Lauren

You'll want to change your final drive to bring it closer to that of a manual to get the acceleration.

I couldn't see an actual picture of the exhaust on their site. Nobody in the UK to my knowledge has one. In fact I've not heard of them before. In the first vid it sounds very loud. Less so in the following two videos. If you think it's loud then you will have problems if you intend on taking your car on track. Always worth bearing in mind.

Okay, I'm about to finish off my second set of OEM pads. They have done pretty well totalling over 61K and the second set were kindly donated by Dave (Pitman) so they'd already seen 14K before I put them on! What can I say, I'm easy on brakes! But, my issue is that I can overheat the stock pads on the roads. This doesn't happen often but if I get into a rhythm on somewhere like the EVO Triangle or the Lauren Triangle, they do start to smoke. In terms of track work I mainly sprint, which isn't a big problem for the brakes. For the occasional foray onto track I would say in the 10 minute sessions I tend to do or the longer show sessions of 15 minutes, the brakes will be smoking by the time I come in. So, what I reckon is that OEM discs are just fine, but perhaps some uprated pads which can take a little more temperature would be ideal. I don't want aftermarket pads that are any louder than the OEM ones. I can take a bit of squealing but not if it's too loud, so would prefer pads that use anti-squeal shims. There's quite a few options, so I'm interested to hear what people and traders recommend.

So is it still at that point then? The box isn't back in yet?

Check the rolling radius, there is a site somewhere where you can find this out. I would say going up two sizes in width definitely needs a reduction in profile, so 35's are the obvious choice really. Unless you want it to look like a drag car?

Also I would like to hear how you get on with the Michelin tyres in OEM sizes. I'm toying with trying other tyres in stock sizes to see how that feels. I've tried wider tyres (225/45/17) but found it took the balance of car more to grip than handling. It was slightly quicker, but that's not always enough in itself. I do wonder if a different tyre but in stock sizes might provide the best overall balance. The only issue with the Primacy is it's less progressive than the Advans I tried. I'm thinking about getting Advans fitted in stock sizes though I run an 8" rim so there is a little bit of stretch, but it's still within recommended specs.

1. I think a 7" rim is a little too narrow for a 225, though it is within spec. So you could try it. Standard sizes with a different tyre would be my preference, though I run an 8" rim and have the option of 225's. 225/40/18 is fine but I would say go for an 8" rim. 2. Losing a catalyst should mean that you still pass the MOT, so don't worry about that. As long as you have one cat. 3. Inevitably you will want to upgrade the brakes and suspension at least.

I wouldn't have mentioned it, Nige if it wasn't the FA20.

I was down at GPRM last Friday. I did see a dry sump setup with the pump bolted on which was a recent addition, so it looks likely they will be going that way.

Could pop down and say hello, Keith and Mr Biscuit as I'm off work this week. Fancy lunch?

Yep, seems to be a colour that can work. CE28's maybe?

Welcome aboard, Matt. I was there, not sure if I spoke to you as I had my mum visiting so had to take care of her.

Mark, running 2 deg neg camber on the front feels fine. I don't know if your very wide tyres will be more of an issue, but I have no issue at all with that amount of camber and I do some mileage as you know.

Prefer the wheels without the centre caps, I don't think the red caps go. As for handling, you could change the bushes. Braces? I wouldn't bother it will handle just fine with the Teins. I've got the EDFC Active Pro which obviously allows for more adjustment with regard to speed and lateral and longitudinal G force. It works very well. I've also had the Whiteline bushing for the gearbox which is good but not essential.

It's a difficult one because orange is difficult to contrast with. Crazy wheel colours seem to work best on primary colours with white going with absolutely anything. Okay, have been through all my pics from 86 style at Fuji last year and this is the best I can find: DSC_1375 by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr To be fair this actually works quite well I think. Sorry fro the lack of focus.

An old pic (2002) but I couldn't resist, standing in one of my previous cars: My current wheels: Untitled by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr Untitled by Lauren Blighton, on Flickr

Must admit, 245 seems a bit wide for an 8.5" rim. Toe seems alright, I really need to find out exactly what my rear toe is. That's very little toe in at the rear. How does it affect rear stability? I'm guessing it changes direction well enough. Reckon 2 deg neg camber on the front is worth doing. I run this with 1.75 neg on the rear.

Hmm, not good but on the other hand doesn't look too much of a mess apart from the obvious. Glad to see the police have found a use for cones!

If it's any help I would look for less offset to fill the arches better and consider an 8" rim which can take the stock tyre with a tiny bit of stretch (as I do) or run 225/45/17s. Mine have an offset of 38 which gives me an extra 20mm track and looks better too. So I have 17x8 with an offset of 38. If you have a 7" rim you don't really want to go wider than the stock sizes. TRD etc use a 7.5" wide rim with 225/40/18's, but honestly 8" is preferable for this tyre width.

Great stuff, cannot wait to see it. At last!

Sports Mode does not allow you to drift the car. It will allow the tyres to work in their slip angle, which is far less of a hindrance at higher speeds, but then it kicks in easier. You can't drive the car properly IMO with the aids on. It is good though if you're not that smooth and will recover a fair old slide very well. So it will save you a lot of the time if that's how you want to play it. I rarely turn it all off on the road in all honesty, particularly so when I'm going fast. I rarely activate it though at higher speeds. At lower speeds it kicks in somewhat but I normally just drive with enough slip but not enough to set it off, so it will kick the back out a smidgen on the exit of roundabouts which is fine. You'd be mad to junk the ABS though. No brainer there. If you're good with braking you'll never set it off anyway. It's for those unexpected occasions and there is nothing to gain from cadence braking if you can do it.

Can you put up a price please.

I see you can buy them direct from their site: http://www.hendyeshop.co.uk/toyota-3639-c.asp

I also had a mini-meet with Johnny and friends in Belgium when we passed through, we met them at some services for lunch. Always worth doing.

I think it makes sense to balance your brakes out in regard to pad used, Jay front and rear, even though the rears don't do that much in comparison to the fronts. I'm liking the idea of Project Mu, will have a think on them for next time as I do like my JDM stuff! I've booked my car in for next Tuesday to get all this fitted.