Part fitment onto an 86 rolla sedan

[Dicipleofthelie]

ok, this is sort of an odd question, but does anyone know what parts the 86 rolla sedan shares with anything else?

i know the shifter out of a celica will fit.
Also, the front suspension and front bumper from an FX16 gts will fit.

just curious, will suspension from the AE86 fit onto this car? if they are both corollas i would assume so, along with the brake rotors and calipers

also, would parts from an mr2 from that year fit onto it?


i realize that this isnt exactly the most widely "tuned" of the corollas but its worth a try right?

[92MX83]

Darn it, Disciple, you're the guy I'd hoped would know this kind of stuff!

Just kidding. These '82 suck for mods, don't they?

Back when I had my 1987 and subsequent 1986 Corolla FFs, I had the damndest time trying to find stuff for the cars. I did find out, however, that Toyota played a pretty cruel joke on us, and that was the AE82's suspension was unique to that platform and no other. I had a local speed shop do some pretty exhaustive research and found out that neither the AE86 nor the AE92-up Corollas shared any chassis components with the AE82. We eventually determined that I'd have to find a car with same diameter springs that we could cut to fit, but I wasn't about to do that; instead opting to get a set of "heavy-duty" OE replacement springs from JC Whitney and taking a coil off those. Worked okay, dropped the car a little over an inch, but it didn't really stiffen the ride. What did stiffen the ride were the KYB GR-2s, as well as the ADDCO swaybars (1" front, 3/4" rear) with the urethane bushings. Oh, and the 185/60-14 Yoko AVS-i's also added some stiffness, but had superb steering response! The Dunlop SP8K's which followed were as sticky, but not as responsive.

Oh, if you haven't already, you can convert your front turn signals to clear by using the clear lenses from a later model AE92 sedan; you just have to re-drill the screw-holes slightly more outboard.

Brakes... I had a machine shop cut slots into the stock front rotors. They're solid, and they suck. I used Performance Friction Carbon Metallic pads for a slight improvement, but those tiny rotors heat-soak WAY too fast. I am thinking the brake setup from an AW11 MR2 will fit, but you may have to machine a custom spacer and/or bracket to put the assembly out and away from the suspension. This is pure conjecture, but the Corolla FF shares more in common with the AW11 than an MX83 Cressida shares with a Z32 300ZX, yet the Z's brakes will fit the Cressida with the addition of a simple 12mm machined spacer and nothing else. If you could get the vented rotor setup from the AW11 to work on the car, the braking would be phenomenal, as the AW11 brakes very powerfully, and the AE82 weighs 200 lbs less.

The AW11's spoiler is about an inch or two too wide for the Corolla's rear deck (yes, I measured, when I wasn't thinking rationally). I am thinking the AW11's seats may work as well, which would be a total godsend over these darn AE82 seats in my Nova. I will admit the LE's seats were pretty nice, with their forward-adjustable headrests and seat cushion height adjustment, but they still lacked lateral support.

I believe the AE86 shares side mirrors with the AE82. That's about it.

My Nova's struts are blown. Badly. Those KYBs will feel so good. I just painted my grille black (previously gray) and the grille emblem (a brushed metallic plastic Chevy Bowtie) black with a red outline. Took all afternoon, but it was worth it. I then spent the evening retrofitting newer Nova taillamps (all red instead of the '85's red/yellow units) and had a hell of a time wiring it up (different harness, wouldja believe it?). And I just won an eBay auction for a K&N drop-in replacement filter, not that it'll make a difference.

Looks like you and I are gonna have to be each other's support group for this car. I was starting to think I would have to pioneer everything.

Regards,

Craig

[Dicipleofthelie]

hmmm, that clear bumper light thing sounds like an interesting idea, may have to try that.
also, im betting most parts from the FF FX16 GTS will fit, like suspension, brakes, seats, hood, fenders, grill and such, also i have the front strut tower bar from an FX16 gts that will fit, though holes will need to be drilled in the fire wall, right where the chassis and vin info card sits, i dunno about that.

also, along with the hood and grill and things, it may very well be possible to mount the head lights from the FX16 onto our cars, wider head lights, narrower grill, i think it looks much better.

i also got the skinnier side mirrors our of an FX16, fits perfect. the power units from the GTS will fit, but we will need to get the entire wireing harness for the mirrors, and the associated fuses and such, might be cool.

what i need to figure out is the chassis code for the FX16.

and yes, in 88' toyota completely re-did the corolla, and nothing from those cars will fit, without mods.

so yeah, should be interesting.

we will find ways to make this car awsome, but it will take work

[REN69]

92MX83.. I believe pics of your car should be your next big post.

[92MX83]

Oh, one more thing, I installed a center taillight garnish panel from an AE82 Corolla LE Limited. These things are rarer than hen's teeth; I don't know if you've ever seen them on the AE82, but they fulfill the same function as the center garnish from '88-up LEs (aesthetics only). The one for the AE82 is a dark red/maroon semi-reflective color, similar to the '88-up AW11 MR2 taillight panels. It was such an attractive piece, I transferred it to my '86 after I crashed my '87 base model. Then I sold the '86 a few years later, and have regretted it ever since.

FYI, the LE Limited model was differentiated from the garden variety AE82s by virtue of the aforementioned taillight garnish, as well as "Limited" badging, 2-tone paint, and a "mesh"-type grille with a chrome surround. I think there were 2 on the whole island back when I had my '86, and I know one of them was shipped over from the US mainland (had one of those chromed-plastic dealer emblems, which none of our local Toyota dealers use).

Gawd, now I gotta start all over again... with a less-cool car to boot.

[92MX83]

Originally Posted by REN69

92MX83.. I believe pics of your car should be your next big post.

Sadly, I have no pics of my old AE82s. I spent days wet-sanding and polishing the paint on those cars, and I didn't even take any bloody pics!

Aside from the cool grille ("Beware the Red Bowtie"), there's nothing yet photo-worthy about the Nova. Yet. For now, it's just a plain 'ol silver Nova with a few dents and dings. I haven't even installed the clear turn-signals yet.

However...

I have a set of 4"x6" quad headlamps I just won on eBay. They're Hellas. One of the pairs (high beams) are pretty ordinary, but should throw a LOT more useable light down the road. The other pair are projector units. Even thinking about them gives me wood. Too bad I suck at wiring; I'll have to figure out how to wire these up, as they seem different from my stockies.

[Dicipleofthelie]

hmm, ill have to look into that LE thing, sounds interesting

also, did some digging, and found that the FX16 uses the AE82 chassis, meaning, fun parts for us

[Paulrpjl]

I'm just getting into throwing a little money into my '86 Corolla DX. I've been driving the thing on and off since I was 16, and now I've decieded to throw as many cheap (OEM, FX16) parts on it as possible. One thing not mentioned by anyone else yet is the GTS FX16's gauge cluster. I just picked one up today, which means: as soon as I spice the harness's together and run a wire to the coil, I'll finally have a tach!

[92MX83]

Disciple, are you still around? I finally found pics of my old AE82, just gotta scan them.