Some projects turn out to be too big to ever pass the finish line, but this Finnish Lexus-powered Carina doesn’t seem to fit that category. However, it’s still an unfinished project that is almost there.
The unfinished Finnish Carina project
The ad describes it as follows:
Project carina. 2.0 direct weave from lexus. Immobilizer on, has been tested. A mild project. Not inspected. Good basket.
Normally a basket-case would never be good, but this Carina is an exception to that!
How can you fit a 6-cylinder in a Carina?
Fitting a 1G-FE 6-cylinder engine is possible on the Carina TA60 as the A60 Celica XX also featured the 1G engine family in Japan. Sourcing a cross-member from Japan for it should be possible. However, I’m not sure if the current owner went through all that trouble though.
When we look on the inside, we see the shifter in the correct position. The ad doesn’t tell us whether the owner retained the Aisin AZ6 gearbox or if this Carina used to be a diesel with a W50 gearbox and then fitted with an adapter plate. But what’s clear is that the whole swap fits quite well into the Carina.
Exterior
On the outside, we can see that the Carina has been de-badged. The paint is peeling on the bonnet, front fenders and the roof. We can see inside the door and under the bonnet the car originally was black. I’ve seen dark brown Carinas sold in Portugal and the UK, but I’ve never seen an original black Carina. But even with the respray, it looks relatively rust-free.
The wheels under this Carina are Compomotive MS Penta, also sold in Japan as the Fortran Drag 902 / 905. These wheels have a Mercedes-vibe over them as they were one of AMG’s standard wheels during the 1980s. To have these wheels in 4×114.3 is super rare and judging from the near-perfect fitment and tirestrech I guess these are 14-inch wheels that are 7 inches wide.
Under the bonnet
Under the bonnet, we can see the 6-cylinder 1G-FE engine in its later VVT-i guise. This generation of the engine was the most powerful of the 1G-FE and had an output of 158hp and 118 kW. The engine is probably sourced from an IS200 as those are plentiful and available here in Europe. The fitment is quite tight, but the most important thing is that it fits.
There are some fitment issues though. As you can see, the front of the engine is missing the fan and the radiator. This is probably one of the loose ends of this project as it would have been too tight to fit both of them. A solution would be to mount the radiator on the other side of the core support and from experience, I can confirm this way it would probably fit if you move one or two things around.
Then there is a mystery box on the left side of the photo. This box has an inlet and outlet. The inlet has been connected to, what looks like, a fuel pump. The fuel pump itself is connected to the fuel filter that sits at the spot where it usually is in the Carina. So what is this mystery box? Is it some sort of fuel pressure system? Is it a fuel cooling system? Is it a climate control box? Who knows! It’s an Easter-egg!
Conclusion
The Carina is nicely priced for 3000 euros. For a Carina, that’s already a bargain! On top of that, you will get a set of super rare Compomotive MS Penta / Fortran Drag 902 wheels. And to top that, it comes with a Toyota 1G-FE engine! The Carina TA60 only weighs 930 kilograms, so with 158hp that’s going to be a seriously quick car! Someone needs to buy this project and finish it because it’s worth finishing! You can find it for sale here!
Fortran Drag 902 / 905 ad via JDMEuro
Leave a Reply