Fensport Toyota Celica GT4X 650bhp Pictures 
gallery (40 photos)
As we well know, nature has a random pattern of handing out the goods and despite our best efforts to style our hair, wear the best cloth on the high street and put on our most grating tough-guy accents, our maker suffers no fools.
To him you’re still that scraggy little white-haired mass of bones that you started this world like. Though I`m sure the man in the sky also has a good idea of why we toy with nature when he sees the likes of Hollywood`s finest. He probably is happily amused by the creations we make ourselves and indeed the variations of those creations.
You see how one person interprets beauty can be very different to anothers and although car modifiers may be seen to be shallow in some ways (i.e our obsession with materialism) we are deep in the sense that we can spot ‘Plain Janes’ and nurture their potential. Take this Toyota Celica GT4X as standard for example; it`s not the sexiest of machines by any means but given the time and the TLC, the end results are striking.
The Celica has been completely overhauled by Adrian Smith and the team at Fensport who specialise in performance and sports products for Toyotas. Adrian has been running the UK company for 12 years and has many customers both in Britain as well as worldwide. Toyota itself also recognises Adrian`s talents and they were particularly impressed with his 200mph 4WD version of a Japanese-spec Corolla Run X that he had modified with a Garrett GT35/42 turbo and madly-tuned GT-Four ST205 running gear. Since seeing this work of art in action Toyota was keen to come on board for Adrian`s latest project. They agreed to supply a Celica VVTi and all the standard parts he needed as they knew that despite Adrian`s eccentric ideas, he was bound to make a success of it.
Fensport`s main man was soon conjuring up ways to combine a TRDM-sport shell and convert it to 4WD using the GT-Four`s drive-train. According the Adrian, transplanting the engine in to the prepped shell was the easy part and with the use of a Jap-spec 4WD front sub-frame it was soon in place. However the rear drive-train proved to be more challenging especially as the prop-shaft needed to be fitted in the central channel where the exhaust was. A custom exhaust had to then be made and to accommodate it, the Celica`s floor also had to be re-modelled. Scrounging in the Celica parts bin, stripping bits of the GT-Four and adopting the rear subframe from a Corolla 4WD soon allowed the sub-frame to be fitted to custom mounts.
The next task was to re-inforce the chassis with a Tig welded multi-point roll-cage which was heavily inspired by WRC versions. It forms a very stiff structure in that it is connected to the front and rear turrets, transmission tunnel and double-cross door bars. The cage is further enhanced by Recaro Profi seats, Schroth five-point harnesses, Momo quick-release steering wheel and a plumbed-in Spa Firefighter system.
In place of the spare wheel is a carbon fibre cover, another is used for the custom fuel system and this resides where the back seats used to be. The doors have been customised as well, primarily for the purpose of shaving off the pounds, they look standard from the outside but have had all their internals removed. Further weight saving has been achieved by placing a tinted Plexiglas rear screen in the carbon fibre rear hatch, now even with 4WD and the roll cage the Celica has a minimum kerb weight of 1107kg which is lighter than a standard version. The basic interior set-up of the Celica remains true to its natural origins but it has been enhanced by a MoTeC digital Sport Dash which of course has the practical purpose of feeding back important information about pressures and temperatures.
Moving on to the exterior and there`s plenty here that`s been dolled-up. Let`s start with the front end and that sporty Seibon carbon fibre bonet with its modified scoop, the Celica GT front bumper also allows us a glance of that menacing Supra HKS intercooler. The Celica brings together the best of the Toyota`s family genes with a C-One front spoiler, TRD M-sport rear bumper corners, Celica GT side skirts and and an adjustable rear wing also from the GT. The 7.5x17" lightweight rims are a Volks Racing speciality namely TE37`s. They are also four stud due to the Japanese 4WD Corolla conversion. The rims are wrapped in Toyo R888 215/45 tyres ordinarily and these are suitable for both the road and the track, however if Adrian fancies a spot of drag racing then he`ll wack on some 225s instead.
To compliment the Celica`s racy lifestyle it also sports TarOx 10-pot front calipers while at the rear, a 6-pot version is used. Adrian has also borrowed quite a few spare parts from other Toyota models to upgrade the suspension, these include a Whiteline adjustable rear anti-roll bar and a number of poly bushes.
The engine is the real jewel of the crown though of course and this tuning phenomenon can be attributed to John Edwards, a man who Adrian has a hell of a lot of respect for and who is great for bounding ideas off. The GT4X`s engine build involves a slightly longer stroke due to its HKS crank, the bore has been kept the standard size so that it is compatible with the JE forged pistons on Crower rods and the cylinder capacity is now 2.1-litres. The cylinder-head is now gas-flowed; there are also race-spec valves and springs in place of the standard ones, not forgetting those HKS 272-degree cams were another crucial mod.
The engine now realises in excess of 650bhp and the latest ball-bearing Garrett GT35/42 unit from Turbo Dynamics is largely responsible. The engine bay is all polished and well decorated with plenty of braided lines and Samco hoses, were wiring isn`t so pretty there`s carbon-fibre side panels to cover it, this also bares the logos of all the sponsors too.A custom intercooler setup, advanced oil breather system and custom oil cooling system keeps the engine in smooth running order. Controlling the ignition, fueling and ERL water injector system relies upon the Pro ECU which allows full-throttle gear changes as well as having a launch control feature and an extensive data logging capability.
Adrian has certainly pushed his luck to the limits with the boost pressure and at 2.2 bar the Celica is still on the right side of reliable, there have been a few snags with the transmission though. To rectify this he`s opted for a custom Fensport triple-plate clutch, Fensport racing five-speed straight-cut dogbox with a high ratio 3:9:1 final drive and a Cusco MZ plate-type rear LSD which has done the trick nicely.
His GT4X is now ready to perform in the Ten of the Best performance road car series, an event marks competitors car`s on their handling, top speed and quarter mile times. Judging by last year`s efforts in which his modified Corolla became the only car to score points in all three disciplines, the Celica`s going to really kick some ass.
Adrian`s done a fine job of playing up to the Celica`s natural assets and with nurturing that runs up to the £70K mark, it was destined to be great, all be it in an expert`s hands.
CAR MAKE & MODEL
Fensport Toyota Celica GT4X 650bhp Pictures
CAR REF NUMBER
19345
CAR COLOUR
Blue
ENGINE MODIFICATIONS
toyota 3sgte 2.0-litre twin-cam, hks crankshaft, crower steel connecting rods, je forged pistons, arp bolts, hks metal head gasket, alloy crank pulley. fensport racing ported and flowed cylinder head with racing valves and double valve springs, hks vernier pulleys and 272 camshafts. custom short runner design with internal ram pipes and 75mm throttle body inlet manifold. turbo dynamics 2006-spec garrett gt35/42 ball-bearing turbo, hks stainless steel tubular manifold, tial 44mm remote wastegate with screamer pipe, custom mandrel bent stainless steel exhaust system (90mm to 100mm) with titanium silencer, hks supra jza80 intercooler with custom lightweight 0.9mm thin wall, stainless steel 3” piping, samco hoses, custom oil breather system with catch tank and oil return, custom pas reservoir, exact oil to air cooler with braided hoses and trd thermostat, evans coolant, foam-filled alloy fuel tank, holley lift fuel pump, swirlpot, aeromotive main pump, -10 braided fuel lines, hks 1000cc injectors, aeromotive fuel pressure regulator, modified gt-four alternator with corolla regulator and fensport alloy oversize pulley, tte wrc alloy alternator mount with carbon fibre adjustment bracket, erl aquamist water injection system, motec m4 pro ecu (for engine, boost control, water injection, full throttle gear change, launch control, data logging and wide band lambda). transmission: fensport racing triple-plate clutch with lightweight flywheel, fensport racing five-speed straight-cut, dog gearbox with high ratio 3.9:1 final drive, cusco mz plate-type rear lsd, trd front diff mounts, fensport racing uprated rear diff mount, propshaft retaining rings, gt-four driveshafts, gt-four front diff and viscous coupling centre diff.
fensport quote of 650+bhp at 2.2 bar. 10.6 second ¼-mile @ 134mph, 0-60ft in 1.6 seconds. top speed estimate of above 200mph.
floorpan altered to accept propshaft centre mount and an exhaust, spare wheel well removed, fuel system installed where the back seat once was, two towers welded in to locate 4wd corolla modified rear subframe. modified corolla 4wd front cross-member, custom engine mounts, t45 steel member for intercooler and radiator, trd-strengthened a-, b- and c-pillars with extra spot welding, t45 steel front bumper bar, lightweight alloy rear bumper bar, tig welded wrc-type multi-point roll-cage, linking to front turrets, transmission tunnel, rear turrets and double-x door bars, two rear chassis-stiffening aluminium underbraces to support carbon fibre boot floor, all underseal and sealant removed, internal door bars removed
SUSPENSION MODIFICATIONS
specially valved tein flex coilover suspension, custom rate springs, camber adjustable top mount, celica vvti front suspension arms, corolla gti front hubs, corolla 4wd rear suspension arms and rear hubs, superflex front wishbone bushes and anti-roll bar bushes, whiteline anti-lift and increased castor wishbone bushes, whiteline adjustable anti-roll bar with mr2 turbo poly bushes, whiteline adjustable droplinks, c-one lower rear arm bushes
ALLOY WHEELS
volks racing te37 7.5 x 17” et35
TYRES
toyo r888 tyres 215/45 for circuit and 225 for drag, toyo t1-r 215/45 wets
BRAKES
tarox 10-pot calliper with 326mm discs (front) and tarox 6-pot callipers with 280mm discs (rear), braided steel lines throughout inside car, in-car adjustable brake proportioning valve
EXTERIOR MODIFICATIONS
celica trd m-sport shell, seibon carbon fibre bonnet with modified scoop for turbo clearance, celica gt front bumper modified for more airflow and c-one front spoiler, seibon carbon fibre tailgate with tinted plexiglas, celica gt side skirts, celica gt adjustable rear wing, trd m-sport rear bumper corners
INTERIOR MODIFICATIONS
recaro profi 6kg race seats, momo quick-release steering wheel, schroth five-point harnesses, motec digital sport dash for all ecu parameters and speedo, gear position, shift lights, warning lights, oil pressure, fuel pressure, engine oil temp, gearbox oil temp, and rear differential oil temp, custom centre-console switches, custom wiring loom throughout, fia electric cut-out switch, fully flocked dash and interior plastics, headlining and carpet, custom door and rear panels, spa firefighter 4kg plumbed-in electric fire system with three engine bay and three interior extinguisher jets, battery relocated behind passenger seat, alloy water injection and washer tanks in boot
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