A Tale of Two Toyotas: 1986 Corolla GTS (stance) and 1998 Land Cruiser (anti-stance)

[coconutt]

Taking a shit break here coming across this thread. You write a lot so I'm willing to read it later since you have a hachi roku as well. (I haz coupe)

And old Tapatalk only works on my phone, which your pics aren't popping up so it sucks lol.

[mikethevilla]

In case anyone wanted to see more Land Cruiser, I'll just leave this here:

A Day on the Ridge from Ben Massey on Vimeo.

Yes to all of this.

And now you have me searching craigslist for suitable adventuremobiles,

[fotors3]

As someone who loves Toyotas and photography, this thread delivers! Love the GTS, Land Cruiser, and the photography! Sub'd!

[lamsv]

Those wheels look so, SO good on that chassis. They are period correct, and perfectly compliment the chassis. Love.

By the way, great choice of bike! I had a 2004 VFR. I've owned many bikes. No bike is as swell rounded as a VFR. And that V4. I never, EVER got sick of firing up my bike in the garage. That sound dough!

[Evan_Holtz]

Such a good build! Must be nice to have a 5d mkiii, I'm over here with my 5d classic still no video :'( LOL looking forward to more on both the 86 and yota!

[NeezeBeeze]

Remind me of tarantino, not only from looks.

Hello car friends,
GPOY


Ben

[P78]

cool vid!

[btns44]

Awesome.. It is people like you who make the forum so enjoyable!

[GLi16v]

I realize it's been a few months, but any updates?

[CBREEZ]

Looks awesome!! I love that chassis

[oprahhwinfreyy]

I want your life.

[benmassey]

Hello again all.

Sorry I haven’t been the most active lately. School has been really kicking my ass both in the $$$ department and the time department. And with the free time that I have had, I’ve pretty much spent it using my cars in one way or another.

SO. Let’s get caught up.


My last post was in July, after I had polished my wheels, and did some of that OFF_ROADIN.


Since then, I have:


Picked up a Kouki JDM Rear bumper:

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Took a spontaneous trip to the town in which I was conceived/born: Telluride, CO.


Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Happened that there was a 100 Series Land Cruiser event there going on called 100’s In the Hills. So I camped with them for the weekend and then took a ton of photos.


100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr
Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



This thing was fucking AWESOME

100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Spooky pics of some ‘bandos


100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr
100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr
100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr




This was just 1/3 of the overall group. It was such an awesome time.

100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Those little specks on the line on the mountain are 8000lb Land Cruisers

100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr


Went down Black Bear


100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr
100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr
100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr


Saw some horses:

100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Humblebrag: I swam in that lake, at like 9300’ when it was 53* out and the water was 34*


100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr
100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Made some friends:

100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr
100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Lexus coming back from soccer practice:

100s in the hills by Ben Massey, on Flickr



And there ya have it. This was in August. And it totally reset me before school started up. Little did I know that school would be absolutely awful that semester.

I was having what one could describe as a quarter-life-crisis. I was seriously about to sell everything I owned, drop out of school, and move to Colorado and just live in a little hut. I wasn’t agreeing with my professors or the administration of the school which I go to and felt like for what I was(nt) learning, it wasn’t worth it.

After a couple weeks of soul searching I decided that I almost have my degree, and even if it may suck, I might as well just stick through it and try to make the best of it. That meant that I kinda took a break from things that took up a lot of time/energy/money (eg. Cars & photography) and focused on using the saved money to go on trips, do freelance work that I enjoy, and just generally try and take a break from the hyperactive always-on life that I usually live.

That ended up being an awesome decision, and I’m happy to say that it rewarded me with more patience, more appreciation, and more gratefulness for what I have and where I am in life. If you’re reading this text part right now, I want you to stop, find something in your house or outside that you appreciate (eg. Plants, wife, car, fresh air entering your lungs) and just take 60 seconds to stop, give it all your attention, and then ask yourself why it makes you happy and that you are grateful that you have it in your life.

Come back next post for more self-help tips!!!!!!!


But seriously, just doing that every day really helped me through some of the worst anxiety, depression, and self-doubt I’ve had in my entire life. I was doubting every decision I had made up until that point and was wondering ‘How the hell did I get here?’. But it got better with time. And if you're going through something similar just remember life is too short to not be doing what you love to do.

So once I got out of my head a little bit, I started to do things that I really enjoyed more often. One of those things is just the overall subject “cars”. So if you’re frustrated that you came here for an update to the build(s) and instead are getting self-help tips instead then here you go:

I ordered some parts from JAPAN!

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr
Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr


TRD .5mm Head Gasket

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr
Toda Up-rated Valve Springs
Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr

Wheel Spacers on

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr


New AC Drier

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr

New Master Key!
Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr
Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Fedora M’Lady? I have just the car for you, m’lady. It’s a Fairlady Z, I found it for you! He he ho ho, A Fairlady for one Fair Lady.

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr


Old Fan clutch was garbage so got a new one.

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr
Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr

Now my AC actually works! Which, if you know these cars, is like resurrecting the dead. It’s almost impossible.


Got a new Dizzy and installed it because my last one was leaking like a sieve.

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Went back home to Oregon for the weekend and Muffin drove a boat


Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr




When I got home I went with my GF to go get some new tires for her car. I’m not even going to try and explain.

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr




Went to my homie Sean’s shop. (Vietnamese dude in the back) and he double checked all the work on my AC and then topped it off with Freon. He's the only shop I've found that does honest A/C work.

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr




Did some maintenance like tightening the passenger seatbelt spring

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr






I know guys, this is just riveting content. But bear with me…




I washed the car for some reason

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr
Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Then I caught a lizard, named it Ed.

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



And got some more Japanese parts! This one I was super stoked on.


Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr


JDM Thin Rubber steering wheel! This one is so much better than the three spoke leather version that just fades and falls apart.


Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr


Oh my god it looks so good

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Then it was my Birthday and my GF got me the most awesome present ever. She hit up CarGuyCam on IG, and had him illustrate this…

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr


And every other one of my favorite cars that I’ve owned!!

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr

I was blown away. One of the best gifts I have ever gotten hands down. She knows me too well :’)



Took a break to go to the desert

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Stayed in this super kickass Mid-Century hotel designed by John Lautner


Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr





When I got home it was time to do some work so I bought a ported/polished/rebuilt head off of a guy on CL and installed my new valve springs. The plan was to do a smaller HG, slightly bigger cams, better intake flow, and adjustable cam gears for a 20 or so bump in HP while rebuilding the head. After I spent hours shimming the cams, swapping the valve springs, and figuring out how to make at least some power without disassembling the whole engine and upgrading everything to the tune of ~$5000.


By now it was around Christmas time so my parents said: Come to Hawaii. So I did.
But not before trying on another fedora, M’lady.

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



While I was In Hawaii I jumped off some rocks:

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr




Played some golf with the GF, Grandpa, and Kevin Nealon (seriously, he just joined us as we were about to tee off. He appeared, then vanished without a trace after 9 holes, probably because my grandpa accidentally hit his ball on the 9th hole)



Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr


Found another Lizard, Ed 2.

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr




Then, while I was hanging out with Ed 2, listening to the majestic beauty of the ocean while obsessively searching “ae86” on the LA craigslist over and over again, something magical happened.

I ran across an ad for a 7AGE engine that had already been built. In case anyone doesn’t know (most of you probably don’t, but that’s okay!) A 7age is a Frankenstein-Hybrid engine that is a combination of the grandma celica and corolla 1.8l 7afe, and the high revving 1.6l 4age. You take the bottom end of the 7AFE, slap on its rods to the 4age high-comp (11:1) pistons, add the 4age Head and boom. You now have an engine that has 0.2l more displacement and still retains some of the high-revving qualities of the 4age (if built right).

Almost everyone in the N2 class racing 86’s in Japan runs a 7age, they provide more displacement, more low-end torque, and better midrange power, while still being able to rev to 9-10k RPM if built fully. (a fully built 4age will still be able to rev to 11-12k rpm but the 7ag with it’s increased displacement still usually beats it)

Anywho. The price was right and the dude said he would take the head that I had built as a partial trade so after I got really bronzed in Hawaii I played some Pokemon to pass the time until I could get home and pick that fucker up.

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Literally the day after I got home I went and got the engine. The specs seem right, and the guy that built it is a respected rally racer and Subaru/Toyota engine builder that knows his stuff. I think I actually might have raced against him at some point during my brief stint in Rally America.



Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr
Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr


Specs on the engine:
11:1 JDM high-comp pistons
Ported and polished head
7afe oil pump with big gears (for that extra FLOW)
Supertech valves
HKS valve springs
Vintage HKS cam gears

And other little things that make it a pretty solid motor. So now we are pretty much up to date. The only work the Land Cruiser has received is an oil change and lower mounts for the rooftop tent. But the 86 is currently about to go under the knife.

Over the last month or so I’ve been picking up maintenance parts for when I drop the 7age in. However I have also been seriously having some love/**** feelings towards it. It’s hard for me to drive it how it deserves to be driven down here, where everything is a grid and the closest twisties are 40min away. I’m yearning for boost or something that will give just a little more straight-line oomph. So I’m hoping the 7ag will do that.


During this soul searching period I took Lucy out with Mike, Josh, and Corey to drive over some boulders

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr
Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr


Bought a drone

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr



Then crashed the drone

Moar stuff by Ben Massey, on Flickr




Now we are fully 100% totally up to date. And I’m asking the S/W community for help. Help get me through this wishy washy shit and make a good decision. That decision is to either sell/trade the 86 for something more polished, or keep it, and turn it into what it deserves to be. I want to continue the badassery but I am having a hard time in the motivation department and I'm sure it shows through this semi half-ass post.

So I come to S/W with an offer: is there anyone down here who would want to help paint my car? I can trade photo/video/drone work (don’t let the crash dissuade you, it wasn’t actually my fault) and offer cash on top. I can afford to buy all the paint and help with prep, but some of the bodywork is out of my league and I don’t want to screw my car up.


My biggest issues with my 86 is that at the end of the day it still has 90whp in its current form. And the paint and bodywork just really needs to be done. It’s so ugly. I just can’t afford a 4-5k paint job. But I really, really, really don’t want to sell it. I love it so much. But it is just getting to the point where the last issues that I really need to address are so expensive. However, if the paint is there, and it just has like 50% more power then I will be satisfied.



If I can paint it, then I will throw the 7age in. If not, then I’m getting to the point where I’ve reached my limit. The 7age would just devalue it if I were to try to sell it in its current form so I would be better off selling both separately. What do you all think? My heart says to stick with it but at the same time I’m itching for MOAR POWAH. I also really want to keep this thread alive, as I’m sure you all do too. And It wouldn’t be the same if I had a Land Cruiser and a Z32 300zx now, would it?


Ben out.

[drift55]

Build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86 build the AE86

[Bronzit]

Dang, I didn't know you stayed in the Lautner. Too cool.

[rice4life]

anxiety, depression, and self-doubt

Sounds like my whole life.



You look mighty euphoric in those fedoras. I would definitely help you paint the car when I get my shit together. Might be a few months as I'm traveling across country and getting an old crappy new to me car soon.


I would seriously consider maaco. Do the prep work yourself and look around for the best maaco possible. Don't go for clear coat as that shit peels when it's cheap, go for a good urethane and polish it when it needs it. Should last for over 5 years when done well.


Look through this.

http://zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=347027

I've seen Touge Monster's red s13 in person, and after he did a bit of polishing the paint looked top notch.

I don't see how a 7age would devalue the car, as the only real way to devalue a gts is to strip out the engine completely or throw in a 4ac. Originality doesn't mean shit to the SoCal 86 community, it's just a bunch of broke dudes with an obsession over an old corolla(something I've heard from the local corolla club). It's not a concourse de elegance car by a long shot so don't sweat it. Hell, maybe the 7age would increase the value of the car because it's not nearly as popular as the 20v swap and you will get some originality points. Maybe you could even go as far as doing a 7agze if power is lacking.