4 for like 16 bucks. I picked up a set for the Corolla I'll be giving my daughter next month for her 16th birthday.

Way to go!

vmax84

Originally Posted by Rip The E Brake

Agreed on hubcaps. I wouldn't suggest them if your wheels weren't rusted since I like the look of the black wheels.

Yeah, I was considering taking off the remaining hubcaps and painting the wheels gloss black with a rattle can, but now I think I might just get a set of hubcaps to save me the trouble

[PhatRoyale]

No need to get a new front bumper. Just remove it, heat up the inside of the dent with a heat gun until it softens and hammer that sucker back out with a rubber mallet.

Saves money on getting a new one painted.

[Sine Deviance]

Originally Posted by PhatRoyale

No need to get a new front bumper. Just remove it, heat up the inside of the dent with a heat gun until it softens and hammer that sucker back out with a rubber mallet.

Saves money on getting a new one painted.

Ahh, right. Plastic. Not used to that.