Leighcm

Yeah, I know some of them are quick...I'm not a fan of front drive 4 cylinder sports cars, though. Something inherently wrong with that. The best Hondas ever are the NSX and the S2000 (could use a bit more torque though).

AWD Celica, circa 1991: 3272 lbs, 200 hp Celica GT-S, circa 2005: 2500 lbs, 180 hp Supra Turbo, circa 1994: 3215 lbs, 320hp

Not to mention the burned-up turbo, the blown headgasket, and the lovely thick smoke coming out of the tailpipe right before the turbo actually goes. :P

Civics are great because if you put a "VTEC" sticker on the back, it adds 5 horsepower. And if you put those little fake racing hood tie downs on it AND the BMW Z3 fender vents, you get a combined horsepower increase of 25. And if you put a Supra spoiler on it (especially on the hatchbacks), it's an easy 100hp. You can even tell how fast they are by the decibel level of the exhaust at 6,000 rpm...the louder the exhaust, the faster the car (a really loud one is almost as fast as the Porsche Carrera GT.). It's absolutely amazing how easy it is to make them "fast"...

Nope...pretty much the same thing. Toyotas go in 5 year cycles...1992-1996 was almost exactly the same.

Yeah, takes awhile to pick this stuff up. Don't get into a turbo car until you absolutely know what you're doing because it's a whole different set of rules.

You haven't factored in weight. I think the newer style Celica has to be much lighter...those older Celicas were a little heavy, and that AWD system didn't help the power-to-weight ratio at all.

You could do a subscription to Alldata or TIS...they're both online manuals.

Maybe you could shoehorn the Celica GT-S engine and tranny in... ...while we're fantasizing, how about a 2JZGTE & a Getrag? There is definitely something to be said for those Yamaha auto motors (SHO, Celica, and I think the Elise), and that 6-speed is lots of fun.

Paint job: You could go anywhere from a few hundred bucks to several thousand, depending on exactly how good you want it to be. Toyota factory paint is pretty good though...yours should be a basecoat/clearcoat, with several layers of color and a clearcoat to protect against fading/oxidation.

240SZ is a Nissan...it's the next step down from the 300ZX: This one comes in a coupe, convertible, or hatchback, depending on model year. 3000GTs are nice cars. They're the same as a Dodge Stealth, so either one is decent. About 220hp in the standard motor. The only drawback: front wheel drive. You probably don't want to consider the VR-4 model because it's a turbo with all the usual turbo reliability issues, and the AWD system can be expensive to maintain. And then there's the insurance issue too... You're going to hate this, but really, the best thing to do would be to stick with the Camry. They're wonderful, reliable cars, great gas mileage, cheap insurance, easy to find parts for, and you could always add a few upgrades like the intake, exhaust, and stereo we've been talking about. I had one for a few years, and it was a great car.

Try on the engine itself, or on the bottom of the steering column. Also, look on the painted area by the firewall for a VIN number etched into the metal. I'm not sure exactly where the VIN is on that car (other than the obvious ones on the dash and the VIN stickers), but those are common places on many cars. Customs really won't take the VIN stickers, even the big one with the color codes and manufacturing date? I think that one is inside the driver's side door jam.

That is a pretty cool looking Camry...

One note on the last 3 or 4 posts: if you're responsible for paying the insurance, you probably want to stick with the Camry, at least for a few years. There's several factors that insurance companies jack up the rates for: driver age, 2 door car, 2 seater car, turbo cars, convertibles, and any engine over a 4 cylinder. Check the rate difference between an MR2 and a Camry...it's huge. That being said, the MR2s rock! (as do the Supras in pretty much any model year). The quickest Celica would be the GT-S model, because it has an awesome Toyota/Yamaha VVTi-L motor that's lots of fun. Another one to look for would be one of the models from the early 90's, I think it was also a GT-S, but it was a hatchback, AWD model with a hood scoop, and an awesome 10 speaker factory stero. If you could find a nice Z car, the 280Z and older are a cool, retro model. You could also look for a late 80's RX-7, a 92-93 range 3000GT (base or SL), a 1988 or newer Honda Prelude (Si is best), or an early 90's 240SX. The 240SX is an awesome drift car if you're into that. You may also be able to find an early Lexus SC300 with higher miles for a decent price. The SC300 and Supra are surprisingly similar.

Ouch!! That'll get expensive...

Some new interior mats from ebay.. $?? You may be able to still get the factory mats from a Toyota dealer...they'll be the same mats, maybe a slightly different color up until 1996. About $75-100.

As I look back, it looks like it was not very clear that I was just talking about valves...thank you for making it easier for everyone!!

Congrats on the new car!! You ended up with the Camry, right? No "how-to" section yet. That's something we might want to start building someday, but we haven't gotten there yet. Toyota.com does have maintenance schedules for your car though. Look in the owner's section. Are you talking about the engine smell? Smells like it's burning? The engines come with some sort of coating that goes away after a couple hundred miles or so.

You should just replace all of the motor mounts and get it over with. Then you won't have to mess with that last one at a later date. That second video is perfect...see how easy it is? Can you hear the difference? No O2 sensor to be concerned about. Seriously, an intake is about the easiest thing you can possibly do. And it's not going to affect if the engine runs lean or not. Additionally, I think your car is OBD1, so it's much easier to modify without kicking codes. Like B-R-T said, the "cold" part really isn't the point...the reason you add an intake is for more airflow with a high flow filter and larger pipe. The best way is to get the whole assembly, but you can do it as simply as cutting holes in the stock airbox and using a K&N filter instead of the standard Toyota one. I've done it both ways and noticed much better results with the whole kit. You can probably find a used intake on eBay for a decent price. Just replace the filter element with a fresh one and you'll be all set. Get online for the exhaust. Look for tuners that specialize in Japanese cars...some of the big ones are Stillen, Rod Millen, HKS, TRD. Don't bother buying new pipes unless they're a wider diameter than what you currently have. How clean do you want the engine to be? You could just wipe off the cover with a cloth (wait until it cools down). Or you could seriously detail it. Here's a how-to link for you: http://www.autopia-carcare.com/inf-engine.html

Well, at least before the "VVT" part. The "intelligence" part is just improved technology.

Yes, no adjustment at all.

VVTi = variable valve timing with intelligence. Basically, the system controls the camshaft timing to open and close the valves as necessary for the best performance, mileage, emissions, and overall efficiency.

1.) Pioneer is just okay as a brand...until you get to their high-end stuff, which is excellent. a. I'm a terrible person to ask about speakers (pretty much tone-deaf, unfortunately!). 2.) I meant almost the entire exhaust, as in not just the muffler. Larger pipes have less restriction, as does a high flow muffler. You can probably replace just the parts after the catalytic converter and get the results you're looking for. I'm guessing $300-500 for a Camry exhaust. I'm not sure who would sell exhaust for a car that old, but try HKS or TRD. If you don't have cats, it's also less restrictive...but won't pass smog and is not quite legal... In your case, because you have a naturally aspirated car, the exhaust won't give you a lot more power (5 hp, maybe). 3.) The intake is a cheap upgrade, but it's not going to give you major results. You may get a little better mileage, a little bit more power, and kind of a cool sucking sound in the engine, but that's about it. 4.) A professional tint job always makes the car look nice. Spend the money for the better tint as it lasts longer without getting purple like the cheap stuff. Pricing will range from about $150-400 for a good job. Have fun shopping! Check www.crutchfield.com also on the stereo.

Only happens when it's cold? It's mostly likely something in the wiring, probably a connection somewhere...constricts slightly when cold, reconnects when warmer.