1986 MX72 Cressida Wagon Build: "Joby"

Stock head unit? Does it work?

Yes I pulled it for a double din navigation pioneer. I also have a 85-86 head unit as well. I can send you them all! lol let me know

Push let me have the 85-86 head unit!!

The car is awesome.

I also have one 1992 white.

6-26-14
Just found a MK1 Celica-Supra axle for sale in PA not too far from where I'm gonna be going anyway in July.
Called up the yard and she's all mine! And for about half the price of the going market rate!
Combine that with the LSD I'm picking up this weekend, add some new seals, bearings and brakes, and I'll have myself an LSD/disc brake rear end! BWAHAHAHAHA


6-29-14
Picked up an LSD from an '85 Celica-Supra P-Type today.


I got right to work disassembling it. Here's the case, stub axles, and bearing and such chilling in the oil pan so they don't make too big of a mess. The rear cover is basically worthless as the fill plug threads are SUPER stripped. It was just RTV'd on.



And here's the bit I need. Well, actually I probably don't need the ring gear or the bearings, but the diff is what I was more referring to.


So as of now the plan is to grab one of these kits and a solid spacer kit (as well as new bearings/seals) and rebuild it (or get it rebuilt, more on that below)

Toyota Celica Supra- Supra 1979-86 ALL
Toyota Cressida IRS

MAXGRIP Supra 7.5". A real performance rebuild kit for the O.E.M. Supra LSD. These parts have been designed to get the maximum grip possible with the o.e.m. LSD! The kit comes with new stationary plates and new clutch plates that were normally not installed from the factory. Adding these two clutch plates increases the overall friction surface area 4X or 200% more than the typical factory LSD. Also included are new reversible solid bronze thrust washers, spiral grooved for oil. You also get new heavy-duty springs and complete shim kit (16 assorted thicknesses) for setting the clearances within the LSD to exact specs for best performance. Using this kit, your LSD will be more responsive, lock faster, with maximum grip! No more one-tire fire!

Our solid pinion spacer kits are over 3X stronger than the typical o.e.m. crush sleeves. What does all this mean? What these parts do when correctly installed is set the distance between the inner and outer pinion bearings (bearing preload). At the same time, these parts also locate the pinion gear relative to the ring gear within the casing. So, why does the crush sleeve fail? It fails because it is too weak to resist deflection when high pinion loads are applied. This is why we often hear people say, “my ring and pinion finally blew up”. The failure is not instantaneous as it would be if the gears were over-powered. The failure happens over time, due to repeated hard driving. High pinion loads deflect the pinion gear over and over until the o.e.m. crush sleeve becomes “loose” and cannot properly maintain the bearing preload. This also allows the position of the pinion gear within the casing to move causing misalignment of the ring and pinion gears. Over time, this leads to “howling” gears followed by “ground up” gear teeth and eventually destroys the gears. Protect your ring and pinion with one of our high strength steel solid pinion spacer kits. All kits come with instructions and shim sets.

After looking through this walkthrough, I think that it may be a project that is over my head. The tools alone would be hundreds of dollars. So I emailed the guy that runs this site to see what he would charge to rebuild it.
http://www.gearinstalls.com/LSDrebuild.htm

Passenger side Celica-Supra seat is in. Now they match!

good build... I'm glad you are using OEM bearings for the diff. Don't waste time with Timekin

7/25/14
Picked up the axle! It's super gross looking, but it's there. One of the brake dust shields is pretty rotten, so that may end up getting deleted or something.


Here's the info plate from in the firewall. Axle code is F302 which is 7.5" open diff, 3.727 ratio.


The stock X72 Cressida axle is an E292 which is 7.1" open diff, 4.10 ratio

The MA60 diff I have is a 7.5" LSD with 4.30 ratio.

Now my dilemma is this: Do I use the 4.30 ratio ring and pinion from the MA60 Supra, or the 3.73 from the MA40 Supra? I'm leaning towards the 3.73. It would make the car accelerate slower, but would be way better for highway cruising. Plus if I ever go V8 or 7MGTE, the longer gearing would suit the power better.

Also, I ran the Mk1's VIN through the system at work, here's what I came up with.
1981 Celica-Supra liftback
Automatic 4 speed, sun roof, power package, cassette upgrade, production date 11/80, 5M-E engine


7/30/14

Tonight I did the most redneck thing I think I've ever done while working on a car.

I was disassembling the axle tonight. I got one axle out no problem (well, with a pulley puller looped through the holes in the stub and a big hammer) but the other was mega-stuck and wouldn't come out. I ended up tying it to a tree with a ratchet strap, and attaching the stub of the axle to my tow hook with another. The straps couldn't pull it out, so I gave the car some gas and one of the straps snapped. BLARG. So then I went and got a chain, and used THAT to hold the axle to the tree, and attached the stub to the tow-hook on my Subaru with a car tow strap. I pulled once and it wouldn't budge. I pulled it again and the axle was suspended taught in the air, and then POP the axle came right out. Nothing broke, nobody died. I am a champion.

Heard back from the local 4WD Specialties shop about an estimate on the diff rebuild. I sent them the link with the super detailed rebuild step-by-step, they showed it to the guys in their shop and said they could do it for $400. The dude in AZ that wrote the how-to wanted $300, but I'd have to ship everything at over $60 each way.
Plus, if I keep it local and something ends up going wrong, it's easier to deal with potential issues with someone a mile away from work rather than in another time zone.

8/5/14
Today I dropped off the diff and 3rd member at the shop. The tech suggested that I come back tomorrow to pick up the third member housing after he removes the pinion and races so I can clean it up and paint it while he builds the diff. But this evening Mitchell came over and helped me wire wheel the ends of the axle shafts so I could paint them before the new bearings get pressed on tomorrow at work. Here's before:



And after:



I also hit the centers of the new rotors so those don't rust:



However tonight I did discover that the calipers I got are not right. Unfortunately I had to get one from Rock Auto and one from Amazon so I need to figure out how to return those. Also the pads that I got from NAPA seem to contain two pairs of differing friction material, so those will be going back tomorrow, and I'll probably end up having to order calipers from NAPA at way more expense. The holes in the caliper brackets are too far apart to mount up to the axle. They also don't use the right e-brake mechanism, so I believe these are standard Celica calipers. This could end up being a real wild goose chase. I think AE86 calipers/pads will work in a pinch (lol geddit?), but the MA40 brakes are bigger.

Also, I don't know if I made a note of it on this thread or not, but last week when I was doing some work under the car, I noticed that when I jacked one side of the car up, a TON of power steering fluid leaked out of the rack boot. So I got a reman rack assembly from NAPA for like $120, and ordered some poly rack bushings from Xcessive Manufacturing since they were the same price as new stock ones.

It's always something.....


8/10/14

Last few days have been moderately productive. On Wednesday or Thursday I picked up the 3rd member housing from the shop so I can clean it up and paint it while the tech rebuilds the diff.





And I got the new axle bearings pressed on, and new wheel studs pressed in at work


Also, a few weeks ago I noticed that when I jacked up one side of the car, power steering fluid came pouring out one of the rack boots, so I got myself a new (reman) rack from NAPA for a whopping $120. In the past, after a turning, the steering wheel would be off-center in that direction. Turning the other direction would take the wheel off center the other way. I was pretty sure that it was the rack bushings allowing the rack to move around under load, so I ordered some polyurethane bushings from Xcessive Manufacturing. I installed everything yesterday and it seems to be working brilliantly.
Here's the rack with poly bushings


Here's one of the old bushings. I'd say there's the problem right there.



Up next:
Taking the 3rd member back to the shop tomorrow, hope to have the completed diff by the end of the week. Also in talks with people about getting some AE86 backing plates and calipers, but talks are going VERY slowly which is getting frustrating.
Also ordered one of these since Grip Royal is having a sale this week. $20 off with a free horn button and pair of sunglasses

Completed 3rd member!


Also a box of goodies was waiting for me on my front stoop when I got home


I also picked up some AE86 rear brake backing plates on Monday (thanks, Clayton!) and am still in talks with a guy about getting some AE86 calipers. I don't think they will fit with my Supra rotors, so I may end up having to sell those (can't return them since I painted the hats) or having someone lathe them down to the proper diameter, or just buying AE86 rotors like a sane person.

wow a lot of work getting done! Good job!

Got the steering wheel installed the other day. It is actually straight, the wheels are turned in the pic. And yes, I know the horn button is stupid, but it's the only one that will work with the wiring the way it is right now. I'll have to figure out a grounding solution to run the Grip Royal button.




I also primed and painted the axle. Hopefully the this will slow the rust a bit.





And here it is with the AE86 backing plates, axles, and 3rd member installed, as well as new brake hard and soft lines.



Now I'm just waiting (very impatiently) for a guy on facebook to respond back about shipping some AE86 calipers. I'd much rather get his than spend 3 times the cash for new ones.

Hey Jordan. What shop did the diff work for you? I might do the same thing.

Yotarip wrote:Hey Jordan. What shop did the diff work for you? I might do the same thing.

Four Wheel Drive Specialty on Broad St.
http://4wheeldrivespecialty.com/

Super nice folks to work with. Even came in at $10 under what they quoted.

Calipers came in. First thing I checked was the bleeder valves. I soaked them in PB and hit them with some propane heat before I even attempted to remove them, and they still snapped like twigs.



I barely even put any force on it. So there goes $75. RockAuto doesn't carry both, and even if they did I'm not totally confident they'd be the right part. NAPA can't get them, and Advance remans are $130 each + core. I can get brand new ones for (if I remember right) $120 each. I'm beyond pissed right now.

UPDATE
I went at the calipers SUPER carefully and drilled out the bleeders and chased the threads with a tap. One looks fine, but the other looks like I may have nicked the bottom seat where the valve seals a little bit. I'm gonna grab some new valves and see if they will work. Fingers crossed.

8/28/14
Alright, big update, but no pictures at the moment - I was too busy to take any. The Supra axle is in. It bolted up (more or less) just fine. A few notes:
1. The top arm mounting points on the Supra axle are about 2.5 inches farther apart than on the stock MX72 axle. This puts the arms at a bit of a weird spread angle. Not a huge deal, but worth noting. They still bolt in ok.
2. Running AE86 brakes with Celica-Supra e-brake cables looks like it might be possible, but I don't have the proper brackets right now. I'm sure I could figure something out eventually, but right now I have no handbrake.
3. The god-awful clunking has been reduced by around 75%. The old diff had a crap ton of play, this one doesn't. However, there is still some clunking. This is probably due to the bolt sleeves in my urethane bushings starting to wallow out in the fore-aft direction, possibly allowing a little play. This is "easily" fixed with some adjustable heim arms from TechnoToyTuning, but those are quite expensive and will have to wait.
4. The gearing, while a little shorter, isn't smack-you-in-the-face noticeable, at least not in the 20 min I drove around near my house.
5. I did some figure 8's to help the diff break in, and this thing locks REALLY nicely. I can spin both wheels now (though the 5M still doesn't have enough power to really get it to slide much)! I can't wait to drive it in the rain. BWAHAHA
6. The brakes probably need to be bled again. The pedal feels super spongy.
7. Even for how stiff it is, the front still has enough roll to drag the mud flaps around turns. A front sway bar is needed.

All in all I'm pretty happy with it so far. It's been an exceedingly expensive project but I think it will make the car that much more awesome. Anyway, just because I can, here's the updated build sheet for the car

Engine
5M-GE 2.8L straight 6
Rabid Chimp ceramic-coated mandrel-bent intake
K&N cone filter
ARP head studs
All new gaskets/seals
EGR & AC delete
Volvo electric fan conversion
AE86 oil cooler w/Mocal t-stat sandwich plate

Drivetrain
W58 5-speed transmission from MA70 Supra w/new seals
AE86 clutch pedal
MA60 master cylinder
MA70 slave cylinder
Custom 1-piece driveshaft
Stainless clutch line
MA40 Celica-Supra rear axle w/new seals and bearings
Rebuilt MA60 Celica-Supra P-type LSD w/Weir Performance MaxGrip and solid pinion spacer kits
AE86 rear brakes

Suspension/Wheels
MA60 Celica-Supra P-Type wheels (14x7)
Front:
Shortened front strut housings
KYB AGX shock inserts (from SW20 MR2 rear)
T3 coilover conversion w/camber plates & RCA’s
Energy Suspension poly control arm bushings
New Moog ball joints
Rear:
Custom 400lb/in springs
KYB AGX shocks (from Camaro)
Axle limit straps
T3 adjustable panhard rod
Homemade polyurethane 4-link bushings

Misc
MA60 Celica-Supra front seats
RA20 Celica “5-Speed” badge
Grip Royal Clay Knight steering wheel w/modified AE86 hub


8/30/14

I guess the mounting point for the panhard rod is slightly different between the two axles as well, as the axle was pulled way over to the right. I put it up on the lift and adjusted it back center (hooray for T3 adjustability!)



Also it looks like the panhard rod may now be slightly tapping the exhaust on hard bumps. Though it seems like it may be better now that the axle is centered.



In this (terrible) picture you can (kinda) see the weird angle the upper arms are at.



Also along with the clunking from the wearing urethane, the axle has some play in it that you can feel under accel/decel transitions where it wants to push the car one way or the other. Looks like I need to start saving for some T3 adjustable heim joint arms.



9/12/14

Got the car up on the lift and finally got measurements for the rear arms.



Upper (short) arm length bolt-to-bolt: 9 3/4"
Lower (longer) arm length bolt-to-bolt: 19"
All 4 bolts are the same dimensions
Bolt diameter: 13.9 mm
Bolt sleeve width: 49.6 mm
Bolt sleeve outer diameter: 19.9 mm
Bolt sleeve inner diameter: 14 mm

I'm emailing the specs to Gabe at Techno Toy Tuning as we speak, so we'll see if they have stuff on the shelf that will fit, or if they have to make it custom.

car looks good. What part of VA are you in. My car is in Va Beach at the moment, mid swap.

I'm in richmond.

I've notice while driving around that while going over bumps the shifter will actually bounce up and down through the tunnel. The whole transmission could just bob around.
Here's why. The mount is super old and tearing.



One of my #1 peeves on cars is crappy rubber connectors, like bushings, mounts, things like that. So last week I ordered this baby from Xcessive.



It took a little finagling to get everything to fit right (the thru bolts didn't clear where it sits down in the crossmember by like a hair, so I put a washer in between the upper and lower parts of the mount and it's pretty much perfect now).



I haven't driven it yet, but I'm making a trip tomorrow to gather supplies for a future long-term project. Details to follow depending on the results on my treasure hunt tomorrow.

lol. I bought one of those, along with the engine mounts. Alas, I went 6 speed, and got no use for it now. lol. But my rolla may be getting my w58...

oh, are you going to H2O on the 27th? I'm planning on going, but taking my Jetta (daily). Heading up with the LivAuto crew.

Nah, not my scene. Plus, that day is Octoberfest downtown!

Goodies!

After much swearing, prying, hammering, dropping little spacers and having to look for them, and more swearing, I finally got them in after work today.



After putting the car on the ground and pulling it out of the shop, the difference was immediate. The horrible HORRIBLE clunking that had plagued the car was completely gone. It had actually gotten so bad I dreaded driving the car, and now it's perfect! Also, it was raining, and now that all the power is going straight to the ground, this is an incredible wet-weather drifter. Burnouts for days (rainy days), and long controllable slides. It's seriously fantastic and I couldn't be happier. Worth every freaking penny.

Took a little trip out to the mountains this past weekend to pick up some bits for a long, slow engine build for this car





And here's the goods:



That's a nearly-complete 7M-GTE with new pistons, rings, gasket set, etc

The things I'm missing off the top of my head are injectors, turbo, head gasket, head studs, exhaust manifold, ignition, and intercooler.

The plan is to build this very slowly over the next year or two back to mostly stock spec with metal head gasket and ARP studs. Stock turbo, stock electronics (I pulled an engine harness and ECU out of a junkyard car for stupid cheap a month or so back). Supra radiator, 5M oil pump/oil pan, new uprated clutch, custom exhaust (likely based off of a modified aftermarket downpipe, and custom intercooler piping will be needed, but the motor itself will be pretty much stock to be as reliable as possible (yes, 7M's are just as reliable as every other Toyota motor given studs and headgasket).

I got all this stuff for an insane deal and this is by far the easiest swap there is so keep your "Why don't you just swap in a 2J/1J/1UZ" crap to yourself.