McLevin's Levin

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McLevin's Levin

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McLevin
Member

25-03-2022, 12:01 AM

#51

So yeah these came in the mail the other day. Big Grin

[Image: B485E85D-17FF-40E7-9A7C-DC31DFC23015-333...c3e260.jpg]

Fitted them this morning. Really happy with them. I think they make the front end look a lot more aggressive.

[Image: Photo02-03-2013114951_zpsbc23e310.jpg]

[Image: Photo02-03-2013114951_zpsbc23e310.jpg]

So I decided to tint my foglights yellow. Was harder than I expects because the fogs are domed making applying the wrap evenly a pain, but with a hair dryer and some paitence they came out alright.

Took the bumper off as it was easier and I wanted to investigate the bumper sag under the headlight.

[Image: 77233452-4C29-4794-96C4-026B8F950370-815...95d1b1.jpg]

[Image: 77233452-4C29-4794-96C4-026B8F950370-815...95d1b1.jpg]

For those that are curious this is the cause of bumper sag, with a bit of plastic weld it can be cured. I didn't have any at the time but now I know how to fix it at least.

[Image: 2AF5D0A3-0D86-4FC0-A918-D46926AD876D-815...d017d3.jpg]

[Image: 2AF5D0A3-0D86-4FC0-A918-D46926AD876D-815...d017d3.jpg]

The fogs all wrapped.

[Image: 0DA76577-1F17-4CCC-954E-7011ABA4B308-761...4f61fd.jpg]

And everything reassembled Smile

I reprinted my lip too excuse it was looking a bit tatty.

[Image: 97582659-B582-4D39-A59E-93B92E700F67-815...12a1e6.jpg]

And a final pic just for good measure.

[Image: 430E74BF-5D36-4FB7-96F5-5637A464CF77-815...6c0a8d.jpg]

McLevin

25-03-2022, 12:01 AM #51

So yeah these came in the mail the other day. Big Grin

[Image: B485E85D-17FF-40E7-9A7C-DC31DFC23015-333...c3e260.jpg]

Fitted them this morning. Really happy with them. I think they make the front end look a lot more aggressive.

[Image: Photo02-03-2013114951_zpsbc23e310.jpg]

So I decided to tint my foglights yellow. Was harder than I expects because the fogs are domed making applying the wrap evenly a pain, but with a hair dryer and some paitence they came out alright.

Took the bumper off as it was easier and I wanted to investigate the bumper sag under the headlight.

[Image: 77233452-4C29-4794-96C4-026B8F950370-815...95d1b1.jpg]

For those that are curious this is the cause of bumper sag, with a bit of plastic weld it can be cured. I didn't have any at the time but now I know how to fix it at least.

[Image: 2AF5D0A3-0D86-4FC0-A918-D46926AD876D-815...d017d3.jpg]

The fogs all wrapped.

[Image: 0DA76577-1F17-4CCC-954E-7011ABA4B308-761...4f61fd.jpg]

And everything reassembled Smile I reprinted my lip too excuse it was looking a bit tatty.

[Image: 97582659-B582-4D39-A59E-93B92E700F67-815...12a1e6.jpg]

And a final pic just for good measure.

[Image: 430E74BF-5D36-4FB7-96F5-5637A464CF77-815...6c0a8d.jpg]

McLevin
Member

25-03-2022, 12:02 AM

#52

[Image: F23C9810-08B4-4BB0-95CE-8DEEBEA2FE4A-998...148587.jpg]

Encountered issues fitting them as my current studs were too long so wheel wouldn't sit flush so had to run a 5mm spacer behind it.

Then when I came to lower the car a bit I found that the rear right coilover had seized. So went to remove it from the car only to find the anti roll bar drop link had threaded so I couldn't get that off. Eventually had both links cut off and new ones put on to replace them.

Soaked the coilover in a bucket of coke overnight and in the morning it came loose. So dropped the back another 20mm but encountered scrubbing so ended up removing the spacers for a bit.

Over the last two days I've been tweaking my height and dampener settings trying to get the perfect mix of function and form.

Started off by grinding the studs back so I could run the custom 20mm hubcentric spacers.

[Image: E3BE8D61-D41F-48AF-B0DD-C582BEA4474C-998...6af15d.jpg]

[Image: E3BE8D61-D41F-48AF-B0DD-C582BEA4474C-998...6af15d.jpg]

Then took the front coilovers off to adjust them, unwound them completely to blast any **** out of the threads so I wouldn't have the same issue that I had with the rear right one.

[Image: FF981099-766D-4428-BF14-0197C70D07DE-977...da9a2a.jpg]

[Image: FF981099-766D-4428-BF14-0197C70D07DE-977...da9a2a.jpg]

After a fair few tweaks and test drives i'm finally happy with it. Perfect mix of form and function. Can throw it in to corners with no scrubbing at all now.

[Image: D8E9311D-6913-42EE-98A6-7330E52576FB-977...b6560f.jpg]

[Image: D8E9311D-6913-42EE-98A6-7330E52576FB-977...b6560f.jpg]

[Image: 943B2865-7828-4F0C-ACF4-4B7F9AFFA444-977...73d232.jpg]

McLevin

25-03-2022, 12:02 AM #52

Not all that much progress on the Levin really, new discs and pads up front because the old ones were wearing thin.

I ordered some 20mm hubcentric bolt on spacers for the rear to help fill the arches a little.

[Image: F23C9810-08B4-4BB0-95CE-8DEEBEA2FE4A-998...148587.jpg]

Encountered issues fitting them as my current studs were too long so wheel wouldn't sit flush so had to run a 5mm spacer behind it.

Then when I came to lower the car a bit I found that the rear right coilover had seized. So went to remove it from the car only to find the anti roll bar drop link had threaded so I couldn't get that off. Eventually had both links cut off and new ones put on to replace them.

Soaked the coilover in a bucket of coke overnight and in the morning it came loose. So dropped the back another 20mm but encountered scrubbing so ended up removing the spacers for a bit.

Over the last two days I've been tweaking my height and dampener settings trying to get the perfect mix of function and form.

Started off by grinding the studs back so I could run the custom 20mm hubcentric spacers.

[Image: E3BE8D61-D41F-48AF-B0DD-C582BEA4474C-998...6af15d.jpg]

Then took the front coilovers off to adjust them, unwound them completely to blast any **** out of the threads so I wouldn't have the same issue that I had with the rear right one.

[Image: FF981099-766D-4428-BF14-0197C70D07DE-977...da9a2a.jpg]

After a fair few tweaks and test drives i'm finally happy with it. Perfect mix of form and function. Can throw it in to corners with no scrubbing at all now.

[Image: D8E9311D-6913-42EE-98A6-7330E52576FB-977...b6560f.jpg]

[Image: 943B2865-7828-4F0C-ACF4-4B7F9AFFA444-977...73d232.jpg]

McLevin
Member

25-03-2022, 12:03 AM

#53

Fitted the camber bolts and added another 1.5 degrees of negative camber. So i was now running -2.5 degrees of camber in the rear.

Excuse my filthy car >.<

A before and after pic.

The rear of the car felt a lot more planted when cornering hard so definitely a worthwhile upgrade.

Turns out that the extended studs i purchased don't fit, the knurl diameter was 0.2mm too thick so wouldn't pull through the hub. So i need to order some new ones at some point.

McLevin

25-03-2022, 12:03 AM #53

Apologies for the pic overload but its been a while since i've updated this thread. A lot has happened since my last update, not all of it good either. I'll try and break it down a bit too make it easier to read.

Since i had pretty much sorted out the ride height and fitment i decided to get some Whiteline Camber bolts for the rear and some extended hub studs for the front.

Fitted the camber bolts and added another 1.5 degrees of negative camber. So i was now running -2.5 degrees of camber in the rear.

Excuse my filthy car >.<

A before and after pic.

The rear of the car felt a lot more planted when cornering hard so definitely a worthwhile upgrade.

Turns out that the extended studs i purchased don't fit, the knurl diameter was 0.2mm too thick so wouldn't pull through the hub. So i need to order some new ones at some point.

McLevin
Member

25-03-2022, 12:04 AM

#54

Over Christmas i treated myself to a few bits for my Levin.

A Carbonfibre Cold Air Intake and piping, a set of Magnecor 8mm HT leads, new NGK Spark Plugs plugs.

Also ordered myself something bigger from Japan that took a little longer to get here.

Spent an afternoon fitting all the new bits.

Intake noise was a lot more noticeable after fitting the new CAI.

If you were wondering what was in the big box from Japan.

A brand new GReddy Power Extreme GS Exhaust System. Was getting tired of the Kakimoto Red Label and its drone on the motorway.

Got the exhaust fitted pretty much as soon as it arrived.

A lot quieter than the Kakimoto but still has a nice raspy note to it.

A Fujitsubo Manifold came up for sale and seeing as i had just upgraded the exhaust it seemed like the next logical step so I bought it.

Fitting it was a bit of a nightmare.

The bolts from the downpipe to the cat were seized and i needed to reuse the cat so had to get it off without damaging it. Nothing an afternoon with an angle grinder couldn't sort out.

This is what was left of my old manifold!

Once the old one was off fitting the new one was easy.

Look at that nice shiny polished manifold, it would be a shame if someone dropped a microfibre cloth on it whilst it was hot.

Oh wait! Sad

That was just the start of the dramas. Since fitting the manifold i noticed the exhaust was scraping on things that it never did before. Took a look under the car and noticed it was hanging really low.

This turned out to be the cause. The Subframe exhaust mount was pretty screwed.

McLevin

25-03-2022, 12:04 AM #54

Over Christmas i treated myself to a few bits for my Levin.

A Carbonfibre Cold Air Intake and piping, a set of Magnecor 8mm HT leads, new NGK Spark Plugs plugs.

Also ordered myself something bigger from Japan that took a little longer to get here.

Spent an afternoon fitting all the new bits.

Intake noise was a lot more noticeable after fitting the new CAI.

If you were wondering what was in the big box from Japan.

A brand new GReddy Power Extreme GS Exhaust System. Was getting tired of the Kakimoto Red Label and its drone on the motorway.

Got the exhaust fitted pretty much as soon as it arrived.

A lot quieter than the Kakimoto but still has a nice raspy note to it.

A Fujitsubo Manifold came up for sale and seeing as i had just upgraded the exhaust it seemed like the next logical step so I bought it.

Fitting it was a bit of a nightmare.

The bolts from the downpipe to the cat were seized and i needed to reuse the cat so had to get it off without damaging it. Nothing an afternoon with an angle grinder couldn't sort out.

This is what was left of my old manifold!

Once the old one was off fitting the new one was easy.

Look at that nice shiny polished manifold, it would be a shame if someone dropped a microfibre cloth on it whilst it was hot.

Oh wait! Sad

That was just the start of the dramas. Since fitting the manifold i noticed the exhaust was scraping on things that it never did before. Took a look under the car and noticed it was hanging really low.

This turned out to be the cause. The Subframe exhaust mount was pretty screwed.

McLevin
Member

25-03-2022, 12:05 AM

#55

So I ordered a new one from Mr T.

Which thankfully fixed the problem as you can see from the before and after pic.

So that was everything sorted on the Levin and i was enjoying the new exhaust and manifold setup.

For a few weeks until something terrible happened.

McLevin

25-03-2022, 12:05 AM #55

So I ordered a new one from Mr T.

Which thankfully fixed the problem as you can see from the before and after pic.

So that was everything sorted on the Levin and i was enjoying the new exhaust and manifold setup.

For a few weeks until something terrible happened.

McLevin
Member

25-03-2022, 12:06 AM

#56

So in March this happened.

Whilst i was sat in traffic on the motorway some t**t who wasn't paying attention smashed in to the car behind me smashing that car in to the rear of mine.

The damage didn't look too bad, the bumper didn't crack and none of my lights smashed, but opening the boot told a different story.

The rear end had been pushed in underneath the bumper. So off to insurers repairers it went. Not that i was happy with that, i wanted it to go to a repairer of my choice but i was told that wasn't an option.

I was given a "Like for like" hire car for the duration of the repairs. A Diesel Ford Fiesta. LOL

I got a phone call a week later saying that repairs had been completed on my Levin and it was ready for pick up, so off i went to pick it up.

McLevin

25-03-2022, 12:06 AM #56

So in March this happened.

Whilst i was sat in traffic on the motorway some t**t who wasn't paying attention smashed in to the car behind me smashing that car in to the rear of mine.

The damage didn't look too bad, the bumper didn't crack and none of my lights smashed, but opening the boot told a different story.

The rear end had been pushed in underneath the bumper. So off to insurers repairers it went. Not that i was happy with that, i wanted it to go to a repairer of my choice but i was told that wasn't an option.

I was given a "Like for like" hire car for the duration of the repairs. A Diesel Ford Fiesta. LOL

I got a phone call a week later saying that repairs had been completed on my Levin and it was ready for pick up, so off i went to pick it up.

McLevin
Member

25-03-2022, 12:07 AM

#57

[Image: Photo29-03-2014094009_zps24183fd4.jpg]

That and they'd bent the bottom corner of the bumper where they had pried it off i'm guessing.

[Image: Photo29-03-2014094005copy_zpsc0cab184.jpg]

They'd left huge drips of paint and a test patch on undamaged panels of the car.

The paint drips were fresh even though they told me the repairs had been completed three days prior to me collecting the car.

[Image: Photo29-03-2014094026copy_zps66000e7e.jpg]

And to top it all off. They had smashed one of my wind deflectors! Note the broken piece is on the passenger seat of my car.

To say i wasn't impressed is an understatement. I rang my insurance company immediately and told them i was refusing to sign off on the repairs. When i sent them the pics they were shocked and said i was right not to sign off on them. I told them i wanted any further repairs carried out a garage of my choice, but was told that legally i had to let the garage attempt to make good the repairs before i could do that. Obviously i wasn't happy with that but i didn't have any other option than to leave my car with those clowns.

A few days later i got a phone call from the repair centre manager telling me it had all been sorted. So off i went again.

Fortunately this time they did a better job. I made them mop and polish the rear of the car as a good will gesture and presented them with an invoice for a brand new wind deflector from Toyota which they paid in full.

By this point i was just happy to have my Levin back.

I had picked up a brand new BZR decal when i got the manifold so i figured now was as good a time as any to put it on.

Removed the old BZG decal, which took a lot longer than expected.

And put on the new BZR decal.

What better way to celebrate getting my Levin back than a little photo shoot with a friends S13.

McLevin

25-03-2022, 12:07 AM #57

Even seeing the car from a distance i knew i wasn't going to be happy with the repairs. Things were worse than i could imagine.

Firstly, glaringly obvious, the paint didn't match. They had clearly just used the factory paint code rather than mixing new paint to match the current one. The paint is 18 years old of course it isn't going to match factory fresh paint so why even try? The guy tried blagging me and saying its impossible to get a decent match on bumpers lol.

That and they'd bent the bottom corner of the bumper where they had pried it off i'm guessing.

They'd left huge drips of paint and a test patch on undamaged panels of the car.

The paint drips were fresh even though they told me the repairs had been completed three days prior to me collecting the car.

And to top it all off. They had smashed one of my wind deflectors! Note the broken piece is on the passenger seat of my car.

To say i wasn't impressed is an understatement. I rang my insurance company immediately and told them i was refusing to sign off on the repairs. When i sent them the pics they were shocked and said i was right not to sign off on them. I told them i wanted any further repairs carried out a garage of my choice, but was told that legally i had to let the garage attempt to make good the repairs before i could do that. Obviously i wasn't happy with that but i didn't have any other option than to leave my car with those clowns.

A few days later i got a phone call from the repair centre manager telling me it had all been sorted. So off i went again.

Fortunately this time they did a better job. I made them mop and polish the rear of the car as a good will gesture and presented them with an invoice for a brand new wind deflector from Toyota which they paid in full.

By this point i was just happy to have my Levin back.

I had picked up a brand new BZR decal when i got the manifold so i figured now was as good a time as any to put it on.

Removed the old BZG decal, which took a lot longer than expected.

And put on the new BZR decal.

What better way to celebrate getting my Levin back than a little photo shoot with a friends S13.

McLevin
Member

25-03-2022, 12:07 AM

#58

I got bored the other day and decided that i'd add some camber to my front wheels as it was something i'd been meaning to do but just never got round to.

Maxed out the camber on the front.

Yeah it did look cool but it handled like **** >.>

So i dialled it back a bit and kept it at -1.25 degrees which felt pretty good to drive.

McLevin

25-03-2022, 12:07 AM #58

I got bored the other day and decided that i'd add some camber to my front wheels as it was something i'd been meaning to do but just never got round to.

Maxed out the camber on the front.

Yeah it did look cool but it handled like **** >.>

So i dialled it back a bit and kept it at -1.25 degrees which felt pretty good to drive.

McLevin
Member

25-03-2022, 12:08 AM

#59

All those reds! Front and Rear toe were both out and the thrust angle in the rear was out.

After half an hour of adjustments things were looking a lot better even though i did have to argue with the guy to let me keep the camber.

I really regret not doing it earlier as it was crazy how much difference it made to the handling of the car. Feels so much better now and i feel a lot more confident in the cars ability.

Treated the Levin to some new rubber at the same time too. So she's now sitting on a set of new Toyo T1R's.

McLevin

25-03-2022, 12:08 AM #59

The Levin had been handling like a dog and the steering pulling to the right a bit since the accident. I had been assured the chassis was straight so i put it down to my alignment being out. Finally got round to going for a full 4 wheel alignment and guess what? Everything was way out.

All those reds! Front and Rear toe were both out and the thrust angle in the rear was out.

After half an hour of adjustments things were looking a lot better even though i did have to argue with the guy to let me keep the camber.

I really regret not doing it earlier as it was crazy how much difference it made to the handling of the car. Feels so much better now and i feel a lot more confident in the cars ability.

Treated the Levin to some new rubber at the same time too. So she's now sitting on a set of new Toyo T1R's.

McLevin
Member

25-03-2022, 12:09 AM

#60

As you can see it was in need of a good clean. So i removed bits and bobs and gave it a decent clean and polish. Its still not finished but looks 100% better already.

Then it was time to move on to the outside of the car. Started by using a clay bar on the whole car. It's crazy how much **** they remove from your paintwork, works well to highlight all the imperfections too.

Of course it had to start raining just as i got halfway through polishing the roof! Makes for a good before and after though. You can see the line down the centre of the roof.

Eventually the rain disappeared and two days later the car was fully clay barred, polished and waxed. Minus the front wings and bumper which would be being painted imminently.

It always surprises me how well the paint comes up on this car especially as most of it is original 18 year old factory paint.

Somehow got roped in to helping with my mates S13 too.

McLevin

25-03-2022, 12:09 AM #60

With show season already underway and Japfest only two weeks away i figured i should pull my finger out and give the Levin a good detailing.

Started with the engine bay which has been neglected for a good two years.

As you can see it was in need of a good clean. So i removed bits and bobs and gave it a decent clean and polish. Its still not finished but looks 100% better already.

Then it was time to move on to the outside of the car. Started by using a clay bar on the whole car. It's crazy how much **** they remove from your paintwork, works well to highlight all the imperfections too.

Of course it had to start raining just as i got halfway through polishing the roof! Makes for a good before and after though. You can see the line down the centre of the roof.

Eventually the rain disappeared and two days later the car was fully clay barred, polished and waxed. Minus the front wings and bumper which would be being painted imminently.

It always surprises me how well the paint comes up on this car especially as most of it is original 18 year old factory paint.

Somehow got roped in to helping with my mates S13 too.

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