Learn Me: ST205 Celica GT Four

I have now seen TWO of these in my area and I talked to a JDM importer i've used and they go for a very reasonable price. Around the same price as a OK quality MR2 Turbo does.

I've done some reading on the ST185 in the past because I was thinking of buying one but I never really was into that car like I was the final generation. 

My goals with the car would be upgrading to a smallish twin scroll turbo like the EFR 6258 and use Link G4 to handle engine management, including boost control. From what I understand this car is massively overbuilt aside the turbo being ceramic wheel. Brakes, intercooler, injectors, etc can all handle a lot so don't need an upgrade. I want to see how they handle before I decide on suspension. I want good lower rpm torque, which was impossible to achieve on the Skyline GTS-T I have, so small turbo + twin scroll is the route I would go. 

Anything I should know about the car? Chinks in my plan? Wondering if anyone knows of a equivalent turbo you can get that can be had externally gated? The only twin scroll manifold made for this engine is externally gated. I get that what the car has is twin scroll as it is, internal gate twin scroll like on an EVO, and i'll need to weld a flange on. I just had a lot of boost control issues on the Skyline and would like to go external gate this time. 

Thanks for any help

You got a lot of it right so far. The brakes share a pad with the Supra Turbo so they are quite adequate. Rotors themselves are painfully expensive and don't cross with anything else. The front suspension is Toyota Super Strut, a sort of pseudo dual arm/Mac strut workaround. When bushings start to go, which assuredly they have at this point, it does weird things. If you go to an aftermarket coilover, usually you have to convert to the normal non GT4 mac strut setup, although there are some SS specific coils out there.  WRC edition adds some cool stuff, but nothing terribly essential, it was mostly stuff to homologate. Like the anti lag fittings, water injection bungs, which aren't functional as delivered. 

I'm really looking at importing one in the next year or so as a fun dailyish thing. Mild bolt ons. I have a 91 JDM swapped MR2 also. And an 00 Celica GTS, so this fits in nicely. 

Sounds like I should if I get this car buy some  bushings "kit" like this. I basically was expecting to do that anyways. Probably will try to stay with how the suspension is if I can. 

https://www.tegiwaimports.com/polybush-toyota-celica-st205-gt4-full-kit.html

I heard about the rotors being expensive. Looks like they are over twice the price as my Skyline's brake rotors. Also looks like the brands I like make proper coilovers. 

Is there any site with info on what the WRC edition came with?

You've got my attention.  I've always like this gen celica, hadn't even thought about importing a cool one.  What's "good MR2" pricing these days? I'm thinking under 10k delivered? 

These were JDM & Aussie only right?  None delivered to left hand drive markets?

I've had this idea kicking around in the back of my head for a lot of years now - buying a front and rear half cut, a local trailer park special Celica, and making my own "USDM" ST205 .

In reply to TGMF :

Less than $10k delivered, exactly. 

bigdaddylee82 said:

These were JDM & Aussie only right?  None delivered to left hand drive markets?

 

I've had this idea kicking around in the back of my head for a lot of years now - buying a front and rear half cut, a local trailer park special Celica, and making my own "USDM" ST205 .

They had LHD versions and they had steel wheel turbos as well that can make more power than the JDM version. It's just easier to import cars from Japan and there are a lot more of the Japanese version. On top of all of that there are a lot of mint cars over there without rust. 

I have the ST215 motor in my RAV4.  The ST205 3SGTE has the air to water intercooler.  Yeah, how much to get it to your door?  I'd like a Caldina, but I think I have 4 more years to wait on that.

I've heard these have terrible headroom, is there any truth to that? 

I'm very interested in bringing one over, but I'm a large dude at 6'5". Will I fit?

In reply to BTD :

I was looking to do an NA 3SGE build using a USDM car before I got my E28 - I'm 6'2" and in sunroof cars my head was literally touching the ceiling. I couldn't find a non-sunroof car to try but even with a Recaro mounted to the floor there was pretty much no way I would clear a helmet, my gut tells me you probably won't fit.

Regarding the ST205 GT-Four, when I was looking into them the two things I kept reading from the UK/Aussie guys is that they absolutely suck to work on and almost everyone eliminates the Super Strut front suspension as soon as parts started to fail. People seem to really like them across the pond otherwise.

BTD said:

I've heard these have terrible headroom, is there any truth to that? 

 

I'm very interested in bringing one over, but I'm a large dude at 6'5". Will I fit?

I rode in a 5th-gen Celica a few years back and the headroom was laughably bad. I'm 6'3" and with a helmet on, my head was wedged against the headliner at a 45 degree angle.

Be prepared for non existent awd components.