Celica GT-Four, how hard to find as a uk car?
Discussion
hey there, pretty much as the title asks really, when looking in the PH classifieds all I can mostly find is the jap import version (which I assume costs a lot more to insure!) and the odd uk car. Are Uk cars just extremely rare, or do they even exist? According to parkers, yes....according to one of the biggest car classifieds on the interwebs, no nice ones do!
Am I simply looking in the wrong place?
Am I simply looking in the wrong place?
WRC's were both UK & JDM, UK cars do exist but are rare and often fetch a premium to buy. Have you confirmed for definite how much extra the insurance would be. I've only ever had a JDM ST205 so am not sure how much more they cost to insure over a UKDM. Good luck with the search. have a look @ www.gt4oc.net too.
There are a decent number of ST205 GT-Fours about, although it can take a fair amount of time to find a good one. It took me a few months looking to find a good standard UK model, but in the end I did manage it (and it was a WRC as well which is nice!).
I found that despite being largely the same car as the Jap import they were about £1k cheaper to insure, although some people report little/no difference- depends on company I suppose.
There are a few differences you can look out for in the adverts that suggest the car is UK rather than JDM if the text doesn't say:
I found that despite being largely the same car as the Jap import they were about £1k cheaper to insure, although some people report little/no difference- depends on company I suppose.
There are a few differences you can look out for in the adverts that suggest the car is UK rather than JDM if the text doesn't say:
- UK cars have a rectangular rear plate, whereas jap imports have square (though some owners swap the surround and plate to the UK one)
- UK cars have the four spoke steering wheel, whereas the imports have a three spoke.
The most foolproof way of figuring out if it's a UK car is to check for the presence of headlight washer jets on the front bumper.
You can also look at the badging on the tailgate. If it's got "GT-Four" on the nearside and "Celica" on the offside, with the (T) emblem in the middle, chances are it's an import.
If it has "toyota CELICA" on the nearside and "GT-Four" on the offside, it's likely a UK car.
The bomb-proof way of figuring it out, albeit with access to the car, is to check the VIN. JDM imports have VINs starting with ST205-, UK cars don't.
You can also look at the badging on the tailgate. If it's got "GT-Four" on the nearside and "Celica" on the offside, with the (T) emblem in the middle, chances are it's an import.
If it has "toyota CELICA" on the nearside and "GT-Four" on the offside, it's likely a UK car.
The bomb-proof way of figuring it out, albeit with access to the car, is to check the VIN. JDM imports have VINs starting with ST205-, UK cars don't.
gazchap said:
The bomb-proof way of figuring it out, albeit with access to the car, is to check the VIN. JDM imports have VINs starting with ST205-, UK cars don't.
^^^ This.Everything else is changeable. When seriously considering a car, you'd ask for the VIN anyway.
It may take a while to find one, but when you do
Nice car btw!!
Edited by LandingSpot on Friday 13th August 21:01
ETA insurance on my JDM faff is about £550. 29, IAM Observer, parked in car park, no points, no convictions.
Edited by LandingSpot on Friday 13th August 21:03
Edited by LandingSpot on Friday 13th August 21:03
Personally, I'd be looking for a better deal on the insurance rather than a UK car.
It shouldn't be costing you any (or hardly any) more to insure an import, and the spec is generally slightly higher, and the cars tend to be better looked after.
I had to shop around for insurance for mine, but ended up getting it at the same price as a UK equivalent.
Turns out some companies just don't want the business for imports, and some don't mind a bit.
It shouldn't be costing you any (or hardly any) more to insure an import, and the spec is generally slightly higher, and the cars tend to be better looked after.
I had to shop around for insurance for mine, but ended up getting it at the same price as a UK equivalent.
Turns out some companies just don't want the business for imports, and some don't mind a bit.
In this case the spec is generally better on UK cars though:
.
- Cooling fins on the rear diff. casing
- Unlimited top end (not 112mph)
- Mini wing on rear of bonnet to minimise lift at high speed
- Exhaust Gas recirculation
.Twincharged said:
In this case the spec is generally better on UK cars though:
.
I prefer the spec difference on the JDM's personally:- Cooling fins on the rear diff. casing
- Unlimited top end (not 112mph)
- Mini wing on rear of bonnet to minimise lift at high speed
- Exhaust Gas recirculation
.Generally lower mileage.
Limited top end: you know it has never been above about 4.5k (6750 rev limit) in 5th and you can very easily remove the limiter with a chip.
Automatic climate control rather than just blue to red.
JDM size number plate rather than the mahoosive ones UK cars have.
Motorised foldable wing mirrors.
Less rust. (when I got my car 6 years ago, there was hardly any underseal on it and no tin worm, I plastered the underside with underseal and I'm sure that at the end of time my chassis will be one of the few remaining things on earth
)Possible cat get around on MOT regs dependant on how the tester reads the rules. Technicaly my engine (JDM ST205 WRC) was not designed for use on uk roads as it doesn't have EGR system so in theory doesn't have to have a cat test, it still has to pass a normal emissions "non cat" test. As I said this is open to interpretation (?sp?) so some testers will test it as a UK car but others wont.
Mine is far from standard now but I have only ever used top end super unleadeds in it. I haven't heard of any JDM cars having issues with diffs overheating so not sure how much difference the cooling fins on the diffs help. I also have a spoiler on the bonnet but I'm sure this is due to it being a WRC.
Mine is a '94 JDM ST205 with 356 bhp & 320 torque, turbo, ecu, fuelling and suspension mods all declared it costs me £840 with sky insurance for everyday use including driving other cars. The car has a cat 1 alarm, I have 7 yrs ncb, no points, live in a quite high risk area and the car is in a garage.
Edited by eybic on Sunday 22 August 10:46
eybic said:
Twincharged said:
In this case the spec is generally better on UK cars though:
.
I prefer the spec difference on the JDM's personally:- Cooling fins on the rear diff. casing
- Unlimited top end (not 112mph)
- Mini wing on rear of bonnet to minimise lift at high speed
- Exhaust Gas recirculation
.Generally lower mileage.
Limited top end: you know it has never been above about 4.5k (6750 rev limit) in 5th and you can very easily remove the limiter with a chip.
Automatic climate control rather than just blue to red.
JDM size number plate rather than the mahoosive ones UK cars have.
Motorised foldable wing mirrors.
Less rust. (when I got my car 6 years ago, there was hardly any underseal on it and no tin worm, I plastered the underside with underseal and I'm sure that at the end of time my chassis will be one of the few remaining things on earth
)Possible cat get around on MOT regs dependant on how the tester reads the rules. Technicaly my engine (JDM ST205 WRC) was not designed for use on uk roads as it doesn't have EGR system so in theory doesn't have to have a cat test, it still has to pass a normal emissions "non cat" test. As I said this is open to interpretation (?sp?) so some testers will test it as a UK car but others wont.
Mine is far from standard now but I have only ever used top end super unleadeds in it. I haven't heard of any JDM cars having issues with diffs overheating so not sure how much difference the cooling fins on the diffs help. I also have a spoiler on the bonnet but I'm sure this is due to it being a WRC.
Mine is a '94 JDM ST205 with 356 bhp & 320 torque, turbo, ecu, fuelling and suspension mods all declared it costs me £840 with sky insurance for everyday use including driving other cars. The car has a cat 1 alarm, I have 7 yrs ncb, no points, live in a quite high risk area and the car is in a garage.
Edited by eybic on Sunday 22 August 10:46
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