Does this look like a good turbo build?

[SAV912]

Yeah. It's been less than a year since I sold my Yaris. The Fiat wasn't what I thought, the Celica I'm driving now is aggravating, and I can't afford an Abarth 500.

So, I may be looking to get back into a Yaris and I found this gem.

http://www.jabaay.com/2009-Toyota-Yaris-S-TRD-Turbo-Lansing-Illinois-60438/4665990

I had gotten places with my old black Yaris, but didn't get into turbocharging or any serious engine work. Was wondering if any of you gurus can tell from the pictures if this car is a quality build or even if it previously belonged to somebody here. It looks like it has the MI center armrest as well, so whoever owned it was aware of MI, if not YarisWorld.

Thanks again and it's good to see some of the regulars still causing trouble. :thumbsup:

EDIT: Didn't mean to crosspost, forgot about the Forced Induction forum.

[CTScott]

That is not a TRD turbo kit- It looks like a generic aftermarket one (Zage, etc.), but it looks pretty well done, and $9K is a good price for a non turbo 09.

[SAV912]

I figured it wasn't the TRD kit, but it seems like it has a few other parts and looks pretty well put together. I need to run the VIN though before I even think of e-mailing that dealer.

For reference, I paid $8585 OTD for my stock 09 back in January 2010. Did the lowering, wheels, headlights, intake, shift kit and stereo all myself. Only thing I think this one needs is Garm's center exit exhaust. :biggrin:

-C

[mazilla]

Is Garms Yaris still for sale?

[SAV912]

Is Garms Yaris still for sale?

I think so. His thread in FS hasn't said it's sold.

His car is a little too extreme for me, though, when I stopped and thought about it. I do 28 miles of interstate one way to work, usually while hauling a hatch full of pharmecuticals. I need my interior and A/C. There's also the little problem of his car being 2500 miles away from me. :drinking:

-C

[cali yaris]

Looks clean to me, good job on the fuel lines. Any problem with smogging in your state?

[SAV912]

Looks clean to me, good job on the fuel lines. Any problem with smogging in your state?

Metro Atlanta smog checks, but not the state of Georgia as a whole. No smog in Savannah.

-C

[Bluevitz-rs]

Toyota Direct Injection (TDI) :confused:

It's definitely not TRD.

[Golddeenoh]

Toyota Direct Injection (TDI) :confused:

It's definitely not TRD.

^ /concur

yea, that would require the fuel injectors to be directly injecting into the cylinder at the last few degrees of the compression stroke, just before the power stroke. it is more common in diesel engines and i havn't seen a yaris with direct injection in the United States so someone clearly made a booboo or doesn't know what they are talking about.

[Bluevitz-rs]

This is a good reason to steer clear of this car.

[SAV912]

This is a good reason to steer clear of this car.

Because of what a dealer wrote? Dealers screw up all the time on listings. I'm not asking about what the dealer wrote, I'm asking for opinions based on the actual pictures. I already deduced that Direct Injection and such wasn't the case.

We already know TRD doesn't make a turbo kit for the 1NZ that looks like that, and we already know that no 1NZ is DI or we would've had horror stories about carbon build up after it being in the market since 2003.

-C

[cali yaris]

Why not ask about what the dealer wrote. You shouldn't have to "deduce" anything. If they don't know about the car's injection system, they probably don't know very much about ANY of the car.

So, how about some real questions then.

What turbo is it using? Is there any play? How many miles on the turbo?
What management is being used? How and where was the car tuned? Are there dynos? How much power is it making? What boost level is it running? What is the compression in each cylinder? What do the plugs look like?

And so on, and so on.

[Focus_Sh1ft]

That Yaris is definitely Brian's (pimp_my_yaris). I'm a mixture of bummed and curious to see why he sold it. Looks like he's only been inactive for a month too...

He had a pretty quality build. IIRC he built the engine, did the pump, injectors, rail and regulator (obviously).

Here's some more reading:
http://www.yarisworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29053

Edit: If you have another car and live in GA, there really is no reason to not buy Garm's Yaris if you've been considering it. 8.5k (or whatever it's at now) plus 1k shipping is beyond a steal for that level of performance. Plus, all the problems you mentioned really aren't that big of a deal (maybe ac, depending on how much needs to be done to make it functional).

[cali yaris]

^ Thanks for that plug. I will add that I know have the carpet and most interior pieces for it as well.

[SAV912]

Why not ask about what the dealer wrote. You shouldn't have to "deduce" anything. If they don't know about the car's injection system, they probably don't know very much about ANY of the car.

So, how about some real questions then.

What turbo is it using? Is there any play? How many miles on the turbo?
What management is being used? How and where was the car tuned? Are there dynos? How much power is it making? What boost level is it running? What is the compression in each cylinder? What do the plugs look like?

And so on, and so on.

The dealer was all about answering questions until I got into the really gritty stuff. I asked if the car had seen a tune, what kit it was wearing, and if the compression on each cylinder is holding. That was the last email in a string of conversation two days ago and suddenly I've heard nothing since. That's why I came here. I know that there are guys here who know their stuff, and I know that you're one of them, Garm; I just figured there was more to deduce from the pictures than by the words. My mistake if that isn't the case here. I know the pictures don't tell the whole story, I just figured we were assuming the dealer is none the wiser because they think the car has direct injection.

I don't care that the car sits inside the showroom because it is a quality build. The dealer didn't build the car and the showroom didn't build the car, so sitting in the showroom means nothing to me. WHY is it a quality build? That's what I was hoping to find out.

That Yaris is definitely Brian's (pimp_my_yaris). I'm a mixture of bummed and curious to see why he sold it. Looks like he's only been inactive for a month too...

He had a pretty quality build. IIRC he built the engine, did the pump, injectors, rail and regulator (obviously).

Here's some more reading:
http://www.yarisworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29053

Edit: If you have another car and live in GA, there really is no reason to not buy Garm's Yaris if you've been considering it. 8.5k (or whatever it's at now) plus 1k shipping is beyond a steal for that level of performance. Plus, all the problems you mentioned really aren't that big of a deal (maybe ac, depending on how much needs to be done to make it functional).

Thanks for the link. :thumbsup: I'll be thumbing through that. Garm's car is absolutely a quality build. It is a bit like jumping into the deep end for me, because the most powerful car I've owned is a 180 hp Celica. A 357 wheel hp Yaris is like being weened off formula, and immediately handed an M4 to go to war with. :drool:, but in the end, far far too hard core for me at this particular point in my life.

Also, I don't have a second car to use while his car would be built to my liking for my daily uses. The fiancee uses her car for a 61 mile round trip commute, and we work largely opposite hours, so it's not like I could be dropped off along the way. Trust me. I've thought LOOOONG and hard about that turbo'd beast. :headbang:

-C

[cali yaris]

WHY is it a quality build? That's what I was hoping to find out.

That's not possible from a few pictures. I would never, ever buy that car without the answers to my questions. What warranty is the dealer offering on it? :smile:

A 357 wheel hp Yaris is like being weened off formula, and immediately handed an M4 to go to war with. , but in the end, far far too hard core for me

It's ~270 @ 14 psi with the rocker switch down (switches between two maps), no water/meth and very easy to drive. That's my street setting.

[fnkngrv]

That Yaris is definitely Brian's (pimp_my_yaris). I'm a mixture of bummed and curious to see why he sold it. Looks like he's only been inactive for a month too...

He had a pretty quality build. IIRC he built the engine, did the pump, injectors, rail and regulator (obviously).

Here's some more reading:
http://www.yarisworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29053

Edit: If you have another car and live in GA, there really is no reason to not buy Garm's Yaris if you've been considering it. 8.5k (or whatever it's at now) plus 1k shipping is beyond a steal for that level of performance. Plus, all the problems you mentioned really aren't that big of a deal (maybe ac, depending on how much needs to be done to make it functional).


Brian and I talked on the phone I think back in the beginning of August and he mentioned kicking around the idea of moving on from his LB. I am having a blank on what his reasoning was even though we talked at length about options, etc. AFAIK he was actually talking about buying a Vette to build out as it is something he has wanted to do for a while. I know more of why he let the LB go, but they are personal so I won't dig into them. I can tell you that it had nothing at all to do with the LB itself. He loved it, but was ready to move on....kind of like Garm and his LB.

[fnkngrv]

It's ~270 @ 14 psi with the rocker switch down (switches between two maps), no water/meth and very easy to drive. That's my street setting.


Not to cause a hijack, but I can attest to Garm's LB at both settings as I rode in it back last December while I was in L.A. for work and having both settings really makes life easier it would seem. Run it at 14psi like a woman wearing jeans and sneakers...switch to 24psi and put on the tight skirt n' heels and go super sexy! :headbang:


I wish that I could have ridden in Brian's LB too, but unfortunately I didn't make it to Chicago in time. :brokenheart: I have always wanted to feel the comparison in several boosted Yarii, but really even though the count is going up it still is nowhere close to "mainstream". A double edged sword indeed.

[Focus_Sh1ft]

Great, now we have two cars we have to make sure end up in good hands lol. With Brian's, I believe one of his biggest problems was hitting the limits of the fic after building his engine. Considering how much is already done, if anyone picked it up they would heavily benefit from getting a standalone installed.

It's an excellent starting point for a project car given everything already done and having been documented.

[fnkngrv]

Great, now we have two cars we have to make sure end up in good hands lol. With Brian's, I believe one of his biggest problems was hitting the limits of the fic after building his engine. Considering how much is already done, if anyone picked it up they would heavily benefit from getting a standalone installed.

It's an excellent starting point for a project car given everything already done and having been documented.

He was a bit miffed at the limits he was seeing to a point. He and I also discussed what was involved with going full standalone, but like I said he had other personal reasons for moving on. :smile:

Other description issues aside the biggest one I have is with the fuel economy rating which of course is obviously incorrect with how the maps are configured. I doubt the dealer will know or share what that really means. Every state is different too with what can come back on a dealer for incorrect listing information and mpg is a huge sticking point.:drinking:

[Focus_Sh1ft]

I'm surprised they even bought it. Most dealers would run after seeing so many aftermarket parts.

Obviously they're wrong on mpg, but with the tune dialed in you could still easily expect 30 combined.

[Jason@SportsCar]

Is that a normal amount of rust for cars in that part of the country? The engine mount and many of the bolt/screw heads appear to be covered in it. :iono:

[racerb]

That's about normal for the Northeast, I have 3 Celicas from them parts, bodies are full of rust from all the road salt in the winters. Heck my '10 Yaris has rusted badly in the last year since bringing it to coastal North Carolina, all the sea salt and humidity are killers of exposed metal.

racerb

[fnkngrv]

Is that a normal amount of rust for cars in that part of the country? The engine mount and many of the bolt/screw heads appear to be covered in it. :iono:


Yes Jason. For the north midwest and northeast you will get rusty showing like that in the 1st couple years even.

[fnkngrv]

So this is indeed Brian's LB for sale. I spoke with him on the phone this afternoon. He may log on and show his new baby, but I am not sure. He sold/traded the LB to CarMax and they must have auctioned it off he thinks. When I told him what they had put for the description about it being a "TRD Turbo TDI" build he laughed so hard I thought that he was gonna drop the phone.

[Focus_Sh1ft]

Is that a normal amount of rust for cars in that part of the country? The engine mount and many of the bolt/screw heads appear to be covered in it. :iono:

The amount of jealousy I'm feeling right now... :rolleyes:

[cali yaris]

When I told him what they had put for the description about it being a "TRD Turbo TDI" build he laughed so hard I thought that he was gonna drop the phone.

haha, nice!

[cali yaris]

I know he started that build with a cheap turbo that failed. Do you know what he replaced it with?

[cali yaris]

any new info? is the thread still alive?

[fnkngrv]

I know he started that build with a cheap turbo that failed. Do you know what he replaced it with?


The first turbo blew because he used an oil restrictor by mistake. The new turbo has been running like a champ he said. They were both Godspeed GT25 universal turbos.

[SAV912]

Not really much else to this thread. I contacted the dealer twice more to little avail, and then called to attempt to speak with somebody. I've gotten that it was bought off auction, was given a good clean up, and that there are no CELs. That's all they really got to me.

I found out tons more info about the car from you guys here on YW.

-C

[Bluevitz-rs]

Just go buy it!!

[cali yaris]

Good question. SAV, are you buying the car after all that? and why yes or no?