My UK RT40 Deluxe

Hi guys. Here's a little about my Corona here in The UK. It was sold new in Penrith, UK in 1968 and owned locally, passed to the original owner's grandson in the 1970s. Here is a photo of it getting a clean by him, back in the day.

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It remained in the family until 1980 when the original Toyota garage bout the car back. They restored it and in 1990 used and showed the car until it was sold in 2005. It passed briefly through two more owners' hands before I bought the car via eBay in 2007

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I was on the lookout for something old, Japanese and free from rot. Something that I'm sure you will know is getting extremely difficult. The choice of such cars is becoming pretty limited. I hadn't been particularly aware of the Corona before I saw its fuzzy photographs online. I won the auction and headed to Ipswich, trailer on tow to collect my next car. When looking for a car I had good intention to use it on a daily basis however on arrival at the barn where it was stored, it was clear this car should not be used daily. In much better condition than I had imagined, I was about to take on a new responsibility.

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The body was in super condition. Really solid with a great paint job. The original colour had been used in the apparently splendid restoration some 17 years earlier by Jim Walton. Upon first drive however, it was clear the car was seriously unloved mechanically. Over the first couple of years of ownership, a mechanical restoration was carried out including a full and thorough brake and suspension rebuild. With such little power however I wanted the car to be capable in the corners so I shod it with Minilite 13” x 6” wheels and some premium historic race rubber in the form of Avon CR6-ZZ tyres. This transformed the car's cornering and stopping abilities.

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At the end of the 2010 show season I bought a 1985 Toyota Celica for its engine and gearbox. The Celica was used for a month to ensure I was happy with the powerplant and duly stripped for the heart transplant. The engine was one of the last to have a carburettor and as such was an ugly mess of pipes and sensors. I stripped the engine of all external parts and set about offering it into the engine bay. The sump required refabrication to clear the chassis crossmember. I further tidied it up a lot and shod it with two new 40mm DCOE Weber carburettors on new manifolds sourced from The USA. The flywheel lost a kilo in excess weight and balanced with a new clutch. Once I'd stripped the engine bay back to bare metal and repainted in the correct shade of blue, the engine and gearbox were fitted along with a new Celica radiator. As I build cars with restraint, I didn't want much noise from this setup so I fabricated an airbox for the carburettors' intake to limit induction noise. I fabricated the exhaust system in 2 ½” stainless steel with two silencers. Since the car was already running disc brakes as standard, I added a remote servo to boost stopping power.

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Once back on the road I was really pleased with the results which turned out just how I was hoping. Not too much noise, bags of torque and pleasing driveability. It's a little rocket but takes little away from the dignified nature of the Corona. In general driving it's relaxing and docile but giving it some stick away from the lights reveals a very different car. The extra gear helps with motorway cruising too.

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My car has been featured in a couple of car magazines and this year was used for filming the forthcoming Ron Howard film about GP stars Nikki Lauda and James Hunt's 1976 championship battle. Keep an eye out for the film in 2013. Here it is on set

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The long-term plan is to look after and care for this rare piece of motoring history. The next jobs on the car include uprated anti-roll bar and a re-carpet. I really relish the difficulties such rarities create in keeping roadworthy and in fine fettle.

If you'd like to see more, see here or for technical photos of the engine conversion see here

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Welcome...
Ive seen your car on another forum maybe [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

True inspiration to what I want to do. I hope to have you answer some swap questions when the time comes!

Thanks and glad you approve. I have posted on JNC but not for a while or with engine mods. Happy to help where I can

Ferg

beautiful. I have seen this before as well and looked through your photos.

Factory disc brakes on your Corona?

Wow I'm speachless what a beautiful corona than you for showing it off for us and giving us the story of the car .... I'm leaning more towards the 18rg motor lol thanks

Thanks guys. Yes mine has factory discs for which I am very thankful!

Beautiful car in all areas, envious of your disc brakes...I'm on the hunt for some...

Im looking at doing the disc brake conversion and i was wondering what brakes will i need to use?

Really nice car. I like it.

what kind of mod did you do to the oil pan, i have the same problem with mine. Maybe your experience will help me. can you share some info with me?
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Wow, I have just bought a couple of RT40's as restoration projects, this car is simply stunning and I love the engine swap, Thank you for the flicker link, I will be studying them thoroughly.

eliu wrote:what kind of mod did you do to the oil pan, i have the same problem with mine. Maybe your experience will help me. can you share some info with me?
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The sump modification was cut and shut. TIG welded. See technical shots in the link I mentioned at the end of my first post