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Boosted Toyota 20v is more than enough ‘fun’ for the streets

By Jehran Naidoo

The Toyota Corolla RXI 20 valve has grown into a 21st century legend in South Africa, being widely favored for its naturally aspirated sound and feel.

Merebank brothers Darren and Trivolan Govender wanted an AE112 Corolla of their own, but more than anything, wanted to set it apart from the popping and banging 20v’s out there.

Around five years ago, Darren bought the then red 20v as a non-runner. It was a turbo project that didn’t hit the ground.

Project turbo 20

Just as he acquired the car and start to unleash his imagination, the Covid-19 pandemic unleased its wrath and his plans came to a halt.

Luckily, he’s a motorhead, so is his brother and father, which meant they worked on the engine at home. The Corolla body was given to Vinod from Destiny Customs to get rubbed down and painted.

1 QIK 20 – ZN was also Darren’s first project and turned out to be quite the success.

Initially, ‘Ferrari Red’ was the colour chosen for the 20V but Darren’s brother suggested he go with something different. He told him go with the flip-tone orange instead.

“Looking at it now, I’m glad I didn’t choose the Ferrari Red,” the 27-year-old said.

Road-holding, there’s a set of Buddy Club wheels wrapped in 195/50/15 Falken rubber, with Arc coilovers keeping her firm and steady throughout each gear.

Speaking of gears, a five speed Toyota GLI Twincam gearbox delivers the 185 kilowatts to those 15″ Falken’s out front.

The original 6 speed gearbox was broken after some time within the turbo set-up.

“The gearbox is the only actual part we’ve changed since the car was on the road. I have been lucky in that its been extremely reliable. I use this as a daily car for work and back during the week. My dad also drives it to work sometimes,” Darren said.

Small turbo, faster spooling

The bottom end of the AE112 Twincam was swapped out for a lower compression 4agZE version from Toyota to go along with the TB28 turbo charger.

The 4agze comes off a supercharged rendition of the Toyota engine and has lower compression rates to accommodate the boost.

“We didn’t want to change to size of the turbo or put a bigger one because we wanted it to spool up faster and match the high revving nature of the 20v. The boost range is from round 4,500rpm and feels like a real beast in boost,” he said.

A 304 stainless exhaust with a one box system of 57 into 63mm reverberates the lifting and spooling Corolla.

Kumaran from Electro boost tunes the Corolla on pump fuel and makes around 185kw and between 340-360nm torque.

” Honestly, I don’t think you need more power for the streets. Especially for a front wheel drive, its a really fun car to have. Even though its front wheel, the torque pulls the steering a lot so you have to be at it all the time,” he added.

The interior of the car is pretty much factory, with the exception of the Kenwood deck and upgraded steering wheel.

The boot is a fully-loaded box meal, with two batteries, two subwoofers and amplifiers to manage those added decibels.

“I took her to Dezzi sometime ago but its still a full street car and that’s what we built it for. Not for times or to make a name for ourselves, just to have fun,” Darren said.

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