The term ‘little car, big engine’ has never rung truer with this ultimate sleeper 1980 Toyota Corolla TE71 that has ditched its puny single cam four-banger for some pure American muscle that could rip the chassis apart.
Sitting in the engine bay is a 7.4-liter big block Chevy V8 lump that sends power to the rear wheels through a General Motors Turbo-Hydramatic 400 transmission. With enough torque to realign Earth’s rotational axis, the standard chassis doesn’t stand a chance against the V8’s raw power, hence the additional bracing in the engine bay. You’ll notice it in the shot of the engine bay, one bar across the bay and bolted in place just in front of the strut towers and another two running from above the radiator towards the towers as well.
According to the seller on eBay, the car only hits 105km/h with 13-inch tyres at 4,000rpm but it gets there in a mere four seconds. From the looks of it, a couple of high RPM launches should rip the body in half but if you’re looking for the ultimate sleeper, this could very well be it.
Here's to hoping that somebody in Malaysia drops in a 1UZ-FE into a TE71 body.
Source: CarScoop
