Lauren

The stock tyres are fine, though lack progression, they last forever though and I've had a lot of fun on them. I've tried all those tyres, albeit on different cars.

Nankangs are budget tyres which means they are crap. But for a budget tyre where it's all relative they might not be crap, but you're just comparing them to crap tyres. Toyo's seem to be raved about on car forums because they are cheap and do a reasonable job. But remember, there are much better tyres out there. I think Eagle F1's are over-rated, though they are just fine if you tend to drive at 7/10ths. Take them on the track and they're no good. So it depends what you want to do. Personally spending a considerable amount of money on a car that you like then fitting cheap tyres is a false economy. I'm not going to waffle on about tyres being your only contact with the road and all that. But, what I will say is that whilst any tyre will be good enough in the dry in mediocre driving, they won't have the progressiveness in the wet. And if you drive really hard in the dry or on a track (where driving hard is the point) then your budget tyres will not perform. So, I would say Eagle F1's if you don't push your car and want a predictable tyre and don't go on track. For track and road Contisport Contact 5's are good. For the same again, Yoko Advan V105's have the edge on track.

I decided to have a day out in my car today. Opted to drive to Chester to pick up some vape supplies and pop in and see my old work colleagues. I was a tad nervous as it's the first 'big' trip the car has done since being back on the road all of a day! Well, I stopped a number of times and checked under the bonnet, but the car felt strong and I've begun to acclimatise to it again. There is a fair bit of differential whine as is the way with these cars and they are inherently noisy, but that's what it was like some 30 years ago. I've been careful to run the car in, so no high revs, generally not going over 4000rpm, but making sure the engine has some load. Well I took it to nudging 5000rpm a few times in third, fourth and fifth gear and you can really feel the engine come on cam, just after the TVIS opens. The engine feels really strong and in such a light car with it's terribly short gearing, it moves along at a decent rate alright. At the lower end of the revs the engine is typical torquey 4AGE, so it's a synch to drive really. The controls all feel very light and this has taken a bit of getting used to compared with the weightier controls of the GT86, but really as I have been driving the AE86 since yesterday I'm starting to get used to it all again. I must admit, I was sitting there on the motorway on the way to Chester and I was just thoroughly enjoying myself being back in the car again. That smile lasted all the way to Chester and all the way home again as I took the A roads on the way back. I even loaded the chassis a little to get a feel for the car again. Sure it doesn't have the precision and mega grip that the GT86 seems to pluck from nowhere, but it felt all of a piece. The suspension is a bit mismatched on the AE86, but it's okay as long as you know how to manage it. I haven't tried booting it out of slow corners as I want to ease the running in of the engine, but the diff locks up just as it always did. Overall it's just great to be back behind the wheel again and the charisma of the car is winning me over all over again. Here it is, parked outside my old work in Chester: IMG_4739 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr

Welcome aboard Jordan. There does seem to be a real influx of BRZ's lately, good news is there is a lot going on in the Midlands, so plenty of meets to get out to.

Toyo's are cheap. They're not that good at all, but will do the job if you need to do it on a budget. Got my Yoko Advans around £85 a tyre, great upgrade over the standard Michelin. Honestly I would avoid cheap sub-brands. Nankangs are crap, avoid at all costs. The problem with tyres is that to a point you get what you pay for.

Welcome aboard, Taj, looks like you have been busy! If you can make JAE, it's the best way to get socially initiated into all things BRZ/GT86.

And at RRG when we picked it up this morning. I have to say a just huge thanks to Richard, Gary and the team for getting the final jobs ticked off and getting the car through the MOT. They have just been brilliant as always.

All MOT'd, taxed and insured and finally back on my drive. Mark's face after driving it home! We had a bit of an oil leak from the cam covers which I noticed hadn't been tightened, but that seems to be sorted now. It's now done 60kms today, don't forget the engine needs to be run in, so not gone mad with it. What's it like after a three year break? Well it's noisy, diff whine, gearbox whine, various rattles and the usual vibrations at idle, but it is thirty years old so it feels worlds apart compared to the GT86. It's feather light though, the controls are really light too, so there is something of a recalibration required after doing 70k miles in a GT86! That said it's thoroughly enjoyable and even the aircon still works. Doubtless there'll be a few snags to iron out but hopefully we'll get it sorted before undertaking longer journeys and JAE. The engine feels keen and though I've not revved it too much, looking forward to getting it on cam which is 5500rpm upwards.

Welcome aboard, Joe. There should be plenty of cars available. There are some under 25's on here so it may be worth shopping around.

Stock pads last forever. I got 36K out of my first set.

Welcome aboard. Plenty going on down south, so should be some meets for you. Get in for JAE, in less than a month at Newark.

Okay, finally got the car out of the container and got some insurance, which it hasn't had for three years! It was a bit tricky getting it out of the container as the clutch had seized on. So we managed to roll it out, without too much trouble, but slightly scraped some underseal off the chassis rails. That can be fixed I think. I gave the clutch a go using the starter motor in first gear. That got it free'd off pretty quick and then we drove it around the yard a few times testing the brakes etc: AE86 lives by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr 20 litres of V power went in and then I drove it to RRG Macc' with Mark following in the Yaris full of tools! The car drove fine, well, it drove like a thirty year old car, which always takes a bit of getting used to. Thankfully the aircon still blows cold, which was nice and everything worked. We got it up onto the ramps at RRG in an attempt to fix the exhaust leak where the manifold joins to the cat: AE86 lives by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Alas, despite Mark taking ages to cut a gasket, it still leaked and being aware that Richard had already done us a massive favour we agreed to leave it with him to address the exhaust leak and do a few other minor things. It needs a rear foglight fitting for the MOT and the washer bottle refitting once a new seal has been fitted where the motor sits in the washer bottle. The advantage of being at RRG was that Paul and Dave were to hand and quickly identified that they could still get a seal for the bottle motor and also hopefully for the exhaust. AE86 lives by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Hopefully all will go swimmingly, well as much as one might expect for a car of this age that hasn't been driven for three years. All will be revealed over the next few days I suspect!

I hope Bob has a good holiday in South Norwood and your dad manages to drive out to find some good roads. The South Circ is a little busy these days.

Good write up, Jeff. I get that it's always hard to convince people that less is more, in respect of the 1.5 over the more powerful 2 litre engine option. I like it that Mazda seem to have got it right, though I had an MX5 (courtesy of Mazda UK for four months) and Mark had a 2.5 Sport and I just never liked them. They always seemed to be a bit of a 7/10ths car, really setup for cruising more than really attacking the road. But I confess I'm not a fan of convertibles.

Wheels: It's fine to run a staggered setup, but you will increase understeer. Depends what you want of course. Those tyre sizes will work on the wheel setup you have suggested. 5x100 is an awkward size so availability for wheels can be an issue. Obviously allow for VAT and shipping etc if you import from the US. Exhaust: You can remove or plug off the sound generator, that is no problem. If you're going to for a high power turbo, 3" will be better. Exhaust options vary in terms of loudness, there are lots of available. Do your research, come to meets and hear others' exhausts for comparison. A turbo will quieten the exhaust. Lowering Springs: They will do the job fine. Coilovers are a better option but obviously more expensive. Induction Kits: It changes the sound but doesn't have much of an effect on power really. Other: A remap is around £500. People modify their car to their own tastes. There are plenty of members around who have done the mods you have asked about. Come to some meets and find out.

Well done and enjoy! The new blue looks great in the light.

Good to have you back on the scene, Mike. Funnily enough I was at JP Exhausts today (for the AE86) they mentioned you. Would be interested to see what it drives like. Can do a review if you would like?

I would wonder if the Megane Trophy would come out on top. Seems to have the best balance in respect of the research I do (all I do is read and watch car reviews). It's a compelling choice. I love it and I'm impressed that the high point is the chassis. I owned a DC2 many years ago. That thing was like a scalpel, had an engine to die for but the highlight really is just how precise the chassis is. I know the new Civic Type-R is less about it's engine, but I don't hear many negatives about it, but that the focus seems to be placed on the chassis must be a good thing.

Welcome aboard. There are a number going to Japfest on Sunday, the rest of us will be competing at the TSS at Croft.

Hi Adam, welcome aboard. I will be a the TSS at Croft this weekend, do please come over and say hi, there will be a few of us there. Should be a good day and we all love Croft.

You'll only better 41 realistically if you drive under 70mph on the motorway. I've averaged 37.6mpg in 2500 miles of driving round the Alps and back over the last two weeks.

Welcome aboard. Not many GT's in Ireland, but it seems all the AE's are there. Do you hook up with that lot or does the 'diffin' put you off?

It's just simple economics. Options available vary from market to market so it makes sense really.

Last year was all about Japan, but this year, I really fancied a Euro tour over the Alps again. This was in part I admit for some feeling of guilt of seeing a close friend of ours who lives near Sirmione on Lake Garda. Also this is Indy's favourite uncle, so really we are simply taking Indy to see her favourite uncle. But, selfless as we are, we have built in some fun drives over the Alps and also the Dolomites on our way there and of course on the way back! We shall drive from the Chunnel to Strasbourg for our first overnight stop. Strasbourg is in the Alsace region and actually looks to be a really pretty city. As it's a convenient place to stop on route it's really something of a bonus. We have a nice hotel recommended by a friend with secure parking there. Our Chunnel crossing is early, so hopefully just a 400km blast down the Peage avoiding the rather too keen Gendarmerie! So, following an afternoon and evening in Strasbourg we will be picking up the pace and heading south east into the Alps proper. We will cross Germany (I must admit if the Porsche museum is dog friendly at Stuttgart I would definitely go) and then into Austria. I've never visited Austria before, so I'm quite excited about this and having seen many friends pictures of tours around the Austrian Alps and the Dolomites, I admit it wetted my appetite to put this on our route. We are staying in Innsbruck for our second night, again another stunning looking city surrounded by mountains. We should have covered the Hahnntenjoch Pass by that point too. The following morning we shall hit the Gerlos Pass followed by the Grossglockner Pass. From here we will drop into Italy and stay at Cortina D'Amprezzo. http://www.dangerousroads.org/europe/austria/3580-hahntennjoch.html http://www.gerlosstrasse.at/en/ http://www.grossglockner.at Next up is the drive around towards the Dolomites. I've purposefully tried to break the driving up so I at least get some rest and Mark's vertigo is kept in check! Whilst I will have a good go at the Alpine Passes, it's a holiday so I do want some time where I can relax with a cold beer. So we will take in the Karerpass and the route around the Dolomites before heading south and staying in Bassano Del Grappa. Now we could have stayed in Venice or Verona, but it would have meant coming away from what look like some wicked mountain roads, so I've opted for that option! The following day will be a couple of hours into Lake Garda and Uncle Tom's where we will stay near the beautiful Sirmione for the next five days. I expect beer by the litre (yes really!) and lots of very nice pizzas on the piazza and a bit of a break from driving. After leaving Tom's we will be heading up to Grindelwald for a couple of nights. It's near Interlaken and the Eiger and anyone who is familiar with Gran Turismo 2 and 5 will recognise Grindelwald. Mark went there as a scout thirty odd years ago, so we shall see how much it has changed! We will be heading up the Simplon Pass on the way there. It looks beautiful and we are hoping to get a bit of walking in with Indy and just relax and enjoy ourselves. The hectic schedule picks up again two nights later and then it is back to Strasbourg again. We will look at seeing if we can pick up the Furka and Grimsel Pass depending upon time. We drove these spectacular Alpine roads two years ago, but I have to balance journey times with practicality so we shall see. After a stop over in Strasbourg, same hotel again, we will then take the Peage route to Bruges one of our favourite places to stop over. No expense spared on this hotel and we're staying in the heart of the historic district next to the canal. Whilst it may have the finest chocolate in the world, the real attraction is Cambrinus (King of Beer) bar where we sit and eat peanuts and invariably bump into American tourists, whilst sampling the finest beer in the world. Mark is in heaven here! There is a great story for when we went a couple of years ago and met an American couple who were travelling north through Europe in this very bar. Obviously we got drunk together then as they were heading to Scotland they stayed at ours a couple of weeks later! That to me is the essence of road trips, it's all about the people you meet and the journey is the holiday too. I think I will do a blog on blogspot and will keep posted with pics and action from the trip. Mark will be taking the Go-Pro and we may do a little documentary, we shall see!

Fensport do their's on the road. Cost is roughly £500.