Change of Heart

As with the given condition to me, I listed out a couple of choices of my next car. Surprisingly there is an absence of one particular brand, Toyota. My dad used to only support the Toyota and Mercedes Benz brand and despise Honda, BMW and Nissan. However, in recent years more brand enter his consideration such as Peugeot and Hyundai. The reason would be a too cheap for continental car, Peugeot and the cheap but elegant European look Hyundai. The first non-mainstream car in my family is my brother's Hyundai Tucson. This first step allows me to consider a more wide variety of brands.

Given the budget, my father considered the D-Segment or a slight luxurious Sedan. My dad had his eyes set on the Mercedes Benz C-Class and the Volkswagen CC. Being a fan of Mercedes Benz, the C Class is the choice that he would like me to have. However, I do not like it at all and the reason is simple. He drives a E200 CGI and it is suppose to be a bigger, better car than the C CLass but to me the only interesting part of that E200 is the power of the 1.8L Turbo engine. If the supposedly better car could not woo me, how do you expect the smaller one to fair ? Furthermore, I do not like the fact that most C Class are locally assembled and if I were to choose I would pick the C250 CGI coupe. My dad would not agree because it costs a bomb and 2 doors do not fly with my parents.

The Volkswagen CC captured my dad's sight because of its sporty but continental feel it gives out. I too think that the CC is a beautiful car but perhaps too mature looking for a 24 year old guy. Although the interior is dress in black, the interior is a bit empty for a luxury 4 door coupe and frankly old fashion. This is expected given the usual range of people that would buy a CC and the demand of such interior in Europe. The most unexpected and surprising element is its power-plant. It has a 1.8L Turbo engine similar to the E200 my dad owns but the power is only 155hp which is too low and a 7 speed DSG that screams better fuel consumption. My transition from a sports car to this would mean the end of the joy of driving for me. The price tag is out of the budget given to me.

I have to remember what features that I am looking for in a car. My Celica is a 1.8L with 190hp plus 180Nm of torque. It is a low, road hugging handling machine. The replacement model must have a close enough power figure and appropriate torque although it is eay to find any car above 180Nm of torque. Power alone would not be enough as the handling part plays a key point too. The Mercedes Benz always give me the drive of being too heavy, not stable and drives like a ship in rough sea. Both the C Class and the CC have good enough torque or power because of the turbo engine but handling wise it just could not impress me. The prices of both model is way over the given budget but for my dad sometimes you have to pay more for its brand. Many just thought about the prestige image it would give when driving either one but I am more into its performance. I would like him to pay more for performance instead.

Test Drive: Lexus IS250, My Poison

Sad news have arrived while the Celica is getting repaired. My dad being the old fashioned type has gone against keeping a car that was involved in an accident. I too share his view but my Celica is not damage to dad point only having one absorber issue. My dad has decided to sell my precious Celica. I felt sad as the time between me and my Celica is just a short of 3 years. I feel there are more that we both could achieve together. I did not know that my sports car days would come to an end so soon. So, I have no motivation to work on the Celica anymore. The time to look for a replacement has come and once again my dad will lay down some rules in looking for a new car.

My mum thinks that a sports car is the source of all problem and thus banning all sports car includes any 4 door sports car such as the Evolution Lancer or the Impreza. My dad on the other hand bans all grey imports and used car, leaving me with not much choice. The bright side is the very high budget available but coupled with all the bans, I actually have not much car choices left. The decision would be tough. Hearing all the conditions, 1 particular car popped into my mind. One that I have eyed for quite some time. The 2005-2012 Lexus IS250. It seems perfect. Luxurious sedan with a lovely 2.5l V6 engine with just enough JDM sprit. However, the new model which looks hideous to me, just launched making me unable to buy it new even if I want to.

One day, my dad surprised me with a call and said he found an IS250 and said I am going to love it. When I reached I saw this beauty and indeed I was in love but I should not show it. I was told that the current owner did some mod here and there. Some were to my liking some were not. I loved the front lip, suspension and exhaust change and the spoiler. Not loving the huge but plain 19" rims. I could see that the car has low mileage and is well kept such as no kids, parking under roof all the time and daily wash. It even have all sort of tinting of the lights to prevent stone chips. I had to take it for a spin. On the inside I did not like that it is a local spec without the touch screen from Japan and no famous Mark Levinson sound system.  

On the test drive I like the hum of the aftermarket mufflers and low and hard ride. It kind of reminds me of my Celica. I do love the metal paddle shifters on the steering and the gear indicator on the console. Both high tech and sporty. I expected great torque from the V6 but it felt heavy maybe due to the large rims (stock is 17"). It was just a short spin and I could not test it all out like I wanted to but I could tell where the luxurious and sporty side of the car is and how both come well together. I was settle because of the mods it has saving me from all the trouble of modding myself but being an used car really concerns me. It is also very short with short wheelbase and small boot. Rear passenger would definitely suffer from legroom issue. I gotta think properly but I am really bias towards this Lexus.

Progress Check Part 3

Another round of progress check with the ever slow workshop. This should be my last time delivering parts and I hope soon the car will be well again. Just tracking for some hard to find parts but I manage to find them due to good luck. The biggest problem remaining is finding a suitable rim. This is a major headache for me

for the whole process. Many people out there are only familiar with the diameter of the rim and that is it. So, it does not seem to be a difficult task. However, one have to worry about offset for caliper clearance and tire width and also the P.C.D. of your wheel aka bolt size/nut size. 

When only one rim broke, I had to look for solutions and the best way is to buy 2 rims. While my dad had a tire shop look for 2 similar rims, I had sets of wheels on loan till a suitable rim is found. The first set I received on loan is a chrome 18" rim. When I first look at the rim I knew right away it will not fit. Why, you may ask. Firstly, it is the kind where the front and rear have different offset making the front have 235 mm width and rear have 255 mm width. The maximum my front can take is 225 mm. Secondly, I am sure it could not clear my 4 pot caliper. Finally, after putting the rim on, the nut could not screw in because the bolt is too short.

Since the first one did not fit, I got a second set. This is the now popular rota style where Japan design is copied with super width with 8jj, 9jj and evern 10jj. It looks like it could clear any caliper but I have my doubt. Again I am right because my caliper is huge and this rim could only clear the top part and not the lower part of the caliper. The fault in my opinion is the diameter. This is a 17" and if it is 18" it might have cleared. The solution is to use my existing rim on the front because it could clear the caliper with the help of a spacer and these rota style is put on the back. Normally, a 9jj rim could not fit a Celica even on the rear but I have my rear wheels on negative camber. So, it fits. 

Now I only need these rims so that the car can be tested and sent for painting which are the final processes for the car to be completely done. Then, the last thing would be wheel balancing and alignment which needs rims of the same sizes not the temporary measure of 18" in the front and 17" on the back. I hope the tire shop could find an 18" with 5 x 100 P.C.D., width of 7.5jj and offset of 42 and lower.