1985 Toyota Soarer GT Limited review from Jersey
"Very rare Japanese luxury hi-tec performance coupe"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Air con can't be re-gassed, so have taken all hardware out.
Some wear to the colour of the leather seats.
The digital LCD speedo and CRT TV in the dash work whenever they want to.
Fitted new front brake calipers off of a Toyota Cressida, as the seals were leaking on mine.
Alternator was fried when I bought the car, because the water pipe above it was leaking on to it.
Replaced the worn out exhaust system with a custom stainless steel one, getting rid of the cat at the same time.
Windscreen is cracked, so have bought a new one, which will be fitted in the near future.
General comments?
Absolutely love this car, mainly because as the car is now over 20 years old, there is nothing else on the road that comes close to the character it has.
VERY reliable, starts EVERY time, unlike a lot of other cars I could mention.
Only down side I can say is that the old Japanese steel the body is made from seems to rust really quickly, which is a shame.
Oh, and it also drinks the fuel a fair bit being a 3 litre!
Stock 6MGEU motor albeit with Magnecor ignition leads, NGK iridium plugs, a Rabid Chimp induction kit and cone filter, and a stainless steel exhaust system with de-cat from the down pipe back.
This has let the motor breath better and has no doubt released a few more horses, although I have no idea what the current power output is. I have heard that these motors gave out around 190HP straight out of the factory, but over 20 years down the line it's probably lost some, so all in all it's most likely still 190HP!
The transmission is 4 speed auto, which slows it a little, so I am trying to source a 5 speed manual plus a limited slip diff to speed things up.
These cars are known for being tail happy drifters, so I have fitted the following to try and tame it a little.
7 X 17 Wolfrace alloys in 205/45/17 rubber.
Cusco Strut bars front and rear.
Addco uprated anti roll bars front and rear.
This means that when I now go round a roundabout in the rain, the back end doesn't spin out when I'm only doing 20mph!
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| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Model year | 1985 |
| Year of manufacture | 1985 |
| First year of ownership | 2006 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2009 |
| Engine and transmission | 3.0 petrol Automatic |
| Performance marks | 8 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 9 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 9 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 8 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 55000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 63000 miles |
| Previous car | Volkswagen Scirocco |
| Date of Entry | 19th May, 2009 |