Toyota Is Bringing Back Even More Vintage Parts

Owners of old cars know how hard it can be to find parts. Sure, cross-compatible parts like wheels and suspension components will likely always be around, but what about headlights? Interior trim? Wiring harnesses? Owners of old Toyotas have long collected solutions to this issue for some components, but now the Gazoo Racing Heritage Parts line is adding more options for the AE86, Land Cruiser, and Supra. 

Gazoo Racing is adding 14 new parts to its library this year, with the first newly-produced parts hitting dealers this month. "The project reproduces spare parts that have been discontinued and sells them as genuine parts," Toyota's racing division said in a statement, "in order to support customers who wish to continue driving older vehicles that are full of memories and that they truly love."

Some are relatively universal parts, but others are white whales that would otherwise be truly difficult to track down — and equally hard to live without. As Hagerty puts it:

While some pieces like oil pressure gauges for 60- and 70-series Land Cruisers and fuel gauges for 70- and 80-series Land Cruisers could be replaced with aftermarket pieces, other parts, like the A80 Supra rear speed sensor, are harder to work around.

For the AE86, the latest added parts from Gazoo include one of the most frustrating things to DIY: Wiring harnesses. Toyota has reintroduced engine bay harnesses for the 4AG engine in the AE86 chassis, which is a godsend to anyone who's faced down the concept of making a whole new harness by themselves. The parts even include diagrams and instructions on how to install them, ensuring that every fiddly little connector actually goes where it's meant to. 

Having new factory harnesses to chop up could even be a boon for us U.S. residents interested in 4A-GE swaps in non-GTS Corollas. Wiring is often one of the most frustrating parts of an engine swap, but having brand new factory harnesses to chop up can simplify things immensely. All the connectors you need, at the right wire lengths, ready to be hacked into whatever connector your Haltech wants. Bringing back old parts doesn't just make it easier to keep old cars on the road — it makes it simpler to modify old cars the way their original owners might have.