Gen 7 experiences / opinions sought

[LCTS]

Hello all, I recently bought a 2005 Celica T Sport and love it 😋

I've had lots of performance cars incl Type Rs and once had a Corolla T Sport and loved the engine. I found Castrol Syntrans made the shift smoother in the Rolla, so will try this in the Celica.  I read that a weighted gearknob also helps; does anyone have a link to a decent subtle, may be genuine TRD one? 

The brake pedal is a bit long and spongy; this seems to be the norm?  The previous owner fitted refurbished calipers plus oem discs and pads.  I plan to fit braided hoses and am contemplating Black Diamond Predator pads (these made a big difference on my old HRV and worked well from cold)

Has anyone replaced the master cylinder or had an abs air purge bleed and found either of these improved their pedal feel?  

Springs!  A moderate reduction in arch gap with less dive & roll is the aim, whilst retaining comfort.  Is 30mm the smallest drop available?  Are Eibach Prolines regarded as the best option for handling and comfort?  

Is there a grill surround available for the foglights that matches the oem radiator grill?  

[RUToyota]

Welcome...Great car...had my 140 Gen 7 for a couple of years and loved it....never a moment's trouble.

Have a word with Kev...Scarlett Arrow on this site...Kev will give you far more useful information/opinion than I can.

[gezhenry]

Good nice car an 05 t sport has to be one of the pick of the bunches esp in t grey.

Apols, I don't know as much as Kev, but this is what I do know:

My gearshift isn't notchy but I believe they can go that way, a gearbox oil flush and change is supposed to help, I had a weighted gearknob and it did feel better, another common cosmetic change is to the Auris gearknob, soz I haven't any links.

U can al so change the shifter bushes which wear quite easily which is supposed to improve it, there are also short shifter kits, I do have these but haven't got round to changing them yet cos as I say my change still feels fine to me.

Long and spongy is inherent unfort, you may be able to adjust the pedal poss, but a bleed may help.

A common brake upgrade is a switch to Avensis c alipers, but it sounds like yours are ok, obviously better pads et c may help can't advise on which ones.

I'm not sure how much diff the braided hoses make they should do but I was going to do the same and got advised otherwise.

I've heard the master cylinders can go and aren't too difficult to change, but I'm not sure whether that'll solve the sp onginess.

Brake stoppers are available and reputably make a good +ve diff in feel, I've made my own and it does 'seem' to have an effect.

The main brake probs common with other cars is the slider pins sticking.

Lowering springs are a common upgrade and I do think they're generally all about 30mms drop (like on the GT model)nothing less, can't advise on the choices, they do look better but think they can be a bit harsh.

I'm quite happy with the comfort of my standard springs so have combatted the arch gap by fitting 18 inch wheels which do look good, but do make it feel slightly less nimble and quick off the mark, I suppose you could also fit tyr es with a higher profile perhaps.

The fog light gap I quite like but some people think looks odd, apparently you can fit Ford focus fog lights instead which are supposed to fit well, I've just got some more finer mesh to go over my grilles and also fits in the fog light recesses quite easily think it looks slightly bett er and is cheap n easy to do.

Hope there s some useful info there to be going on with congrats with your good purchase.