The Beginning
“When I moved to Huntsville, I was driving a 2013 Mazda 3 Hatchback. At the time, my girlfriend was moving here with me and was going to need a car. But since it was right at the height of the used market after Covid there wasn’t anything available for her that made financial sense. I started looking for something sporty for myself so she could drive the Mazda. I was really wanting an AWD Hatch but there were none that were used that were worth it. They were either over modified or would need work. At that time I didn’t know much about cars so I didn’t wanna go buy a used STI Hatch and have it blow up on me cause I didn’t know what I was doing. I really wanted a GR Corolla, but with all the dealer markups it just wasn’t worth it. Since we had the Mazda we didn’t need anything with lots of space so this was my chance to get a coupe. I started looking at Miata’s but they felt too much like a toy. When the GR86 was announced, I started driving it in Gran Turismo and fell in love with the way it handled. So I started looking around the whole southeast trying to find a premium manual GR86 in white. I was talking to about 10 dealerships trying to get one, but the issue was that, unlike the 22 BRZ, you can’t order a GR86 to spec. They ship pre-speced cars to the dealers and they get what they get. So I just had to wait until a dealer had what I wanted. Luckily for me, Landers McClarty Toyota in Fayetteville TN was getting a manual in stock, but it was a red base. There’s no major difference between the base and the premium other than 17in wheels vs 18in, nicer seats and some alcantara interior. I didn’t see the point in waiting longer on a premium if most of the differences were just cosmetic. I planned on changing wheels at some point, and I could always add the ducktail spoiler. I told the dealer I would take it and placed my deposit. I just had to sit and wait till it came in. The last week of waiting felt like forever. I was told to come in on the Friday so that I could sign papers and get everything ready to pick it up on Monday. That same day I had a 1 on 1 meeting with my boss, and he told me that I was getting promoted! It was crazy cause I wasn’t expecting it and my raise basically covered the price of the car. It was perfect timing. So that Monday I took off to pick up my new GR86. I get there and we started finalizing the deal and the dealer ask me to sign and date. I asked him was the date was and he said August 6th, 8/6. It really felt like it was meant to be.”
The First Drive
“I got my keys and hopped in the first manual car I’d ever driven. I spent an hour limping around the parking lot figuring out the clutch and how to engage the gears, relying solely on YouTube knowledge. After stalling who knows how many times, I finally felt comfortable enough to drive home. I stalled like 4 times, causing traffic all the way back home, but it didn’t bother me cause I finally had my new car! After days of practice I finally figured out how to drive smooth and I could take it anywhere I wanted. I spent a whole day driving around to get it through the break in period, because I was ready to see what this “slow” car could do.”
Modding The Car
“First mod I put on the car was a black paint matched ducktail spoiler. Later that Christmas my girlfriend got me clear side markers to replace the ugly yellow USDM side markers. The car looks great but the ride height was atrocious. After getting tired of the stock ride height, it was time to lower the car. I got RaceComp Engineering Super-Street 1 coilovers rebranded KW V1 coilovers retuned for this new ZN8 platform. I spent the day learning how to install them from some guys in our local 86 group. As we were taking the wheels off I noticed my stock tires were cooked. Of course the only logically step was to buy new tires AND wheels. No point in getting skinny tires for the stock 17×7.5 wheels. My preference has always been to get parts that would preform well not just look good. So after spending a lot of time researching light wheels I was choosing between a set of Konigs or Enkeis. Konigs didn’t have the wheel I want in the specs I needed for my 86, so I went with the track proven RPF1s but in SPC. After another few months and an autocross event or two I decided to get some White line lower control arms so that I could get a perfect camber in the rear. The car finally looked and handled exactly how wanted.”
Passions Collide
“After getting the car, I spent a lot of my free time driving around exploring the areas around Huntsville taking pictures with my little canon T5. Getting the car sparked my interest in photography again that I had lost for a few years. Next thing you know I’m buying a Sony A7iv with a couple lens. After spending a lot time taking pics and exploring, it was time to learn how to push the car to its limits or at least as close as I could get to it at that time. I decided to take a performance driving class with the local autocross club in Huntsville. I finally felt comfortable driving a car in real life the way I was driving them in the sim. I started doing autocross a few times but realized i would have to modify my car within certain restrictions to be competitive. As much as it was I knew it wasn’t going to be something I was going to participate in for a whole season.”
