IMB055

I had one in my Sportivo and also installed one in JC's sportivo without any issues.

Sounds like Northy is the man to see. I have one in my Sportivo (it was in it when i got it, so I am useless re: install advice), and I think it works fine. The stalk doesn't look quite "factory" - but that would be my only criticism. I can't see a brand on mine anywhere.

Cheers,

Nath.

Good to see a debate rage on for a while......

I find, almost without fail, that when a new model comes out I like the model immediately preceding it. Then after a while, the current model grows on me....then they release a new one and by then it's taken enough time to grow on me.

Personally, I do think the new shape has some nice aspects to it, particularly the wheel arches and the additional surface curves in the side over the ZZE series, whcih in comparison is looking a bit slab sided now. The nose of the new model doesn't look as good as either ZZE front end - particularly a pre-facelift with eyebrows.

And both have ugly butts in stock form!

I am not really pleased that Toyota has marketed the new Corolla as the "hottest corolla ever". If they wish to do that, bring out a version that has some real grunt. Has anyone in a new model gone up against an SP23?* If a Mazda SP23 beats you, then you are most certainly not in the hottest Corolla ever. In fact, I would go so far as to say there should be a definition of "hot" - if a stock Commodore or Falcon has better track-proven figures than you, you are not "hot". Fair call??

Even though I am a Sportivo owner, and I do love my Corolla, I would put my vote in for the hottest corolla ever being the AE92 SX hatch. Back in the day, 100kw made it stand out head and shoulders above the rest. by the time the sportivo was here in Australia, there were a few other comparables around, but not anything that delivered the combo of features and value for money that the Sportivo delivered that saw me part with my cash.

Come on Toyota, bring us the Blade version under the TRD banner, even as a limited run, so we have something to really be proud of!!!!

*off street comparison/drag. I in no way condone or encourage street racing.

Well, after months of putting it off I bit the bullet and got a set of Lenso Tenzo GF-7's in Hyper Black (essentially Shadow Chrome) - I''l whack a pic in under Show Us Your Wheels :)

Not comparing apples with apples, but I have a mate with an SP23 who got a H7 HID kit off eBay - no claims as to the long term viability of the product, but he has not stopped raving about it since he put it in. Particularly as it cost him less than a hundred bucks delivered.

a) Has anyone else gone for this cheap HID option - is it worth it?

B) Would you then have to put HIDs in your foglights (sportivo/levin) to make it look right? I think white headlights with yellow spotties may look a bit poor.

For the record, I used to use Narva Plus 50s in my old car and they were good (definetly brighter, but still yellow). I too have heard excellent things about the Philips globes, but have no personal experience with them.

Cheers,

Nath.

Spotted IMBOSS at 7:15 on Keira St wollongong this morning

Wohooo I got spotted! Thanks Nikich!

(hopefull whilst driving so you couldn't see the dirt B) )

Heeeey Nath!!! how are you?! changing rims i see... i like the second choice. what size are the starcorps coz on ur car they look big...sont know why youd want to go bigger if they were 17s.

keep me posted !!!

Good point re: discontinued wheels Punk Rolla - I don't want to drop cash on something that one pothole could destroy in a second with no prospect of replacement!

================================================

G'day there Klara - great to see you're still around! :) Hope Uni is going well! Yeah, the Starcorps are 18's - still want to keep with 18's, just time for a change. The Corolla has been sitting quietly for a while waiting for me to finish the house - now that's (99.8%) done, time for a little reward for it waiting patiently for attention in the garage :yahoo:LOL ...... it's either that, or I look at upgrading. but to be honest, there isn't really anything around at the moment that catches my attention, without dropping 60k.

================================================

I think I have now moved more towards these in an 18......shame the boltholes wreck the design a little in the centre (bloody 4x114.3 people....), but by having the spokes go all the way to the rim they look a bit bigger than the GF7's What do you reckon??

http://www.talebtyres.com.au/products_clos...&part_no=38

mendaciously?? not sure why you would lie about cleaning your wheels, maybe you meant meticulously

anyhow I have some acid wash at work that you literally spray on then wash off almost immediately and they are clean like new!

Leave it on too long and it will eat the wheels!!

Cant remember the name/brand will check it out tomorrow and let you know.

Oops! Apologies for my typo up there...I did mean 'meticulously'!

I think I would be too scared to spray the acid wash stuff on though

Knowing my luck it will damage my wheels!

I too usually pick those tar spots off with my nail but they still leave a bit of a mark behind.

This is what I dont know how to get rid of!

this might seems crazy, but.........

.....do you polish your rims with car polish or wax? I reckon the go is to have the wheels cleaned/polished/waxed to prevent grime build up between washes. Having 18's makes it a little easier fro me to clean them between spokes than my old stockies, but I found that keeping them polished/waxed works for me.

One think I hate about 4 stud wheels these days is that they are generally multistud, which i think ruins the appearance of the wheel.

True in many cases. I have seen some butchered attempts at making a 5 stud style wheel which is clearly a five stud wheel fit a 4 stud and it doesn't look any good. HP Racing had one and the bolt holes looked like an afterthought. I think the 4 stud Lenso Muse was an example of a wheel which still looks decent in a 4 stud - but they seem to be discontinued........

Any suggestions? If you reckon I am making a poor decision let me know........

G'day guys,

Looking at replacing my Starcorps with something different for my white pre-facelift sportivo......I still like shadow chrome but will look at anything.

Those of us stuck with 4 stud wheels are starting to get the raw end of the deal here - a few years ago, most manufacturers and importers had tons of variety - now things are starting to thin out..........would love to do a 5-stud conversion so I could get what I really want

http://www.tempetyres.com.au/products_clos...mp;part_no=1198

but I think cost

Anyhow, this is what I am thinking of from Tempe......

http://www.tempetyres.com.au/products_clos...mp;part_no=1197

Keen on them because they give me the shadow chrome centre with polished outer lip with a little bit of dish.

What do you reckon? I know 18's have a compromised ride over 17's but from a looks perspective I don't want to go backwards

Get something fun, but don't be too much of a smarta55 or too sleazy either.......nothing would be worse than having a numberplate that possible female companions could find embarassing.........

....in my case, my girlfriend has decided she is the boss, so the IMB055 plates may as well be hers :D so she thinks.... ;)

I agree with getting something specific to the car that people in the know will recognize, but to non-car people it will mean nothing and not stick in their memory or draw unwanted attention from the fuzz.

Have fun with your search for ideas!

I think GoHard still has a Sportivo wrecking that you could get the motor, gearbox and ECU out of - see his post on the 2005 Sportivo wrecking - could be just the ticket!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Either that, or keep your rims and any other bolt ons you like, bite the bullet and get a Sportivo. Upgrading bits here and there is achievable - but does nothing for you at resale time. Sportivos will always be worth more than lower models when it comes time to sell, and some of the figures i have seen good sportivos going for lately are very tempting........

I live in Cronulla, takes me about 40mins to get there

yep... complain about 40 minutes...

I'd like to make the run up the F6 to put in an appearance and check out some of Toyota's finest. I'll just have to makle sure I have nothing else planned for that weekend.

(as a fellow Wollongong'er I may be vying with Dylan for equal longest distance travelled!)

The splattered bugs across the front of my car don't mean that I don't care for it - it was probably clean when I left home :)

G'day guys,

the standard antenna on my Sportivo is a little over the top - it's too long! :( I am looking into sourcing something a little more compact.

I have found nothing for sale locally - can anyone make a suggestion as to where I can find one in Australia?

I have a source in the US who can get them and reckons that you don't lose too much radio reception, but am keen to hear form anyone who has changed their antenna to something that doesn't look like it should be on a dodgem car!

Otherwise, I will probably grab a couple form the US (one for me, another for a mate with an SP23) and see how they go.

Cheers guys,

Nath.

Seems good to me. I scored mine from Super Cheap for $278 the set (front & rear) and thought that was cheap!

Lows are good in that it still allows you go get a decent wheel alignment and some insurance compaines will be OK with them (my Sportivo on Kings lows is with Shannons and they are cool with it). However, for some people 30mm isn't low enough - it, like many other car mods, is a personal choice.

Cheers,

Nath.

who wants to paint mine :P

Well, I did say I had two half cans left so I don't really have an excuse - but you could probably find better quality workmanship out there........ :D

http://au.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/inde...si&img=1284

http://au.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/inde...si&img=1285

http://au.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/inde...si&img=1286

I just finished doing my calipers red (white car, seemed to be a good option, although that gold looked excellent!) When I say just finished, I mean the car got put back in the garage an hour ago after a quick hill run to clear the overspray off the surface of the brake dics!

While I was there, I also did the hubs silver again as there was a touch of corrosion on them and it was looking a little ratty - especailly the rears.

I used a bit over half a can of red (Septone 400g brake paint - Super Cheap Auto about $16) to do the front and rear calipers and another can of silver (less than half a can) to do the front and rear hubs - 3 coats on the lot. For the hubs, I used a finish they call aluminium.

With a can of degreaser for cleaning, two sheets of wet & dry sandpaper and the two aersol cans, my overall job budget was about $37. Camera phone pics don't do it justice - but will post some pics if anyone is interested (and can point a newbie in the right direction re: posting pics).

Cheers,

Nath.

G'day,

I think tyre width may solve everything (might not be the cheapest fix).

I run 215/35/18's with 30mm Kings Lows on my 03 Sportivo and have no scrubbing whatsoever. The previous owner advised me that he first tried 225's but had dramas (WITHOUT SPRINGS?!?! - I thought he was joking as it sat more like a Hilux 4x4).

Best of luck - hope there is an economical solution for you out there.

Cheers,

Nath.

Are the springs being discussed here different to those that are standard on the ZZE123 Sportivos?

Geez guys, there seems to be a bit of country of origin racism here - I am only new to the game so can someone point out instances whereby the Sportivos have suffered from poorer build quality that the Japanese models? Facts rather than speculation would be good......

Back on topic, my inclination would be to hold off and be the first kid on the block with the new shape.

......Or just grab the white 05 Sportivo I saw at the Toyota dealer at Sutherland NSW with 9000ks....

Best of luck with your decision!

G'day all,

Another newbie here, from Wollongong NSW.

I have a white 2003 Sportivo with 18" wheels, 30mm lowered springs (which it needed badly!) and dark tints. Oh, and it's got cruise control, which was a bit of a surprise. (Haven't got any pics yet other than those I took on my phone but I will post some soon)

Aside from that, it is as it left the factory - and to the SP20's I was looking at buying at the time this little baby makes me feel everyday (even below 6200rpm). Loving that Toyota build quality!!

I have previously owned a few other cars that were decent, a couple of modified MX5's, a Cordia turbo (back in the day!) and a Commodore SS but the Sportivo is perfect for what I need for now.

Anyhow, I'm off to browse the sticky posts re: cold air intakes as I am chasing a few more KW but realistically just some more intake roar would suit me just fine. Might also do an exhaust later once I get a little bored. And maybe a rear swaybar......hey, you guys go to Wakefield Park???? If so, my Visa may be cruising for a brusing........

Oh, the username is the same as my number plate - I don't really have the ego to go with it, but when a girl that worked for me had MZB05Y, well, I couldn't just let that ride - a quick trip to the RTA showed her that IMB055 :D it was all a bit of fun and now my mates know the plates so they stay!

So hi to everyone here, hope to see you on the street sometime soon

Mate, there is a guy on ebay who can get you the key blank (housing and key blade section) for about $35 posted. I have used one myself and Mr Minit cut it for me and it is perfect. If he isn't around anymore let me know as I will have his details somewhere.

(My reason for replacement was more vain - the old one had a few scratches on it and I had only just bought my Sportivo and didn't want to be carting around an old looking key!)

:D Nothing like starting life in a new forum with a useful post! Happy new year!