Toyota Caldina

How to make your Caldina Gt-Four a monster.

noreply@blogger.com (dr. rozel / sara) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 12:19:00 +0000

Perpetuity was last month's metaphorical introduction. This month's bonanza consists of the following; amazing flying sheep, chocolate tortillas and the stoic pursuit of brake horsepower.

Cruising along LDP, picking my nose and getting lost in thought, I came to realize a persona of the Malaysian driver's psyche which undoubtedly surprises and irks me at the very least. The current interest in the tuning industry, where cars are modified and fettled with by trained automotive engineers and the occasional village handyman, has merely proven the adage of ‘humans never get enough'. We always strive for more power, more money, more this more that. Now that's apparent, no surprises there. What does get my knickers into a twist though is the fact that some fellow motorists are totally misled while doing so.

Don't tell me you honestly believe that blinking neon under-lights, fluorescent in-car lights and all that rubbish actually looks cool? Not to mention small Protons with gargantuan GT-style wings? Can gantung baju. And since we're on the subject, how about painfully mismatched branding, a prime example being RalliArt stickers on a Kancil, or better still – big “Tuned by Razo” decals. (Razo makes gear knobs-lah for god's sake!) However, in true Jedi mind-trick style, I'm stating that this is NOT a thinly veiled attack on ‘ricer boys'. Taste is a trait painfully lacking in the average Malaysian motorist. But then again taste is developed in close association with choice, which we, the public consumer in Malaysia just aren't accustomed to, thanks in no small part to sky-high import duties and questionably dubious governance of the motoring industry. Ah well, rant done. It's a dirty job, but somebody's gotta do it. Back to my Caldina then...

The meaty result we gained last week from installing the Apex'i AFC Neo was 10bhp at the wheels, a jump from 175 to 185 hp on wheels. Meaty, but is it enough? The answer's a resounding NO. More power please, thank you. The main justification behind installing the Apex'i AFC Neo air/fuel computer was so that we would be able to accommodate any other major engine modifications with ease. Which essentially means that now we can wring the bitch for every bit of power it can muster. Hi I'm Shamil, I dream of force inducted flying sheep.

Before resuming with my power-hunting endeavors, it was duly assessed by our panel of experts (Hah!) that the footprint of the vehicle was not safely adequate if subjected to high speed and aggressive driving stresses. IF. That, boys and girls, in no way whatsoever means that I drive beyond the allowable limits of our public roads. Scoff. That having been decided, we went scouting for the right set-up for the car. Discussion with a fellow Caldina owner who was using TEIN Super Street Dampers (incidentally one of the most street friendly models on offer from TEIN) revealed that they would render my car a passenger-unfriendly motor vehicle with constant annoying jiggles, bumps and shakes taking center stage. Totally unacceptable, as me wife would've clipped me round the ear. Ouch.

After a thorough and varied discussion/tech-talk session with Desmond from N1 Racing, we decided to opt for the “Dress UP Master S.Tech” sports spring set from TEIN instead. It dropped the car by 18mm and added a 25-45% stiffening ratio. Reason being was the fact that it was a set-up option that wouldn't ultimately sacrifice the drivability and altogether utilitarian purpose of the car. The installation was performed well and in a rather quick 2 hours, as is always the case with team N1 Racing's immaculate professionalism. This new set-up endowed the car with a constant and consummate control with a weightier and edgier steering feel. Through the long sweeping corners the car now exhibits great poise and a sharper turn-in proved the difference in slower, tighter bends. It didn't manage to cancel out the body roll completely, but rather put it in check with only harder and more abrupt corners managing to entice its presence.

To coincide with the installation of the new springs I'd purchased a set of spanking new Yokohama A.drive R1 rubbers and also 17” Work Emotion CR Kai replica wheels, all from Hup Shun Tires in Sunway. Having just set foot on our tropical shores, the new addition to the formidable ‘Yokohama .drive' family has already proven it's worth, as some significant advantages gained is that now the car just putters along quietly, if you can deem full throttle, seat wetting speed, last minute braking and lunging into corners as “puttering”. My judgment – a true quiet road holding performer, just like the brochure promised. In a happy conclusion, the confidence and control that I gained from the 4-wheel drive/TEIN springs/Yoko rubbers package was positively awe inspiring. In other words, it was a ‘pulse throbbing, tires squealing at adhesion limits while cutting the apex' kind of awe inspiring. Yet another bombastic way to describe I'm driving really, really... committed. Now that, discerning readers, is money well spent. (Ergo in layman's terms - RM 5000 down the well-traveled motorsports drain).

Next in store for our upgrade express is a 5” K&N air induction kit offering zero resistance along with custom piping and heat shield. Which according to our resident tech geek (nee Edmund ‘Laundry' Turner), should be good for another 10bhp at the wheels. Hopefully this induction system, when coupled with my newly purchased original TRD Sports exhaust muffler designed specifically for the Toyota Caldina will allow me to scratch the exciting surface of 200 sickly sweet horses on wheels. Ahh...such unbridled joy can only be found in the holy quest for road power. Hold your breath for the next installment. No really, hold it till next month's issue comes out.

And oh, I was kidding about the chocolate tortillas.

Product(s) and price:
TEIN Dress Up Master springs - RM 990
Replica 17' Work Emotion CR Kai wheels - RM 2500
Yokohama A.drive R1 (4pcs) - RM 1250

Contact:
TEIN Springs: N1 Racing, 03-5636 5557
Yokohama A.drive R1 tyres: YHI Malaysia, 03-7804 9880
Replica Work Emotion CR Kai wheels: Your favourite tyre shop should have them, they're everywhere.

How to make your Caldina GT-Four a Monster Installment #1: A'pexi AFC Neo

noreply@blogger.com (dr. rozel / sara) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 12:18:00 +0000

With this brand new Power Pages section, we follow the trials and tribulations of tuning a Toyota Caldina GT-Four. This month, we start with the basics and install an A'pexi AFC Neo at N1 Racing. Here's what the owner of this fine car has to say.

It's funny how the tides turn in perpetuity. Stocks rise and fall, luck comes and goes, hopes given and dashed, sun rises and sets, oh you get the picture. The apparent humor is when cars are put in the same context. What we deem as cool and innovative today becomes staid and out-of-date in no time at all. But once in a rare while, along comes a car so freshly original that it just knocks you over every single time you set your sights on it. I'm sure you can relate. Personally, for anyone reading this, it might invoke images of an Evo, WRX, Skyline and the like, but for yours truly, the latest 3rd Gen Caldina body from Toyota personifies, no….embodies the sleek and slippery mantra of modern car design. A traditional Mitsubishi fan, the first time I set sights on it, my heart was set too. Tides perpetually turning? Check.

Sourcing for a car through grey importers can prove a mess but turned out relatively easy for this particular unit. The specs were 2003 JDM Caldina GT-Four in Silver Mica Metallic (sounds exotic innit?) with 7000kms on the clock. The 2nd generation Caldina shared the same platform with the Toyota Allion and Premio, and is basically the Japanese version of Toyota Avensis Wagon. However, the all-new Caldina of September 2002 is a pure sports wagon and does not share body panels with other Toyotas at all. The engine line-up is either a 1.8 liter 1ZZ-FE, 2.0 liter 1AZ-FE and the legendary 2.0 liter turbo 3S-GTE, which powers my unit, codenamed LA-ST246W-DWPZZ. Sick. The Japanese and their serial codes. The car came to me standard and untouched. Oh how the tides were going to turn. Check again. But hopefully it won't be perpetual, as the target's been set at a modest 250 horses on wheel.

On the days after taking delivery I was in seventh heaven. The car came equipped with a full time 4WD system with a 30 front 70 rear drive bias, which gives off a driving on rails feeling and obviously the stock 17 inch wheels with a wide 215 contact patch helped it maintain true and steady paths. Unfortunately the body roll was quite evident, which is expected for a car of its girth, weight and wheelbase. The interior is finished with a quality synonymous with the Toyota name, the dash arrangement neat, cockpit and cabin exudes an air of racy spaciousness and jam-packed with latest Nippon gizmos I can't even pronounce. Reverse camera, height-adjustable Xenon lights, Multi AV Station…the list goes on. Power-wise, the initial impression I got was Whoa! So much power waannn!! In standard trim, the power unit delivered 260 ps (191.23 kw) @ 6200 rpm of power and 33.0 kg/m (323.62 Nm) @ 4400 rpm of torque. The engine had a mid-range capability that just blitzed my senses, helped on by the fact that it was driven by a smart and relatively quick auto transmission with semi auto sequential shifting. This rare contentment with the power and drive inevitably lasted for two whole weeks. What can I say? I'm fickle. Wry smile.

My main issue, or excuse, mind you was that it lacked high end grunt, wheezing and simmering down slightly at higher revs. The fact that it's hooked up to an auto tranny doesn't help much either. This was a predicament so life shaking as it had inevitably meant that I would have gotten my little bottom spanked by the other boy racers currently running around town. And so the quest begins. Cue music.

With the constant consultation of my inherently handsome and profoundly wise, piston-head friend, (I'm forced to say that with a wrench pointed at my head) who also happens to be the resident Tech Talk geek, we began formulating a plan on our power upgrade path. These discussions were held in secret, dark and obscure meeting places, mainly to avoid it reaching my wife's ear.

Behold, the plan: Stage 1

Before I delve further, I'd like to note that unlike all our other undertakings in life, we have chosen to approach this project with careful planning and the utmost care so as to avoid useless or harmful upgrades. And stay within the fine lines of sanity. Seems like an oxymoron, but do I hear anyone complaining?

We both agreed that a piggy-back ECU was an early necessity, as a base to provide options when retuning fuel maps. This will accommodate all fuel tuning needs for Stage 1. From previous experiences, we decided on the A'pexi AFC Neo, a user proven unit that possesses nice form, a plethora of functions and a brilliant full-color display. Off to N1 Racing we go. The N1 Racing tuning house is located in Sunway and has been identified for their great workmanship, facilities and technical know-how. They've been in the business since before the boom of the tuning industry here and have been known to be highly competent. Desmond from N1 was kind enough to talk me through the process, and talk me into spending some serious dough. Besides the AFC Neo, items purchased include a HKS Super SQV blow-off valve and an A'pexi Turbo timer for engine cool-down duties. N1 Racing's brand spanking new workshop located close to the retail outlet was clean as a whistle, reflecting on their immaculate professionalism. A row of souped-up, race specced Mitsubishi Evos on

stands greeted us upon arrival. Drool. Think photos of Jap workshops in pics and mags. Yeah, you get it. The installation was done neatly and swiftly by one of their trained technicians, who's obviously done this a boring many times before. He was also very informative on said product, ‘racun-ing' me into spending more. What a shining example of a salesman. After installation they immediately strapped up the Caldina to the four wheel drive dyno. Meticulous was how they went about their tasks, where even the blower fan stood at attention. During the first run, the fuel maps were left at standard. We were quite astonished to see a forcefully restrained Caldina on the dyno screaming out 180bhp. This base dyno run had proved our initial suspicions.

At higher RPM ranges, the stock motor was tuned overtly rich at a tuning-unfriendly 10:5:1 Air to Fuel ratio. This was provisioned as a fail safe mechanism by the manufacturers in case the owner was too enthusiastic with a heavy right foot, which evidently was or IS the case with me. Damn you Toyota psychics!! In the experienced hands of Desmond, the fuel maps at the higher engine revolutions were leaned out to an exact 11:5:1 Air to Fuel ratio. By doing so we gained a healthy 10BHP, on wheels. Awesome stuff!

Although the torque figure drops towards the end of the rev range, power does come in a little earlier than before, making the car more responsive. In essence, with the AFC Neo, we have shifted the torque band's sweet spot a little earlier in the rev range, right where we want it. Peak torque isn't everything. With torque, you want it as down low the power band as possible. That's the conundrum solved for this episode. Mystery shrouds our next step. Stay tuned (pun intended) for the next upgrade! P/s. My wife says there'll be no other upgrades.

Product: Apex'i AFC Neo
Price: RM1200 + original Apex'i stand
Contact: N1 Racing, Tel: 603-5636 5559

Power (on wheels):
Before: 163.46bhp
After: 173.52bhp

Torque(on wheels):
Before: 22.13 kg/m
After: 21.08 kg/m

professional review

noreply@blogger.com (dr. rozel / sara) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 11:28:00 +0000

“Great Car”

Overall:

Performance:

Build Quality:

Appearance:

Performance - acceleration is good, braking not bad, handling normal
Build Quality - has it needed repairs? no repairs needed squeaks/rattles very little
Appearance - both interior and exterior styling, great! i love it.
Cost of Ownership - gas mileage RM90+ for 400km, maintenance normal jap cars
Fun Factor - is this car fun to drive?

Pros — Great family car

Cons — Not a car for the tracks

Introduction

noreply@blogger.com (dr. rozel / sara) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 10:56:00 +0000

On September, 2002 CALDINA of the third generation, a medium class wagon of Toyota, is debut. It was developed with the touring machine as the theme as Sports specility wagon in the new century that united the performance, the design, and utility. Running expectations of CALDINA rise because of the grade name that is reminiscent of the CELICA in the WRC participation age.
It is a setting of the GT-FOUR grade by which 2L turbocharged engine is installed that concepts appear most remarkably in respect of the performance. Running expectations of CALDINA rise because of the grade name that is reminiscent of the Celica in the WRC participation age.
In the body work and the packaging, utility as the wagon and enough spaciousness are secured though a tight feeling of a sporty car is caused.
On the safety side, ABS and airbag are basic equipment. Moreover, the car living space is secured by the collision with the heaby weight car in respect of the collision safety. The body that achieved the injury reduction when harm is reduced to the other party vehicle in the collision with a light weight car, and the pedestrian collides is adopted.
Three kinds of installed engines, that is, 2L turbo, 2L direct-injection, and 1.8L. The grade is four that added GT-FOUR equipped with the turbocharged engine to X, Z, and ZT equipped with the NA engine. FF and full-time 4WD can be chosen to be a drive system.