[EU] '99 Cuore L700, TR Aero, GER import in Poland

[Matiz]

Sup people, finally find some time to write up a bit.

Theres some discussion in my welcome thread.

So, for short, I have kinda strange situation, manly focus at Subarus. I stil owe my GF8 that is under rost restoration (finally, after 5 years delay or even more) still miss my K11 Micra wich was bought as spare car for restoration time. At the end it was shed-turbocharged. I was great time, pure joy. But after long awaited engine failure (CR 12, 11,8, 11) and impreza complications (papers on hold because cracked windshield) I had to buy something. I chosen Yaris TS that was too expensive few years back when I bought K11.

And as mentioned: yeah car is fast, but nothing more. As a person who considered Kenmeri, C130 Laurel or Daruma Celica as project car, i dont feel good in yaris. Maybe- some trackday or some more spirited driving will ignite some feelings but… my road to work is 95% highway. It highlightes short gearbox final drive, lack of sound proof inside.. well dont get me wrong- micra was bare metal, race car vibes inside, but you know, engine sound, dashboard shape, interior ergonomy… sorry for all toyota fans, but I see that car was designed around 2000. Its too new for me…

Kinda disapointed, but I consider this as evolution of my automotive taste and makes me confident that 90’ was peak automotive. Especially japanese.

Also main reason that I picked up L700 is situation short before harash polish winter. My brother needs some winter beater. We will juggle with avaiable cars a bit, propably my good automotive friend will borrow Yaris, and brother will took spare K11 (long story, my K11 era leftover)

So.

I traveled to buy Mira about 600km to polish seaside city, kolobrzeg. Im from other side.of country when mountains are, close to Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Car was in supeisingly good condition, I felt in love instatly. Big glass, huge turning radius (both of these lacks in yaris, i still amused how dramatically small turning radius is. Maybe its TS thing, i dunno…)

Paid 3000zl (1200AUD, 700EUR) and bombed home without problem.

Car seems to have easy life. Noticed umweltzone sticker from Berlin, car was imported from Germany (biggest source of used cars in poland since ‘90s. Theres even jokes about it)

I was so surprised that Mira was offered with this body in europe! Same thing as with K11 - ive bought because nice bumpers

Here comes my fav feature of this car- size diference compared to this …. Cars that are on the road these days

Edit: guys i missclicked and posted thread too early, i ll continue in next post. Here comes photo after 650km trip back home, near Katowicki spodek (flyng saucer, katowice, poland)

Cheers!

[samlam]

Awesome! Having fog lights is super cool imo, and I like how the average Cuore seller does not know that it is something special. I originally wanted to pick up a yellow 4-door with the same bumpers for very little money too, but the seller never replied back. Your car having the Umweltzone sticker is funny because I‘m currently in that zone. Do you have any issues with rust on yours?

I commuted a lot in a Yaris Verso 1.3 over the past 2 years. It’s all stock, and therefore the grip limit is low, so you can have fun at lower speeds. Although it’s mostly the fear of tipping over and not understeer that keeps you from pushing further. It having an iconic green digital dash and being the Verso variant also add a little character to it. I like it

[Butch_Butcher]

@Matiz

…Germany (biggest source of used cars in poland since ‘90s. Theres even jokes about it)…

Go on holiday in Poland where your own car will be waiting for you That’s an old joke.

The last vehicle I would choose for a winter car would be a Daihatsu, because of the salt strewn onto the roadway. Otherwise, the L7s and 9s are great cars, especially for highway driving.

I would try sourcing out a used windshield for your Subaru. If you could find a breaker yard which will allow you to remove the windshield yourself, you could save quite a bit of money.

The best way to remove a windshield from a scrapped automobile would be to remove it together with its window frame, either using a cutting torch, portable plasma cutter or a portable electric-powered hacksaw. Once you’re home, you could carefully cut the frame off from around its glass

@samlam

…I commuted a lot in a Yaris Verso 1.3 over the past 2 years. It’s all stock, and therefore the grip limit is low, so you can have fun at lower speeds. Although it’s mostly the fear of tipping over and not understeer that keeps you from pushing further…

Those are horrific-looking cars, mostly driven by aging persons and Cat Ladies. The worst place for mounting those ugly digital instruments is in the middle of the dashboard.

In a worst case scenario, where I no longer could obtain replacement parts for my aging L6 and Suzuki, I would then contemplate on looking for one of those Versos, simply because of its resemblance to both very practical vehicles that I own.

I once owned a Renault 5 whose driving qualities resembled the handling experience you’ve mentioned. When I first drove it, I was scared to death, thinking it was rolling over. I quickly got used to it, finding out that it was instead a well-handling car with precise steering and typically-French soft suspension.

Like later Cuores described in this forum, your Verso was perhaps produced without a sway bar. If so, an aftermarket bar may be available for these, if you remain unconfident about its handling.

By the way, driving a car named “Verso” in Italy would be as embarassing as driving a Mitsubishi Pajero in a Spanish-speaking country. Depending on if in Spain or Latin America, “Pajero” could either be interpreted as “Clown” or “W@n…..r”. “Verso” would get interpreted as a face which lunatics tend to make, during their insane sessions.

Typical Japanese not fully researching foreign vocabularies, before choosing names for their products

[Matiz]

Yeah! Thats exacly how it goes

Well, thats doesnt came from nowhere. But its past times I think. Feel so stupid for this time and those idiots that was stealing

No, no way! Cuore stays with me! Oficially aproved, car fills a gap after K11 in my heart

Car is pretty good in terms of rust. Almost nothing. My Micra was rustbucket, belevie me, I know how to buy japanese cars

No worries butch, i had to buy donor car for american impreza repairs. Windshield was succesfully salvaged!

Okay, have to prepare for first post about mira, maybe Ill write somehing this weekend. Forgot to mention, when I was tripping back home, I had double rainbow TWICE I think is great fortune for upcoming Dai adventure!

[Matiz]

Verso was quite popular here, yeah, that was weird category, but I think YRV is same segment. I like front of YRV, but when I go to the rear… I think I wouldn’t have a problem to scrap body of yrv with no hard feelings if some swaping will come to happen…

Btw. I love how sellers try to sell those unsellable daihatsus with capslocked DAIHATSU SIRION MECHANIKA Z YARISA when you guys cleary found that yaris SZ and Dai K3 are diferent engines

I think its exact size of small car in europe. Micra, yaris, getz, starlet etc. Staright-transfer KeiCars was always lower in sales, maybe except Tico and Matiz. European superminis, like cinque/sei was bit bigger.

Funny trivia about Yaris, TS/RS/Sportivo are only yar that features classic, analogue cluster instead digital one. Dont ask me why also is damn unreadable with this font, needle colour and dots at scale. I painted half of these black

Heres photo of closing the clock. Everythings topped. I used to say “gerbox cranked to the max” but its revs issue. Its about 100-200rpm before fuel cut. You may also see shiftlight added above cluster, because I cannot catch the shift point for first weeks. Redline is 6000rpm and limiter is around 6300. I was bouncing the limiter like some typical honda guy no match for micras 7500 rev limit ….

Also, another trivia- 1NZ is basically an Prius engine without hybryd module

Fun fact, we are in Warsaw (Butch ) allready to visit friends and I must say- Ill rather like to do this trip with Mira instrad Yar. This short gearbox is so tiring during highway cruises… btw it tooks around 7l/100km. Conservative ride, around 110km/h. Faster is too lound and fuel economy drops. Max legal speed travel of 140kmh will be 8-9 liters for sure. Thats my 125hp naturaly aspirated GF8 impreza range …

I dont know how previous owners made 315 000kms. And I know from public database mileage reports that was mosty highway travels…

I starting to form an opinion about this car is a damn good trackday weapon, instead sporty street car. See Australian Nugget Nationals.

Dont like anything except speed in this car… but in other hand have some belief, that its special version. Maybe not future classic material like Glanza V, but still…

Overall- I have too many cars, and I think It will be easiest to seperate ways with yar maybe some track action will change my approach to this car, but this type of activity is STILL lowkey here…

And this damn cable gear shifter… I hate french cars for this soo much… and yaris have one. I bet frenchies pushed some ideas during yaris developing stages….

Just look, ball bearing inserts in K11, 30 fo*in years old shifter maked it so precise, that I made gear indicator with microswitches

And in yar I sometimes cannot find second gear…

Disaster. Best car of the world. But for normies.

[Matiz]

Okay lets proceed to Mira.

Goal is to make it look like those awesome Malaisyan Kelisas.

There was an pool about color between daughter and wife. White is my long time fav…

But everyone likes idea of…

This exact car will be the main inspiration. As Gran Turismo kid, considered yellow body with black rims, spoon style, but paiting rims black makes them invisible. This one looks great with regamasters!

Quick intermezzo. We lacks of jdm wheels here, there are knock offs, but not even dreamin about TE37 in kei size (6.5”, ET40)

During K11 era I’ve found myself a challange to find forgotten german style (2000-2010) rims that has some jdm vibe. Usually those are cheap alloys with centercap, but when you not instal centercap, these are diferent beast.

First example, AEZ C7015 a bit regamaster looking. Regret selling these, but these went to my friends wife yaris

Later I’ve found amazing meister lookalikes. R.O.D Atura rims. Beefy lip ruined these, but overall looked nice. 8” and 20 offset was too much for any of my cars… some guy bought these for miata

For Mira I’ve found set of Rial rims (germany). Nice dimensions (7x15 ET40) but this center cap lip looks weird. Ill try to grind it down. First tryout with meat tires

White, with 175/50 should be awesome!

Performance is not a thing yet. It will be hard decide, K3 way, because YRVs source dryng fast in my country, or turbocharging the EJ. Have spare IHI RHB4. Rumored to be used in Yaris RS Turbo

In engine bay I only did washer delete and batery relocation

Okay, big things

In my beautiful country, made from mud and cardboard, some big brain minister (or whatever) decided to fix usdm/jdm plates issue. And they didt worst way! Instead make another plate type, they just transfered our ugly, polish font to smaller plates… and cut 4 letters! no one discovered here that numbers CAN go back to the database after some time (hello UK), so when they find out, they changed the LAW, that says: when you mount small plate to car with normal license plate place, you are criminal…

Seruously, police and MOT inspector can put your car title on hold and sue you…

Normal polish plates looks even whorse on small car like mira.

I have to reweld rear hatch…

In progress, also NoriYaro window banner visible. Heh, I was mailed with Alexi before he became famous, no one will belive anyway

Got idea to change this big grille fencenet to small one. But this is made one-piece with bumper. If Ill cut it there will be no way back…

Oh, forgot about other mods, one tailight, one to go. Have it in progress

Some 3d prints, Mira badge and DRS door lock knobs

Bonus: friends wheels 7x15, ET35

[marc0tjevp]

I’d run the original TR/Fun wheels

[Matiz]

I know You like these but these a bit too narrow for me. Maybe after some suspension mods, but at stock height I cannot feel the tire skid point. Mixed with big sidewall… dont feel confident. Also its typical eastern europe fall currently, I have to chceck grip level of this car at night at parkong lot, because it can be dangerous. I’m always saiyn: fresh drivers shoul at least at once force skid in their car in controlled enviroment, it may help to keep calm in dangerous trafic situation!

If you watch some “road crashes” at youtube , look how europe crashes looks. Almost always fwd car drivers gives too much countersteer, after pendulum effect they cannot make another counter.

Hatch reweld in progress, no foto, sorry