This Carina GT-R AA63 Cluster has already been lying in my shed for two years now.

Carina GT-R AA63 cluster cleanup: opened up
Why? Well, there are three modifications I need to make:
1. Speedo cable on the wrong side, so I need to modify the cable-bracket to be mounted on the other side
2. An additional hole for the odometer reset button on the dash
3. Rewire the connector to match the AA63 pin layout

1 and 2 are not really problematic, but can only be solved when I'm mounting the new cluster. 3 is a bit more difficult since these clusters are not documented outside Japan. So I started following all wiring paths and documented where they went and what their use should be.
This is the table of changes (I found so far) to make:
Click here for the AA63 Cluster pin layout on the next page!

A few small updates on my Carina, I mounted a diamonds grille:

My carina: diamonds grille!
Earlier this week I finally mounted the diamonds-grille I bought from Rob (NZ) some months ago. I was only able to make pictures today. My Carina DX is suddenly upgraded to a ST! :D
The white stripe on it is also a bit discolored, so I need to redo that soon, but nothing a rattlecan can't fix. ;)

I also passed the 86k some days ago and today I managed to make this nice hachi-fanboy-mileage:
86068 on the next page!

How much bigger is a Lexus GS300 than a Carina TA60?
Just about this much bigger:

Toyota Carina TA60 and Lexus GS300 JZS147
That is indeed my Carina. On one of the rare occasions when I went to work by car (I live at 5 minutes walking distance from work) and returned to my car I found one of my colleagues parked his Lexus GS300 JZS147 next to my Carina. I just had to take a quick snap!

Today I own my TA60 Carina for exactly three years! I bought it on the seventh of the seventh of the seventh (07-07-2007), so in other words: lucky seven! This is what the car looked like when I bought it:

When I bought the Carina TA60
You can even see my old AE86 parked in front of it!

I bought the car after my girlfriend (in the meanwhile she became my wife) became pregnant of our son. When test fitting the child seats in the AE86 it was clear that the only way to fit the child seat was to put it in the front seat. Since everyone trying to sit in the back of the AE86 was complaining about every speedbump I took, cramps and more of that I realized it would be impossible to keep the AE86. So I tried to find a four door Cressida, Corona or Carina and found this Carina in a good deal. Basically the TA60 Carina can be considered a four door AE86 with a puny engine: it has (almost) the same axle, the same gearbox, the same steering rack, same front struts and the only difference is the absence of a 4AGE and a LSD!
Read on for the whole story and more pictures!

Some people may have read it on Twitter: I bought myself a box full of yellow foglights.

My Carina: Marchal yellow foglights
When driving there (and trying to find my way through Zoetermeer) I was navigating on the map. At a certain point I noticed a white Prius in my rear view mirror, when looking at the map and back to the rear view mirror it changed into a very well known front of a car: a R33 GTR! Damn, that was a shock! GTR passed me and gave the driver a thumbs up. ;)

If you look at the box it will contain four times a yellow Marchal foglight and two times a yellow Cibie foglight. Two of the Marchals are broken (lights/wiring/casing), but the other four are perfectly fine! :)

Well, this is the one I was actually after:

My Carina: Marchal yellow foglights
And they are surely worth the drive! :)

My Carina: Marchal yellow foglights
So, for the people with difficulty of remembering my Carina: this is what the Carina looked like.

And now it looks like this:

My Carina: Marchal yellow foglights
Better?

My Carina: Marchal yellow foglights
Without the black/white Marchal covers these foglights look a bit less sporty...