I am finding free time to be a rarity these days as work demands increase. That being said I had planned to publish an update on newly named Project CELICA as replacement parts begin to trickle in. I may rename the car at some point but as of now, Project CELICA. I can’t wait until I can at least wash it and detail it as the previous owner’s dog hair is layered throughout the interior. I’m waiting to address this oil leak before I even bring the car in my driveway!

The first wave of repairs surrounds the oil leak that I bought the car with. The previous owner claims that he was told that the timing chain was replaced and the leak began after the replacement. My Dad and I have been skeptical from the beginning of that story as it doesn’t make sense why the timing chain would even need to be replaced at 134k miles, but we can’t confirm nor deny the claim. We lifted the car and explored to find the leak to indeed by coming down the timing chain cover near the timing chain tensioner.

He and I have been reviewing Sebastian (2zzlow) on Youtube as he has repaired numerous 7th gen Celicas and is entertaining to watch. We gathered the parts and plan to not only replace the timing chain cover gasket in question, but also replace the timing chain tensioner and a laundry list of other parts that may experience wear or failure after 134k miles. My Dad estimates it will take 1-2 dedicated days of work to get these items maintained so I took a couple days off work to attack this task. I plan to take lots of pictures of the task as I have quite an interest in shade tree work–it was the primary purpose of this project. I am 100% certain it will not be the first time this car will be disassembled.

I wanted to briefly expand upon why I chose a 7th gen Celica as my project vehicle against all of the other vehicles that could have been selected. Price is a primary reason–for the price I paid, the mileage is pretty low considering the age. Secondly, I have an irrational affinity for 4 cylinder engines, and this 2ZZ-GE motor is “special” in that it is (to my knowledge) the only engine Toyota ever developed with VVTL-i. VVTL-i is a variable valve timing technology where valve lift is adjusted after a specific RPM rate is surpassed. It appears it was designed to compete with Honda VTEC technology. Additionally, this particular motor redlines at nearly 8k RPM which is higher than usual for motors in general. Lastly, the aesthetics of the 7th gen Celica are not lost on me–I do like the styling and always have.

The only downside, if anything, is that it is another FWD car but after the months of research, I found it difficult to find 4-cylinder rear wheel drive vehicles aside from the BRZ/86 which was way outside my price range for a project. FWD cars tend to have issues with CV boots and are a bit more difficult to work on regarding transmissions. They also tend to be more compact in the engine bay as all the juicy components are under the hood up front.

Aside from the Toyota parts I needed I also bought some 1/2 inch drive power tools that I expect to arrive soon. I normally dealt with 1/4 inch or 3/8 inch drive ratchets for lower torque applications but felt it would be reasonable to by 1/2 inch drive tools for higher torque (automotive) application.

Once the leak is addressed, the plan is to work to correct this clutch slipping I experience (noticeable in 5th gear under load). Once that is done, I have some interior pieces to address (sunroof controls, door locks, etc) before I get to the fun stuff (stereo, wheels, paint, etc).

Regarding the clutch slipping, if I took everything apart in advance and investigated I could probably save money but replace specific clutch pieces that have failed. Instead, I plan on “taking a sledgehammer” to everything and just replacing it all since the car is 18 years old with 134k miles. Parts list I’m looking at includes:

  • Flywheel (this is optional as I could just resurface the existing flywheel)
  • Flywheel bolts (as I understand these should NOT be reused as they can stretch upon install)
  • Clutch kit to include disc, pressure plate, and throwout bearing
  • Rear main crankshaft seal
  • I’m planning on keeping the existing clutch master and slave cylinder although I was warned to review it. I have no issues shifting gears and did not see any leak so I don’t think that warrants replacement yet, but will keep an eye on it. I am also interested to know the difficulty of the replacement–from what I’ve read, bleeding the clutch line can be a bit of a task but at least it’s easier with two people.

I’m currently eyeing the Exedy Stage 1 Organic Clutch Kit and MWR (Monkey Wrench Racing) lightweight steel flywheel, but I’m also playing with the idea of resurfacing my existing factory flywheel instead. I’ll get more serious on this decision once the leak is corrected!