Empties 2009 Corolla "build"

Well. some people asked for it.. why I dont know, but Why not have a build thread for the 2006 corolla S (BEST CAR EVER MAN) replacement.. the 2009 Corolla LE. Purchased from my place of employment with a blown engine at 186k miles due to no oil. and it was in need of some TLC. My father used my 06 as a work car and was in a NASTY accident and well. the 06 was offically killed at 880k miles (it did still run, granted the axle went through the engine block) so I located a new car for him to use.. even though.. this one is mine too.. kidna. I pay for it, he uses it.

Here she is Today!

and what it looked like when i got it.

 

Ok. So. To start. Located an Engine. engine is from a 2011 American made car. 12K miles. $900 SCORE. Got to installing it. no issues putting the american engine into a Jap produced corolla.
Old engine (cruddy)

Old engine out

New one going in

and installed and running

 

yea the jap produced ones are an odditiy. only came inthe base models too. all higher trim and most base models were NUMMI produced in 2009

 

Then with it running, located a door, drove 10 hours total to get it, plus a taillight and a not broken air box (seems to be common on these people break the tabs off trying to fit aftermarket filters)

got the door installed and got some free aluminum wheels of a prius, the car had brand new yokohama tires on it so i wanted to keep the 15" wheels for now. cost of the wheels was perfect (free baby) so i put them on to get rid of the god awful steel wheels

bumper was off to get the headlights restored, and while i was there i put in some 2020 tacoma fog lights i got because someone wanted the optional LED fogs installed in their brand new truck.



Still waiting on the fog light switch to show up. but i did get the relay installed in prep. switch will be here in a few days. I also couldnt stand no intermittent wipers. So i installed the stalk from a 09 prius i had laying around.. may have an extra switch but for free i cant complain. i think i should wire up the rear wire for a smoke screen!

 

after all that The body shop took a couple days, repaired the passenger side dog leg area due to attempted break in some time in the past and pulled the left front fender back out so it lined back up. all in all im $2200 into this car as it sits. KBB is double that. I also installed the factory remote start since it was only $100 for me to get.

going to put a scion radio ($40) in for all the fancy handsfree stuff in the near future and probably work on getting wheel controls on this sucker. past that. hunt down the same color S model rockers and bumpers. and the spoiler. I miss my S model corolla and this ones just boring as all hell looking. want to spice it up and hope for another trouble free car!

 

Oh. totally forgot the car that made me appreciate corollas. Truely the best car anyone could of asked for. my 2006 corolla S my father bought brand new in august of 2005. That car only left him stranded once. and right infront of the house at that at 200k miles. after that, no major issues. Replaced 1 alternator, 1 water pump and a few gaskets here and there plus 4 struts at 750k. other than that. original everything. survived 2 bad accidents but the last one finally did her in RIP ol rolla.



Ol Girl kept my father alive and still ran like a top even with the axle in the block. radiator and condensor were intact. This is why when your car stalls out on the highway you pull off to the shoulder. DONT PARK IN THE MIDDLE LANE DURING RUSHHOUR. nothing my father could of done to avoid it. a car sitting still in live lanes of traffic with nowhere to go at 75 mph. thank god hes still with us

 

Awesome, can’t wait to see what you do with it. My work car is a 2011 Scion xD, basically a corolla. I’ve had it since it was new, now with close to 200k. Still runs like the day I drove it off the lot. You really can’t kill these cars.

 

Sweet. I love seeing stories of redemption on cars. People really treat them like they're disposable these days it seems, but they're totally repairable if you've got the time and patience.

 

eh nothing really major planned. its a work car. maybe if he ends up quiting i'll do something fun with it. but for now its just adding little quality of life things. and new struts soon too.

its sad how cars are treated. ive got the tundra, now this one that were destine for the scrap heap. but as we can see, they still both have plenty of life left in them. I tried to buy the 06 corolla back. but buyback was $1200. i do keep my eyes open for it at auction. i loved that little turd

 

Struts are ordered, fog light switch came in and got it installed. Fogs now work.


My only gripe? Doesn’t add a whole lot of light coverage when the headlights have 9012 bulbs installed. But hey, it cost me 40 bucks all said and done. Adds value to the car being factory stuff too

oh and put a clock spring I had laying around in that will eventually allow me to have steering controls

 

Im sure your car is awesome but i absolutely hate all Corollas due to... well look at my pfp. All of em i've seen have no idea how to drive. This is an amazing build though, gotta give you props.

 

eh, they're not all terrible drivers. but sadly most are... because theyre the ones that just dont care about cars period... its a basic car to get to point B from A

 

New struts came in and are installed. no more clunks and next saturday at work i'll align it. Also, averaging 37.2 MPG. almost as good as the 06 was getting (39)

 

yes. someone asked for a build page and they received the build page for this boring car.

 

People ask for a Travis Scott burger, and I still don't get it.

Where there's a demand, there must be supply.

 

I demand you give me the prerunner for my friendship

 

25k trouble free miles so far, but the engine has developed a seep at the cam tower (likely because it sat for so long) so sometime in the future i'll be pulling the timing cover and cam towers to reseal everything.. other than that cars been great, and i now own a 2012 corolla with a blown engine that'll be getting a 6400 mile engine and then sold on.