Hi Toyota Peeps,
Glad there is a website for these amazing cars, I've loved mine for years!
I live in New Zealand, land where all trac's are called Toyota Corolla XL 4wd's, or Carib's.
Mine is a 1989 NEW ZEALAND made example, assembled in kit form in New Zealand and recoginised as being superior to the Jap import models (Carib). It as the short front and rear bumpers
I am the 3rd owner, previously a drug companys company car, then owned by a old fella for 12 years. It had never been driven off the beaten track, and was totally spotless underneath (clean, and rustfree!)
Its a 1600cc twin cam, carb, with the 5sp manual box, power steering, central locking, and thats it!
Its just gone past 350,000km, with all original running gear. I replaced the wheels with 14 inch Mitubishi Lancer steel rims with better rubber.
Its the 2nd Corolla 4wd I've owned, the other a rusty 89 in England a few years ago. Lots of electrics, lots of rust - somebody put a burger in the hole in the front wing, it was a short lived fun affair!
This Corolla was bought specifically for the road I live on, the World Rally Championship road to be exact.
Its called Whaanga road, and is a gravel road the circles an extinct volcano, and doesnt have 100m without a bend, usually 90 degrees. I'll put some footage up here soon as. The Corolla is faily well balanced as a rally car, but snatches at the end of a drift. The extra metal above the back wheels helps to set up for corners, and helps traction out of the loose gravel. Its not that easy to get it to break traction accelerating in a straight line. As I say, diff-lock for no fun but swift progress, difflock off if you want to swedish flick the bends, rally style!
I work for Raglan Surf School, and explore the coast looking for waves whenever I can. The Corolla has crossed rivers about 50cm deep, blasted through mud and grass, driven up the ski fields (with snow!), driven on powder fine black volcanic beaches, and pure white silica beaches, and done 120km down the beach. At 100kph on gravel, its still as stable as 50, impressive! On the motorway, 150kph is its max really, it gets a bit drifty above that.
Black volcanic sand is the only thing I've got stuck in, and that was eventually going to happen!
With 14inch rims, it handles alot better, although the mpg drops in town (better at steady 80kph tho.
I can only find early BMW 3 series (1984-88), and VW Golf G60 mk2 steel rims in 15inch, though it would kill the mpg, whilst improving ground clearance.
Basically, its been everywhere, and been amazing at all of it!
Would like a bull bar, as eventually somebodys going to come round a bend 2wd style (ie-out of control) on my road, its full of rally nuts!
Also, a sump guard would be good, the plastic covers are ok for sticks etc, but will break eventually.
All in all, totally stoked, long may this Corolla roll!

Welcome!  Sounds like you're giving it quite the exercise.  Try to post some pics of your wagon and that terrain if you can... or put up a video of it in action!

I took my wagon out into some woods when I was out hiking a few weeks ago.  It ate up the dirt roads, clay, sugar sand, etc with no problems.  And that was with the differential unlocked.

I'd love to get a push bar... I think that's what it's called, some of the Caribs had them from the factory.  (A smaller metal tube between the headlights, and usually with fog lights attached.)

Yeah go off road action!
There are a few videos on youtube with caribs etc, that Im sure everybody's seen, but some video of people from here would be cool. A good drift on gravel video would be good, I'll get my girlfriend to film(then she eats the dust)
Will edit my vids together when I get back to NZ, have some good adventure pic's that I would post, but cant quite see how it works?
I think my file size is too big, Im new to this forum picture thing, any tips on how to reduce it?
Sweet!
ps, anybody fitted 15'inch rims yet?

I'm rollin on 15's. =D

I'd like to see some pics too, I like the story, great to hear!