Bassett's GT86

[bassett 48]

Hi All,

On Thursday I passed the initiation test and became a GT86 owner so its time to start a project thread. Although I have to tell you now this might become more of a journal of ownership and road trips with a few subtle mods here and there.

The Car

The car was ordered from Steven Eagell Toyota in St Albans following a fairly simply Car Wow purchase after my local dealership couldn't arrange a half decent test drive and wouldn't budge from the list price.

Toyota GT86 2015

• GT86 Spec
• Starlight Blue or Lapis Blue Pearl Metallic (K3X)
• Manual Transmission
• Half Leather/Half Alcantara heated seats
• Spoiler

For me this was one of those bucket list ticking days having always wanted my first brand new car and day one with this car started at 5 delivery miles. It also ticks a few others being my first Japanese and flat four engined car, at least I have an excuse not to get a 911 next! However collection didn’t quite go to plan and it was spoiled by the car arriving unspoilered. Now im not a huge fan of the OEM one but at the same time I had spec’d it on my order and even called the salesman post ordering to confirm so I was more than a bit annoyed when it wasn’t there. Following a few days driving I am almost over the issue and really enjoying the running in period.

Background

The GT86 has been on my radar for a good couple of years since I saw a concept car on Gran Turismo 5 all be it with 300bhp and I was seriously thinking about one last July but the timing wasn’t quite with wedding plans underway. I had a bit of money in the wedding fund but at the same time not sure how much id need for the next car. I was looking at pretty much every performance car made from Clio 172’s to S2000’s and M3’s to 911’s but nothing never came together and the GT86 itch was still there. Fast forward almost a year and the big wedding bills have been paid and I still hadn’t settled on a car. With the rest of the fleet ageing and needing bit more attention I convinced myself a low maintenance, new car that I could take on road trips around Britain and Europe in the coming years was the ideal solution. The GT86 ticked that box and even got the fiancées approval if it got me off my weekly pistonheads classified searches and came with heated seats.

Previous/Current cars

• Ford Fiesta 1.1
• VW Golf 1.8
• VW Golf GTI 2.0 8v
• Seat Leon Cupra R 225
• VW Golf GTI 2.0 8V
• Audi TT mk1 3.2 DSG
• MNR Vortx RT (current fleet)
• Seat Leon Cupra TDI 150 (current fleet)

Road car ownership for me peaked with a 265bhp AMD tuned Seat Leon Cupra R 225. The Leon being an epic all-rounder I wish I hadn’t sold but needs must and it helped get my foot on the property ladder.  It was replaced with my current mk3 Golf GTI which wont refuse to die and isn’t worth replacing. Then there’s my kit car a Marc Norden Racing(MNR) Vortx, basically a stripped out Caterham Seven(yes they are fat ladies in comparison) with a Yamaha R1 engine which I built with my Dad and it’s a proper adrenaline rush to drive, it will never leave the stable and will continue to evolve over the next few years. The GT86 replaces the TT which I thought for a car with the infamous VR6 engine would be incredible and a more unique alternative to the R32 Golf. Looks wise the car was great in Dolomite grey with the V6 deeper and more aggressive bumper grills and larger spoiler it looked fantastic. Inside the bespoke quality was hard to match in its day yet alone today. However when it came to driving it never delivered. The DSG box while great for commuting left me numb when all changing a gear became was click, click, click with no driver engagement, feel or thought. The VR6 engine was damn fast but never felt fast in its delivery with that boat anchor upfront and in the corners it felt wallowly and understeered with its FWD bias. Glad its gone and time for RWD!

 

Planned Modifications

Back to the GT86 and I’m planning a flexible fast road car that also sorts out a few pet hates with the stock car.

• Exterior/Interior - Boot lip Spoiler, Tom’s tail lights and Centre armrest
• Engine – panel filter, full exhaust and a stage 1 remap
• Chassis & Brakes - lowering springs or full suspension kit and fast road pads
• Wheels & Tyres – 17’s probably Rota Titan or Speedline 2120’s
• More Engine - Cosworth Supercharger - if I get bored with the above

Enough of my waffle here are some photos of the 86

Now to get on with the 1,000 mile run in period

Adam

[STEVO9000 54]

Looks great! Welcome to ownership, you won't be disappointed!

Little tip for you regarding the Toms lights as I have these. If you want the red lense version, get them from RHD Japan. They were very similarly priced to Japan Parts, but without asking they marked the goods value down so I didn't get royally stung with import charges. I think with VAT and handling charge it was somewhere around £35.

[bassett 48]

Been having a good few months with the 86 and absolutely love driving the thing now im past the run in period and over the Christmas break I had some time to fit a few small mods to the car.

First up was the 86 steering wheel emblem as from day one I couldn't help but feel this just didn't look right. Nice easy fitment with some sticky tape on the back and just needed to make sure it was on at the right angle and central. Wasn't overly impressed with the quality for the price with little dents all over it so the supplier sent a second one. Air mail took an age but then the second one was even worse. Fitted on the car it looks nice and from a few foot you don't notice the imperfections.

A Cosworth air filter was next on the list which was a doddle to fit even when I took my time to remove the air box and do it properly.

From the side you can see the little tab so that it only goes in one way.

Given im just outside the run in period I cant really tell if its adding much or if the engine is loosening up but it does seem to have a bit more pull at high revs and added noise through the inducted pipe.

Finally was the arm rest which I decided to wait for a weekend when my dad was free to give me a hand and someone else to blame if it all went wrong. The Toyota PDF was a great help especially as it has the template but this job was a right pain in the arse! it was nerve racking stuff when my dad was holding the drill and almost drilled a hole in the alcantara. A few holes needed a touch of filing to line everything up and it came together in the end. Took about 1 hour and a half mainly checking and rechecking then filing with the most useless files in my tool draw.

 It adds a nice touch to add to the interior and it will hopefully get some use on a few driving holidays I have planned this year when stuck on the motorways.

[bassett 48]

Courtesy of Tarmacsportz i picked up a TRD style spoiler and had a quick trial fit before paint. It sat nice and flat so i took it down to a body shop a mate recommended.

The painter commented on the oem quality and finish which was a good sign with the only problem being he couldnt find the paint code on the system as its relatively new colour.

[bassett 48]

The boot spoiler has now been picked up and the finish is very impressive. Compared to the painted spoiler toyota sent me after they forgot to order it with the car the quality is world apart as the toyota one had paint spots and fine scratches in the paint where as the one I've just picked up is like the rest of the body work glossy and without blemishes, the paint match is also excellent on first glance. Pics to follow shortly.

One a less positive note I had to use the free toyota road side assistance (AA) due to a flat battery. I hadn't used the car for at most 2 weeks but there was no life in it at all and upon pressing the start button, it didn't even try to turn over just electrical clicks. The AA guy turned up and bashed his jump starter and cables all over the engine bay and body work and then told me to drive it more which I was miffed at. My other car doesn't grumble at all after being left for a few weeks on end and thats 10 years old on the original battery! I will just have to see if it happens again and rack up a few invoices from the AA before I have a moan at toyota as it sounds like a common problem. 

[Keethos 842]

Did your car come with the newer revision battery or has it got the original specified battery? I'm sure there's a bulletin for people to get the old batteries changed out for the new type because of this issue.

[Gringosteve 213]

How do you tell if you have a new or old battery?

[Deacon 1357]

7 minutes ago, Gringosteve said:

How do you tell if you have a new or old battery?

The 'new' battery is black, old is white.

[Gringosteve 213]

Mine is white with a black top.. Guess it is an old one?

[Deacon 1357]

22 minutes ago, Gringosteve said:

Mine is white with a black top.. Guess it is an old one?

Yes - that's what my old one looked like anyway.

You can see the new one on this pic:-

 

And the old one on this one:-

[Gringosteve 213]

I have the old one then thanks mate

[long-gone 152]

I still have the original from the factory and had no issues in 3.1/2 years. If it's used regularly they seem to be fine - looks like they don't like being left standing for more than a couple of weeks - maybe alarm is too much of a drain?

[bassett 48]

It's a 15 plate and is black top white bottom so I'm guessing toyota are still churning out this under powered battery. Took the car out this weekend so seems to at least hold a charge for a week. Just and excuse to use it more I guess. 

[Keethos 842]

Yeah, it's my daily so no had it go flat on me yet but if I know I'm guna be leaving it for extended periods of time, I'd take it to Toyota and get them to replace it under warranty

[bassett 48]

The TRD replica spoiler came with some 3m tape attached along all the edges and as I wasn't going to use the supplied bolts I decided to make sure it wouldn't come off. I've used some extra bodyshop grade double sided tape with adhesion promoter spray and tiger seal which has always worked really well for me in the past and actually held most of my mk3 golfs trim on!

I used some masking tape to set some guidelines as its quite a big item to manoeuvre into place and then warmed up all the tape with a hair dryer. Alignment looks spot on and to give it some support for a few hours I taped it down with duck tape.

Whilst the hair dryer and white spirit were out I peeled the 'TOYOTA' and 'GT86' badges off. I was worried the debadge was going to be a daunting task as some of my older cars in the past had left so much foam and glue on the bodywork it was a nightmare to get off without leaving little scratches in the paint. This took less than 5 minutes due to the badges being relative fresh still. Using the hair dryer to warm the badge glue up and then some fishing line to separate the badge from the bodywork it came off really easily. Only glue residue was left on the bodywork which wiped off with some white spirit.

[bassett 48]

Well this happened again!

This time when the battery lost charge I couldn't even unlock the car to get it out of the garage so I fired off a rant to Toyota GB to get something sorted. TGB arranged for Jemca Croydon to carry out a replacement which given I haven't used a dealership garage before let alone any garage for more than an MOT in the last few years I was more than a bit hesitant as I usually do my own work. After all who hasn't heard horror stories particularly on forums of garages ragging owners cars, damaging them etc. Turns out though that the team at Jemca were very understanding of a fussy owner detailing all the work that was being undertaken and a guarantee the car would only be in for less than a morning and wouldn't even leave the garage which true to their word it didnt. The problem apparently stems from the battery a Panasonic unit and/or the sigma alarm system draining too much current. I didnt get a definitive answer as I quickly made an exit to avoid the pensior fleet trying to park their Yaris's sideways in a diagonal parking bay.

Spec of the old battery - Panasonic 48 Ah and 390CCA

New Battery 65Ah and 590CCA not massively bigger in size but the figures suggest its 35-50% more powerful

 

[Lauren 2259]

I really wouldn't worry about using a dealership, though there are undoubtedly the odd rogue dealer around, most will be absolutely fine with your car. I don't think people should distrust them more than any other garage you leave your car with. 

Battery is a common issue, a lot of us have had this changed under warranty. 

[bassett 48]

I think I will always have a slightly tainted view of any garage, I've got friends in BMW, Mercedes, Peugeot and independents and whilst they are respectful of others peoples cars some of the stuff you hear is concerning. At the same time though with Jemca Croydon id feel happy reusing them for the upcoming service work although I would still be a bit OCD with the technician to carry out a vehicle inspection before and after.

On to something more exciting, not quite the power modifications I want but for long time now I have wanted aftermarket tail lights and I've had them listed on the insurance since day one as I knew id be changing them. Id always been after full red units particularly TOM's units and with no UK stockists the only way is through Japan, generally costing around £350+ after shipping and customs so id been against the idea as its half way to a manifold/remap. Last week I came across a GT86 readers cars thread on pistonheads and saw the guy had fitted Valenti red edition tail lights. I dropped him a message to see where he got them from in case id overlooked a UK supplier and turns out he had sold the car and had the lights lying around waiting to go on ebay. I'd never usually go for second hand parts however given the age and price of the parts I snapped them up along with Eibach lowering springs.

Fitting the lights was a simple job as the USDM wires for turn signals had already been repinned with the only nuissance being the new lights don't allow for remounting the wiring clips which are now cable tied out of the way.

A few before, part way through and after shots

[Lauren 2259]

They always carry out a vehicle inspection. You should get a video of it emailed to you. RRG Macclesfield do this as a matter of course now. 

[bassett 48]

The lowering springs aren't even on yet and might not even allow me to get down to my garage but somehow I ended up buying some second hand alloys. They came up at a decent price with the only caveat that they aren't quite the perfect spec. Of the 5 wheels, 5 are in 99% perfect condition with the last one coming with a tyre with a bad curb mark but either way a spare is handy. Most of the wheels are mint but one has some very minor chips/light curb scratch which I will touch up. I've always loved the design of this classic wheel and it should look slightly different from the norm

 

Wheel specs

Speedline Corse Turinis (2120) in Light anthracite 18x8 100x5 et 48 with CB 57.1 which isn't quite perfect and I'm not 100%  certain they will fit although other helpful forum members suggest they will. On the scales they came in at 9.6kg roughly so not exactly light although apparently strong

 

Hopefully this picture shows the condition of them

 

 

They wont quite have the poke I was hoping for, maybe an extra 12.5mm as the ET is the same as the stock wheels if I'm correct.

 

After i find out if the springs lower the car enough but not too much and I can get into my garage I will also need to find some tyres, wheel nuts, TPMS sensors and work out how they are coded??? and fit some spigot rings adapting to the 56.1 CB Toyota hubs.

 

None of this is likely to take place for 2 months as I'm off on a euro trip in August and want the car stock in case of any issues whilst I still have the Toyota warranty and it will also be booked in for its first service shortly after.

 

[bassett 48]

Last Saturday I finally got some time to fit my part horde. With the eibach lowering springs waiting to go on I thought it was a good time to fit an exhaust whilst the car would be up in the air. For some unknown reason ebay sent me a 10% off voucher so I snapped up a cobra exhaust and saved myself £50.

Getting the car up in the air whilst minimising damage to the sills was tricky and time consuming but doable by driving the car up onto wood and using coupe of jacks and axle stands. Being a fairly new car the old system came off with ease once the back box rubber mounts were lubricated. The new system goes on even easier as it's in three parts rather than 2 but i did find I needed to upgrade to wider and thicker washers for the exhaust bolt springs that join the secondary cat to the mid pipe. I also used some silicon sealant to prevent exhaust leaks.

Final exhaust picture is with some temporary tips as Cobra ran out of stock

Fun easy job out the way it was time to start on the eibach lowering springs. The rears came off easily and even the top nuts undid with a deep 14mm socket and ratchet although a 14mm deep offset spanner and hex key would have be preferable.

The fronts were a bit more complicated with everything a bit more heavy duty. The drop links came off ok after a blast of anti seize spray with an offset spanner I bought especially for the job combined with a t handle 6mm hex tool. Second little problem area was one of the stut mount top nuts. A 17mm offset spanner with the hex key didn't budge the passenger side neither did a socket with a breaker bar so out came the impact gun just to free it off with the rest done with the offset spanner to avoid blowing the damper whixh id heard is common. All went back together nicely although there were definitely a few more rusty bolts than I was expecting for a year old car.

All back on the floor and I fired her up with a more purposeful deeper rumble which raised a smile. Then came relief as I careful backed the car off my dad's drive which has a fairly steep ramp down to the road. Time for a quick test drive and first noticeable thing was the smell as I guess the exhaust was burning off the sealant and grease. Warmed up and I gave it some more revs and its definitely louder with a nice modest tone without drone. Its now worth dropping the windows for a listen as you accelerate up the rev range whereas before it was louder with the windows closed with the inducted sound generator. I would have liked a more throaty tone but firstly i will give it some time to coke up and see how it sounds. Secondly with just a seconday cat back I knew this might not be enough and i might need a decat pipe or decat headers. Only other thing is the looks, I'm not 100% sold on the thin walled ginormous tips which are maybe a bit too OTT for me and the exhaust clamps are visible from the rear. I will see if it grows on me if not I will look into adapting the exhaust tubing to fit the OE tips as i always thought they were a great design.

Whilst thinking about the exhaust over the first few minutes on the road  i completely forgot about the springs which to me is perfect. Retaining the stock ride whilst giving a lower stance is just what I wanted and it even drives down to my garage at home without scraping. Looks wise the front looks much lower but the rear still has a little gap. Be interesting how some wheels would look now.

Final picture with the correct tips fitted

[bassett 48]

Whilst I've only done a few journeys since fitting so far I can't praise the springs enough. They really do retain the stock comfort with a lowered look.

Managed to get a side shot today for comparison with the standard ride height vs now lowered ride height with Eibach springs.

Pre lowering a few months back


Post lowering
 

Anyone know how much a spring change disturbs the standard geometry? Wondering if I should get this checked out and adjusted sooner rather than later.

I have a trip to Wales and the Evo triangle next week which im going to squeeze in as part of a weekend away for mine and the wifes wedding anniversary. Should be interesting to see how the car performs with the recent upgrades. 
 

[Lauren 2259]

You should always get your geo checked when changing items on the your suspension. Lowering springs will affect camber and could have an effect on toe as well. Get some camber bolts to get some negativ camber and offset bushes to do the same at the rear. You might as well, while you're at it. 

[bassett 48]

Thanks Lauren, fronts seem reasonable, do you know if this replaces the upper or lower of the two bolts?

We have just come back from a fantastic weekend trip to Wales and Shrewsbury so heres a brief write up of a 100% recommended trip

First stop was the Evo triangle and we headed down the A5 lower side to Betsy Coewd

 

Stretch our legs with a walk around Cwm Penamnen which looked spectacular with the autumn back drop and waterfalls.

 

Then headed to the West side of Evo triangle along the B451 which felt a bit more remote and the roads were empty, we had planned to continue on to the East side of the triangle however the fuel light had popped up a couple of miles back so we kept onto the next town and also stopped for a quick bite at Con Amici which went down pretty with the wife.

 

On the way back missed out on the East side of the triangle (please dont tell me its the best side!) as apparently the WRC rally was more important.

 

We stayed at the big bear lodge as seen on ch4's four in a bed which lived upto expectations

 

Had an obligatory anniversary Meal at Lepone's in Oswestry

 

Next morning after a great full English at the B&B we left for carding mill valley another valley walk with reservoir and waterfalls but a bit more rugged than our walk in Wales maybe not the ideal place for my pregnant wife.

 

To make sure we weren't hungry for the trip home we stopped at The Haughmond for an excellently cooked rare roast beef sunday lunch, (veg was on the side for those thinking we just had a yorkshire pud, gravy, beef and potatoes). The bread and butter pudding topped off the whole meal. To finish off the weekend we spent a tortuous couple of hours crawling back on the motorway to get home.

 

Car performed faultlessly and seemed to pull much more noticeable whereas I felt it had been lacking power at times round Europe but this could have been from higher ambient temperatures, altitude or possibly heat soak. As for the exhaust its great to have some more noise and definitely made the drive more enjoyable when your on a twisty B road where even if you aren't going any faster you feel like you are and to top it off the wife hasnt complained about the noise yet.

[Lauren 2259]

Pretty sure it's the top one. It looked obviously like it when mine was apart this week. The top bolt is chamfered and is designed so that an adjustable camber bolt can go in there.  I have coilovers with adjustable pillowball top mounts so no need for camber bolts for me. 

Nice drive out by the looks of it.