Turbocharged Altezza

Originally, I planned to buy a Subaru Impreza WRX STI when I manage to sell my Nissan Fairlady Z. The WRX STI has always been known for its flagship color, the World Rally Blue, its turbo boxer engine and AWD system. The second Toyota Altezza that I was going to view had me really excited. From the moment I saw from the photos, I knew this is the Altezza that I want to swap with. The reason is how similar this unit is to the WRX STI. It has the same color (maybe not the same shade) and a big turbo in the engine bay. The only thing missing part being the AWD system. Initially, if I swap for an Altezza, it was to be put on sale the moment I get it and it would be my temporary ride. However, if I could get my hands on this unit, I might change my mind and keep it instead. Then, without further delay, I quickly made an appointment to view this beast. There was one small issue though. He lives in another state and we had to meet in the middle between our respective states. In the end, we decided to meet at a Tesco parking lot, in the state between our states. Luckily, it was only a 45 minutes drive away from my house.

When I arrived, I looked at the exterior and I was already grinning. The paint was immaculate and it was the right shade of blue for me. It really looks well taken care of but something was amiss. I did not like the Vertex body kit it had, the lack of a spoiler at the back and the rims were only acceptable to me. Then, he started the engine and open the bonnet and I like what I saw. It had the original 3S-GE engine but along with a few shiny parts. It had aluminum piping, aluminum radiator and of course, the main star, the huge turbo. The thought of me owning a turbo performance car like this Altezza already set me on cloud nine. I was ready to swap even without a test drive. However, I had my worries because modified engines, especially turbocharging often have a lot of issues such as reliability, overheating and leakage. The owner was a friendly and knowledgeable guy and he explained how he modded his car. The engine makes around 300 hp on wheels but that there is no reason to worry. He even looked at my 350Z and told me he realized it had a leak with one of the exhaust manifolds and the fuel mapping is on the rich side.

  

After looking at both cars, the owner asked me to test his Altezza. The interior was very clean and stock except for the aftermarket boost meter and boost controller. The front seats have been replaced with locally made, SSCUS semi bucket seats. A great addition to a super-fast car but I prefer Recaro I drove around Tesco because I only wanted to test the clutch. The clutch was Ogura's Super Single and it was hard for me. I was told that this is the softest clutch he could use that would not slip with the power his Altezza is producing. When I park the car, he told me that I did not feel the power of the turbo by driving around Tesco. So he asked me to sit in the passenger seat and he drove around showing me the power. It was the first time in many years, have I felt such power and excitement where every time he accelerated, my body would get pushed by the G force and stuck to the sport seats. I found myself smiling at the torque this beast is producing. Next, he tested my 350Z with me in the passenger seat. He quickly noticed and mentioned the weakness of the 350Z which I agree to all. When it was all done, we talked about details and I left feeling happy that I will be getting this beast. However, when I contacted the owner the next day, he was not keen on the swap and the deal was off. It looks like I have to keep finding then. What a shame.