nerdstrike

I think you're basically looking at streaky drying with extra sauce on the lacquer. It might just need a regular water wash and dry to get rid of it. Going in heavy-handed might backfire, so take your time trying to rectify things. You could have a go at it with a clay bar if the easy approaches don't move it. Claying the whole car takes bloomin' ages and you have to start with a freshly washed car, but the result is pleasing once the car has years of road grime coating the paint - the surface feels glassy smooth again. It takes wax off too, so you need more time to properly finish the car.

It's got piffly mufflers and few convolutions, and something resembling a resonator on the downpipe, so I'd guess loud. Perhaps even louder than the more complicated N1.

That's a very attractive crate!

In daily driving you usually want the car to get hot and also to warm up quickly from cold. The highest efficiencies are available at high temperatures (not the intake charge, just the engine) and the most wear occurs from being cold for longer. I guess that the strip is there to help the engine warm up, and perhaps to stop the bonnet rubbing. The highest pressure in the CFD model linked above is around the bonnet/windscreen join, so removing the rubber strip could have the wrong effect at higher speeds even while it helps at idle.

Are there any other exits from under the bonnet? Is the radiator air supposed to exit through the undertray?

A common platform like TNGA would be a death sentence for lightweight fun. It wouldn't leave any room to move the centre of gravity. The only RWD TNGA platform is the -N underneath big saloons like the Lexus RC F. The more I think about it, the more it makes sense that Toyota builds all its standard range on TNGA bases with a few trusted Toyota engine/hybrid/gearbox combinations, then collaborates to make anything interesting that they can't sell millions of. There was talk of a Porsche collaboration for an MR2, another GT86 with Subaru, the Supra is built by BMW... I would lay reasonable money on a tuned e-boxer FB20 adaptation. As long as they don't ruin it with a CVT it might work. With some electric support round town, they might even be able to justify a bit more cylinder capacity without breaking the CO2 budget, but it'll be hard to do without an automatic of some kind. All these emissions controls don't seem to be slowing down the SUV craze 🤨

With your own fair hands? It's hard work and messy, but at least it happens at your own pace. I wonder if you're getting bumped because the job is small. We have been lucky using mybuilder.com to find people so far.

I agree. An overly sensitive 0-10% pedal travel makes driving the '86 more difficult than necessary for gentle driving. I'm fine with the last 20% of the pedal being WOT, but the top of the pedal could be a little smoother. A lot of the hybrids are getting bigger engines, but they're operating on a different combustion cycle. It seems unlikely they will turbo a 2nd gen '86, given the laser focus on driver involvement, but how to bring the emissions in check? Knock 200kg off the car perhaps?

I think I'd only get a used engine under duress. Good point about there being a cheap way out. I stand by my earlier statement that fitting anything other than another FA20 will cost a packet.

You'll be lucky to do an engine swap for under £20k - there is a huge amount of work involved in even vaguely similar engines going in. It's also important to find good people to do the work. A bodger will give you never-ending troubles. I believe getting someone like Fensport to do a teardown and repair would be massively cheaper, unless you start asking for a turbo.

For the big bolts, I'd be tempted to look at the front wishbones for conspicuously shiny replacements.

Since we are now winter-tyre buddies, they get (more) uncertain above 7 degrees in the dry, so hang on with your summers until October/November or so. Their wet performance is extremely good and they also make gravel drives dead easy. The handling will feel weird for the first couple of days when you fit them, but they're a hoot on cold damp mornings. Braking performance is less confident than the standard Primacy due to small tread blocks moving around.

At least your trains are worth using. Ours are more expensive than all other means of transport. Last week I discovered regular fuel in Crete is more expensive than super in the UK. I was shocked how much money I poured into a gutless Suzuki Swift. Enjoy your excellent car while you can - the future is not pure NA drivetrains.

Holy moly, you can buy a lot of carbon credits for that much tax! You have my sympathies.

Aftermarket cats are pretty notorious for being cheaply built. They're often a quarter of the price of the OEM ones. Exhaust gas temperature and excessive unburnt fuel are usually to blame but cheap cats are where all the problems stem.

FYI my 45Ah battery is now five years old, and lasts a fortnight before I get nervous about starting. It'll die sooner or later, but is defying my expectations. Maybe this winter will finish it off?

My Winters have probably covered about 10k miles by now and they've still got plenty of life in them, despite me exploiting their fun characteristics. Performance gets extra squiffy above about 10 degrees and that's my guide for when they come off in spring, i.e. when the morning temperature is consistently warm. Irrespective of tyre choice, if you've got slopes to climb you might have to resort to Sierra tuning, i.e. heavy stuff in the boot. Depending on how bad your roads get, you might also go all-season with some snow socks if things get wild. Your driving experience will be much better most of the time that way. Mud+snow tyres are very impressive in the wet, but they're often wooly in the dry.

Well it's totally the immobiliser. I'd get that to Toyota. You mention a big spark, so I'd go over the relevant fuses too.

Nope, the list price is used to calculate additional ongoing costs. In the hypothetical luxury electric saloon, that's £320/year. Cheaper cars waive that, and are taxed at a standard rate for their fuel source, and have an additional up front first payment. Diesels get slaughtered!

The new tax scheme is weird. The £30k Corolla hybrid costs £100 up front, £135/year, whereas a Model S will pay £0 upfront, £320/year, and a Leaf should pay nothing at all. I think buying a Supra would be a taxing experience.

You lot strike me as people who might have opinions. At long last I finally have a garage to keep my favourite car in. Only trouble is the original builder thought it was better without a door on. The car will be coming in and out often, but I also want a secure space for tools and such. Please advise me on what kind of door best suits a double width gap, reliable brands, and if possible who to trust to install one!

That's not pretty!

Fixed price servicing tells us £250 intermediate, £395 for full service, plus any extras that are due, but there's not much at 40k to worry about. Franchises seem to vary their pricing a little bit.

Suzuki's emergency brake system warns first before intervening. My dad's VW has also gone bananas on B-roads with unkempt hedges - that did intervene unnecessarily. I don't think you could drive in Sicily or Greece at all with such a system "helping".

I'm on the brink of buying a house, so I'm out. Too many things to do. Enjoy yourselves.