Enable me: 1967 Toyota Corona

http://stgeorge.craigslist.org/cto/4507361050.html

So I've been watching this on my local craigslist for the last couple weeks and think I might go take a look at it and make a lowball offer. What am I getting myself into?

I cannot find much info on these cars online. Ebay doesn't list very many used parts, but rockauto seems to have a decent list of parts available.

From what I gather it should have a 3R engine, is this related to the venerable 22R? Possible swap? It seems like mechanicals shouldnt be too much of a problem, but trim parts, etc might be unobtainable.

Cars around here don't rust very badly (southern utah = arid desert) and the car's been stored indoors since 1992.

Thanks for the advice!

They're cool looking. I had a friend with one years ago. Even in the 80s they were pretty dull, but I always felt there was something there that might really be cool with a little work. Were well made at the time, I think.

The 3R is the third iteration of Toyota's R architecture, and the 22R is the twenty-second redesign, and about twenty years separate them. Possible swap? Sure, but it might not be as easy of a bolt-together affair as an older example of the R family. The 8R went to a five main bearing crank and overhead cam and has been swapped into earlier Toyotas before. The 8R is found in early 70's Coronas and pickups, but may not be a big improvement in terms of parts availabilty compared to 3R. 18R, 20R, and early 22R share a fair amount of swappability with each other. By the late 80's and 90s 22Rs are all EFI and have a bunch of redesigned parts that can make backdating harder. The later the R-series, the more it becomes a case of either a longblock to bolt aftermarket parts onto, or a buy a later frontcut/vehicle and stuff everything mechanical, electrical, plumbing into the Corona with modifications as needed.

In short, if you do it, the Toyota parts bin should provide everything from a slightly stronger, better-revving engine all the way up to a restomod comprehensive drivetrain swap.

Were it mine, I would only dive into a swap if I wanted a potentially big project and found stumbling blocks that made the 3R impractical. My advice would be to get it running, catch up on maintenance, and then evaluate.

What - you couldn't find an Isuzu Bellet or a Hino Contessa?

Uninspired commuter car, but no sporting blood there. Better off with an early Corolla with the 1600 engine.