Wildbear's kit up!

Pop by Audio Concepts today for a quick lunch with Teddy since his Wald Sport Line body kit is going up today.

Here's the TRD emblem on the back of his car. Looks very nice! Too bad I don't have anymore space on the rear door.



He did the full works, spoiler, bonet spoiler, G square bonnet garnish, AMS front bumper grill cover, eyelids, etc, etc. Big project!



And of course, how can we miss out Sidney's fierce looking ride. Turbo charged and now with a vented fibreglass bonnet.



Oh.. not to forget the Wilwood front brake upgrade too!



Fierce ah!!

Cheers,

HKS Coilover

Looking around at other suspension options and it seems that HKS has 6 sets of suspension/coilover for Toyota Wish alone, covering from ANE11W, ZNE10G and ZNE14G.

Of the 6 Hipermax option offered, ZNE10G is the only one that has all three option of C Wagon Plus, C Wagon and S style.





Obviously not cheap, but I don't seem to hear much about it amongst the Toyota Wish owners here. I wonder how does this compare to Toms's Racing Coilover.

Anyway, more details at HKS Hipermax suspension

Cheers,

More power!!!

The orange marque is always ahead! Now with more upgraded options!! Met Raymond at Merlin Auto and he's upgrading again. As usual.

Here's a voltage stabiliser from D1 Spec.



Here's a Cusco oil catch tank recently installed to prevent the displaced engine oil from dripping out.



But more importantly, this cold air intake is going out.



Presenting the K&N Apollo air intake system!!



It's suppose to deliver more air to the engine when needed, and thus giving more power. The closed construction is suppose to reduce noise but increase performance. Obviously, the e-manage from Greddy will have to be re-tuned to compensate for the differential in the air intake now.

Can't wait for a proper feedback from Raymond!



Oh... and now, the orange marque is in full black luxurious leather. Cool!!!

Anyway, here's my ride, still looking stock, but hopefully not for long...



Cheers,

Ah Lim with Endless 6 pot

Here's Ah Lim with an Endless big six pot brake caliper. It's a monster!!



On THE BOSS' car, it can be fitted with a 350mm rotor. Handsome! Mai Tu Liao ah!!!

Cheers,

Ended

Ok. The endless indecisiveness on brake upgrade has finally ended. I bit the bullet and went for it.

As I've said earlier, the Endless wagon 6 option is now out.

Finally opted for Endless 6 pot (EC603) front and Endless micro 6 pot (EC620) rear option. It's the extreme right and left one in the pictures.



It will be fited with 330 mm front and 286 mm rear rotors. Both are 2 piece construction, ventilated and slotted.

The four pot is no less impressive, but heck, let's go all the way!



Cheers,

Endless Brake hose!

Endless again... sign....

Anyway, was at Motorworld to pick up Raymond's full stainless brake hose and had a chat with them. They just visited Plot's factory was informed that the drum brake for Toyota Wish hose is in development.

Interesting, Plot's Swageline also makes hose for the racing teams like Subaru's STI, Daihatsu, etc. But they do not make for TRD. I think that's by Mocal. More interestingly, they make for...ENDLESS!!




Same swivel connect and attachments. Latest development in Endless Brake hose is also announced in Plot's Swageline webpages. But those from Endless seem thinner. Wonder if Motorworld can get Endless brake hose as well then. Oh well, I already have the Swageline brake hose. Should be good enough.

Cheers,

PowerSlot Brake options

Powerslot. Something that I was looking at sometime ago when Justin told me about it. Also saw it at the con shop Silent at Commonwealth. I would rather get it from shops like Merlin Auto at Ang Mo Kio.

Anway, they have a slotted rotor replacement for Toyota Wish. Priced around S$380.



Basically, this replaces your stock rotor, without any changes to your brake set at all. It is the same size as your stock rotor. Obviously right? Otherwise how to fit.



This is the Powerslot plus upsize brake kit. It offers a larger rotor (324 mm). Price should be in the region of S$880 to S$980.



With a larger rotor, the brake caliper will need to be moved. So this set comes with a mounting braket for your caliper as well.



The bracket seems well finished. CNC machined parts.



USA product, but brake performance gain should be marginal. Hmm...

Cheers,

To Endless or not to Endless...

The original intention for the Endless Wagon 6 Pot is now no longer a consideration. There are even better options.. But whilst the spirit is willing, the pocket is weak...

Anway, whilst considering the other options, here are something else interesting.. ENDLESS Racing 12!!! 12 piston of pure stopping power!!


Besides the trademark blue, Endless brake calipers are also available in black and red. Other colors are now available and here are two interesting finishing

Chrome!! Chrome!! The Ultimate Bling!


For the more discrete (like John), the gun metal finishing is now available.


Man! Look at all these boxes of Endless brake calipers waiting to get out on to the streets!


Oh... and of course, Japanese companies have race queens at their trade shows and Endless is no different. Me like the two at the second row.



But the question remains..

Cheers,

Tom's Suspension Test Drive

The Tom's Suspension set for Toyota Wish was recently released and we have yet to see in on the shores of Singapore yet. However, I had the chance to test it's performance on Lao Pi's ride at SE Motorsports in Taipei.

This is the actual set installed on his car.




From his comments, he said that the Tom's set is better than TRD's set in terms of handling. Basically, the set is priced higher than TRD's, but the car is lowered more than the TRD set. In terms of hardness/comfort, it's interesting to note that The TRD set is softer in front than the Tom's set. For the rear, the TRD set is harder than the Tom's set.

So we took a test drive and at one point, we were doing about 150 to 160 km/h on his turbo charged car. The road holding is very good and the car seems even more stable due to the lower CG. In term of comfort, it does not seem harder than the TRD set. It's a shame that this set came out so late. Otherwise, I would actually prefer this set to the TRD one.

Anyway, this is the bling ride that we tested on. Notice how low the car is.



By the way, 19" DAD chrome rims. Bling ah!!

Cheers,

Endless parking brakes!!?

The rear disc brake for Toyota Wish has an integrated parking brake (drum). So that rules out a lot of options for rear disc brake upgrades.

So I was aimlessly looking around and I just thought I'll give Endless another look and what a surprise!!

Endless rear brake set with parking brake module!! See that blue clip on the rotor? That's the one.



Here's a close up of the parking clip.



Very nice!! But it is not possible for our car. Financially not possible. Sigh....

Cheers,

Otto Zimmermann

Looking at options for Brake rotors and this name Otto Zimmermann pops up.



Otto Zimmermann GmbH had been developing and producing brake components for the car manufacturers and spare parts market and produce OEM parts for many Europrean and Japanese cars.




Besides regular rotors, Zimmermann also have ventilated sport brake rotor/disc made out of high quality heat resistant material. Their sport brake rotors/discs were suppose to have been put through extensive trials on the Hockenheim Ring. As the sole German manufacturer (so it's made in Germany!!) they are guaranteed under extreme conditions with more than 250 references from the ABE of RW TÜV.

More importantly, there are beveled holes on the rotor prevents sharp edges from tearing up the brake pads. You get the rotor cooling with extended lifespan for the brake pads!

Certainly looks and sound impressive. But prices seem steep. Now let's see if Zimmermann has an upsize racing rotor for the Toyota Wish rear disc brake...

Cheers,

Front brakes upgrade!!

The picture says it all....



Wilwood 4 pot brake set. Slotted 328 mm rotor. Forged caliper in black (also available in red if I'm not wrong). Prepare to burnt slightly more than S$2000 for this.

More details later!

I want to upsize too!!!

Cheers,

Upsize for safety?

Today, I receive a call from a maroon X "AeLosporK" for options to upgrade his already modified brake set. Recent interest in braking enhancement and performance has led to considerations for a 2/4/6/8 pot supersize brake kits for both the front and rear. Throughout the conversation, he was switching between converting his current rear G9 option to aerosports option and then upsizing to 2 pot JBT or shifting his current front 4 pot to the rear and upsizing the front to a bigger rotor. Or converting it to the Supra brake set for future upgrade to the TRD brake set. In otherwise, he doesn't know what he wants or why he wants it.

The question is...Is it really safer or better?



Obviously, to improve overall performance, the upsize rotor and caliper is suppose to give you the desired stopping power. The larger rotors increase heat capacity (especially slotted options) and stiffer calipers and stainless steel braided brake hose reduces system compliance. That's the theory part.

However, there is something that a lot of us have not really looked at. That is the front to rear torque ratios. Therefore, whilst we drool over and perhaps blindly install the Endless 6 pot for our front as recommended by WALD, the effects may be the opposite of what we hope for. The upsized brake set adds too much torque and the result is the car loses the tractive capacity of all the tyres to the maximum practical extend (even if we have ABS). As a result, braking performance actually suffers instead of improve.



Also, the additional pistons in 4,6,8 pot brake setup must be correctly sized. Bigger does not always mean better. If they are too large, the brake pedal will become difficult to modulate.

In summary, if we are considering to upsize the brakes for better braking performance, we have to consider how to maintain the factory front-to-rear weight balance. Of course big brake kits are nice and looks fierce, but don't end up paying a high price for looking nice. It's not worth it.

Cheers,

4 pot front brake upgrade!

Can the fierce can fiercer?

Just look at the pictures and the answer is obvious. This is a JBT 4 pot front brake upgrade with fiery red caliper and sloted rotor.



Obviously, it's on Plot's Swage Line brake hose too. Full stainless steel. Nothing less.



Just look at it! Definitely got biting power!



For those of you know don't know, it's the BOSS' ride. Sigh...perfection is now another step further away from me.

Cheers,

Mid Chasis Stabliser Bar

There is a company called Kimworks in Japan that has developed a mid chasis stabliser bar.

This is what it looks like and the installation is quite clever. It uses the seat mount to secure the bar in place.



This is what it looks like when it's installed. I suppose it can also double up as a footrest. I wonder if the effects are good.



This item retails for about JPY12100, which is about S$170. Suitable for Toyota Wish ANE10G/11W and ZNE10G. Something to consider?

Cheers,

Plot Swage Line brake hose

Since I've swapped out the rear drum brakes, my Goodridge stainless steel braided brake hose will no longer be usable.

As such, I've switched over the Plot's Swage line brake hose. From what I understand, it's one of the best brake hose you can get. It's also stainless steel braided and has a swivel connector which will prevent the hose from knotting up.



There are two options for the ZNE10 Toyota Wish. One with a standard steel connector (ST2043) and the other with stainless steel connectors (SW2043). Special price for us will be S$280 and S$380 respectively. Imported directly from Japan by MotorWorld on an order basis. From the above picture, you can see that the stainless steel version is on the left.

Obviously I'm not the only using this product. Ah Lim, Kenny the BOSS, Allan, Andrew are all also using Plot's Swage Line.



And now it's on my car!! Satisfied finally...

Cheers,

Tom's Racing Sports Suspension

Yesterday, Tom's, one of the four official tuners for Toyota finally released a sports suspension kit set for Toyota wagons, namely Wish (ANE10 and ZNE10 models only), Noah, Voxy, Ipsum (Picnic).



Height is adjustable via a screw adjustment system. Product model for Wish is TZE10 and it's priced at JPY113,400. Accordingly to early comments, it seems to handle much better than TRD Sportivo set, possibily comparable with Tein. As such, ride comfort and quality will suffer for those looking for comfort.

More information at www.tomsracing.co.jp

Cheers,

ATF Cooler installed

Touched down today from Taipei and went straight to install my ATF cooler. It's the customised version from GTBug (Daniel).



Quick installation as I don't have a bodykit. One of the advantages of a stock looking ride. Installation was done at the Ang Mo Kio Multi Story carpark, which was quite a hell to find. But the place was spacious and there was hardly any traffic. Daniel's wife also helped out and that was quite a surprise.



No drilling or hammering and a relatively smooth installation. However, the ATF cooler seems to be slightly crooked. Probably due to the steel braided hoses weighing it down on the right side.

From the above picture, you can also see that there is not much space left for anything else. Oil coolers are usually to big to squeeze into the space on the right. Perhaps an additional cooling fan. We'll see. And look at my lovely stock horns. Should be looking at replacing those too when I have the chance.



As you can see, the new hoses just attach to the original hose and there are proper connectors in place to prevent leakages. There was no top up of ATF fluid for this installation. I was advised that during the next servicing, just tell the mechanic to add 200 ML.



From a distance, it ATF cooler is not really too obvious, even when photographed with flash. If the cooler and the hoses were black in color, it will be a lot more discrete.

Total damage S$250.

Cheers,