Thinking about getting a yaris

[sv650steve]

I really like the yaris. They are pretty nice and well within my price range. I currently have a 2000 v6 accord auto, but the slushbox transmission is probably going to go out soon. The yaris is the exact opposite of the accord it's light, nimble, and gets good gas mileage. My only drawback is the power. I was thinking I'd do some minor modifications and get a little bit more power out of it without investing huge amounts of money. I was thinking of doing a light weight flywheel, pulleys, header, then maybe intake. I don't want to go all the way for a turbo, or have to do tuning. I've heard of guys making an extra 15hp with their manual yaris. Can this be done without tuning and just bolt ons? I'm looking for something thats closer in power to my accord, granted it probably only makes 180hp at the wheels and 3300 pounds. Or would I be better off picking a different car.

[Kalispel]

I transitioned from a manual 5-spd Honda Accord EX Sedan (4 cylinder) about 6 months ago to my 2015 Toyota Yaris SE (manual 5-spd also). I really like it a lot, and it reminds me a lot of the driving fun of my Honda CRX Si from back in the mid-late 80's. For me, the acceleration of my Yaris is similar to that of my old Accord (and every other Honda/Acura that I have owned over the years), since the Horsepower-to-weight ratios are so similar. It has just enough zip for me to get the job done as a daily driver - but I am not a demanding or aggressive driver by nature. Still, I wish the SE model would have added about +20-25 more horsepower, just for the extra fun-factor, and to solidify its sportier image/badging.

[0BD1Kenobi]

I went from a 2011 evo x to my 2012 yaris se manual, if you look past the hp numbers, the car is a blast to drive. I do drive mine aggressively pretty much everyday. I cant speak as far as numbers with performance part since ive never dynod mine, but a nice wheel tire combo, good coilover, throttle body, and tooter intake spacer the car in my option is fun, and thats coming from someone that had 350hp, awd, and turbo to maybe 100 n/a lol. I would say most important thing is driving experience if you havent driven one go test one out and see if its for you hp #s can always be changed with enough time and money. hope this helps!

[Kar98]

If you don't put in any other mod (you will though, the car is like a damn LEGO toy with pieces snapping off and on easily to make work simpler), get the TRD rear sway bar. Costs $179, adds two grand worth of car ;)

[Thirty-Nine]

The Yaris, and many other small cars, are all about the illusion of speed. You may not actually be going terribly quickly but it's so fun that it doesn't matter. It's the same reason a go kart is a hoot!

My Yaris has a bunch of engine modifications and it's just as much fun to drive as my 265 hp Subaru WRX. It's not as fast, but still lot of fun.

[tmontague]

Invest in a header, intake manifold, 1zz throttle body, short ram intake, exhaust, lowering springs and rear sway bar. Then drive it hard.

If you aren't afraid of slamming it into second gear coming off of 70km/h merging onto the highway then this car has more than enough power. Most people are too shy to put the pedal to the floor. If you embrace the high revs and realize that the engine is more than capable to withstand it, than you're good to go.

Remember, it's more fun to drive a slow car fast then a fast car slow. Especially a slow car that weighs just over a ton

[ern-diz]

...If you embrace the high revs and realize that the engine is more than capable to withstand it, than you're good to go.

Remember, it's more fun to drive a slow car fast then a fast car slow. Especially a slow car that weighs just over a ton

My engine is stock, but this is still so true.

[tmontague]

I'm always made more aware of the shyness of North American drivers anytime I read reviews of economy cars.

Obviously this only goes for m/t for the most part. However, people are used to big 8 and 6 cylinder engines that have a lot of torque at under 3k rpm. Put them in a 4 banger and all of a sudden it's too slow on the highway.

Interesting thing is, the 4 banger isn't anymore slow than their typical highway merging acceleration. The problem is their lack of going wot and running up the rpm's.

Bottom line, if you only run a 4 banger up to 3k rpm then of course it'll be slow compared to a guzzling 8cyl.

[Kar98]

LOL, here's a thread for you, Tmon:

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?7636626-What-is-the-absolute-slowest-under-powered-mush-fest-of-a-car-or-truck-that-you-ve-ever-driven

[tmontague]

^hehe good read

[sv650steve]

I'm quite comfortable running my car at WOT. That's not an issue. So you guys think intake and exhaust is pretty much the way to go? I always thought it didn't really produce much and i'd be better off lightening things up first, flywheel, pulleys, rims. But i might be able to do alittle of both. I think i'd have a grand to put into it to start out. I wouldn't mind doing 1500 bucks worth of mods, not including a new set of tires. I also planned on doing the rear swaybar first thing, but that might be as far as i go with suspension cause i could quickly eat up my budget with suspension mods alone.

[tmontague]

This my recommendation w/ 1500 USD:

rear sway bar ~ $160
Micro Image lowering springs (can find these or other for $99)
Find a used intake manifold for around $100-150 or even ebay ones (avoid $300 brand new ones)
1ZZ throttle body used ~$50
Header ~$400
Intake Manifold ~$600 used (there was one on the classifieds here)
Custom header back exhaust w/ secondary cat delete 2-2.25" diameter ~$250

If my math is right the custom exhaust will put you over your limit. I would wait on rims. The stock 15's aren't that heavy and they'll eat up your cash.

Another big handling helper is getting aftermarket rims with an offset of around +30 to 35. This makes a big difference on a small car. I noticed a lrger handling difference when I added 10mm rear spacer with -1.2 degree camber washers.

I'm sure others have recommendations but that's what I think will help and be the best bang for the buck. The lightweight pulley wasn't a big difference for me and I think the money is better spent elsewhere. The lw flywheel would help a lot but I'd first let the engine breath better and handle better.

[sv650steve]

the intake manifold is really that expensive? from what i read you can get one that will fit and weld the flanges on from the stock on i think it came out of a celica or something similar. I like your suggestions. They all seem to be fairly easy mods. What kinda horsepower could i expect from exhaust and intake without a tune?

[Frank the Tank]

You can modify a 1zz aluminum intake to fit the yaris engine but be prepared for some fabrication work. Or open up the wallet and have someone do it for you.

...or you can port out the stock intake.

[Frank the Tank]

This my recommendation w/ 1500 USD:

rear sway bar ~ $160
Micro Image lowering springs (can find these or other for $99)
Find a used intake manifold for around $100-150 or even ebay ones (avoid $300 brand new ones)
1ZZ throttle body used ~$50
Header ~$400
Intake Manifold ~$600 used (there was one on the classifieds here)
Custom header back exhaust w/ secondary cat delete 2-2.25" diameter ~$250

If my math is right the custom exhaust will put you over your limit. I would wait on rims. The stock 15's aren't that heavy and they'll eat up your cash.

Another big handling helper is getting aftermarket rims with an offset of around +30 to 35. This makes a big difference on a small car. I noticed a lrger handling difference when I added 10mm rear spacer with -1.2 degree camber washers.


So in terms of suspension, lowering springs on oem struts/shocks and a sway bar is all that's needed?

[sv650steve]

i was thinking the 1zz would be my best bet. How much could just afew welds really cost? I was thinking just 100 bucks. I'd do all the cuts. It sounds alot cheaper than $600.

[tmontague]

So in terms of suspension, lowering springs on oem struts/shocks and a sway bar is all that's needed?

When cash flow is an issue yes. Ideally tokiko reds or blues are best

[sv650steve]

I've got my plan pretty much figured out. When i get the car i'll do MI springs and rear swaybar first. How long do the factory shocks last? Will i be ok swapping springs at 100k ish miles thats what most of the cars i see on craigslist have. Also where do i get the flanges for the corolla manifold? Is there a right up on this? I have 3 or 4 junk yards i can hit and try to find some.

[tmontague]

I swapped my springs at 135,000km no issues. You can do it whenever. I also replaced my stock shocks/struts w/ new oem ones at 135,000km and to be honest the old ones were a little easier to move than the new ones but they were far from worn out. The Yaris is easy on suspension and I'd say you could get 150,000km out of stock shock no issue.

Once lowering springs are installed this can lead to premature wear of stock shocks due to bottoming out. My recommendation, keep the bump stocks and don't cut them. Sure, you may hit the bump stops earlier and lose an inch or 2 of travel (depending on how many inches you lower) but you'll have the bump stop to save your shock/strut from taking the impact. I only cut my front bump stop by about half an inch and still have a lot left on it to save the shock/strut. No issues hitting bump stops during my rough daily commute on high speed highway wallows.

You should still be fine to get at least 80,000km on oem shocks with lowering springs assuming you don't load the car up with a ton of people or weight and you keep the bump stops stock.

I just installed Tokiko blues on the rear only as I wanted to see if this reduces under steer and I also couldn't find the front's for my Yaris (also lacked the funds). The front's are KYB's I believe and have about 15,000km on them and are fine. I still have the rears I just replaced if you want to buy them off me for cheap down the road.

[rabbito]

Invest in a header, intake manifold, 1zz throttle body, short ram intake, exhaust, lowering springs and rear sway bar. Then drive it hard.

If you aren't afraid of slamming it into second gear coming off of 70km/h merging onto the highway then this car has more than enough power. Most people are too shy to put the pedal to the floor. If you embrace the high revs and realize that the engine is more than capable to withstand it, than you're good to go.

Remember, it's more fun to drive a slow car fast then a fast car slow. Especially a slow car that weighs just over a ton
amen lol

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[invader166]

...Also where do i get the flanges for the corolla manifold? Is there a right up on this? I have 3 or 4 junk yards i can hit and try to find some.

I'm nearing completion of my very own Corolla intake manifold, that I'm adapting to work on a Yaris, but progress is slow since this is just a side project for me. I only worked on it when I had some spare time and access to a workshop.

I've reached the point where I just need a welder to weld up a couple of flanges on the Corolla manifold, and I should be done. However, this is all still just prototype since I have no idea if it's going to clear the other engine bay components. (dip-stick, starter, etc.) Further modification might be required.

Still, so far, it hasn't been as hard of a project as I originally thought. (...or as expensive for that matter...)

I might be wrong, but I think another forum user, Rigaud, has already completed one and is currently using it on his car.

[sv650steve]

I did more research and I'm not going to try to fabricate a manifold, it's been done already. I'll probably just do the springs, sway bar, exhaust, and then get the lightweight flywheel, because it seems like they are surefire ways of getting some pep and what i want the car to be. Thanks for all the input guys. I'm not looking for a car. I found one for $3900 with 140k miles on it, seems in good shape, is that a fair price? The guy seems really firm on it.