I Built My Dream Rally Car

This is my GR Corolla and this is the body kit I made for it. In this video, we are finishing Rally Rolla. I'll start by installing the full body kit, and once we test it, we'll give the car its final look. But it turns out, 3D printing an entire body kit comes with a pretty big risk. This could go very wrong, and if it does, it will ruin a year of work. The Rally body kit I wanted didn't exist, so over the last two videos, we designed one from scratch and 3D printed every panel. And today, we're going to finish it. But before I commit to the final color, I want to take the car through a testing phase. I've always loved seeing camouflage development cars, so let's make testing a little more fun and wrap Rally Rolla to look like one. We'll spend some time testing the body kit on rough roads, at highway speeds, and through the kind of abuse I know I'll always put it through. Manufacturers use test mules to try out new parts in real-world conditions, while the camouflage helps hide the car's final shape and body lines. Of course, this is still my GR Corolla, the body kit is what we're testing. Ever since I was a kid, I've thought this phase of car development was one of the coolest parts. You design something, put it into the real world, gather data, learn from it, and use what you found to make it better. Getting to drive something that started as an idea in my head, became CAD models, then 3D printed parts, and finally a full-sized body kit is a pretty special feeling. Plus, how cool is it driving around in your own test mule? But testing is only one part of this video. By the end, Rally Rolla will have a completely new color, new wheels, and a few more finishing touches I have not shown you yet. This is string, and this is tape. We're about to do something called tough testing. By taping small pieces of string across the wing and driving at speed, we get to see how the air moves across its surface. This won't tell us exactly how much downforce the wing makes, but it shows where the airflow stays smooth and attached, and where it starts to separate. Across the top of the wing, the string stayed mostly straight, showing that the airflow remained fairly clean and attached. The underside of a wing plays a big role in creating downforce, so you want the airflow to stay clean. Under the upper wing, the string stayed flat and barely moved, which is exactly what you want to see for efficient downforce, so this is a really good sign. Underneath the lower element, the strings moved in different directions, suggesting separation and turbulent airflow in that area. In a full development cycle, the next step would be to adjust the wing geometry, angle, or spacing, then repeat the test to see how the airflow changes. For this version, these results give us a real baseline. Instead of guessing, we now know what is working, where the airflow can improve, and what to focus on in future refinements. And that's exactly why testing matters so much. Every piece of data helps us understand the design and gives us a clear direction for making the next version even better. I need more real world driving, so I'm taking Rally Rola into Atlanta. They don't call the highways Atlanta Motor Speedway for nothing. If this car survives Atlanta potholes, I'm pretty sure it'll survive anything. All the bumps and vibrations also make this a great way to test the body mounts and see if anything will shift. A fun side effect of this experiment is seeing how people react to the car. Some thought it was a manufacturer's test mule, while others immediately recognized that it was me. I heard so many people saying, like, I think that's the Rally Rola. They're like, it's like 3D printed, right? And then there were people who were literally like, oh my gosh, like that's an equalized car. He's like, why is it covered up? Like, what? That's kind of cool though. That's cool that they know the project. Then pictures of the car started showing up online, and the comments made the whole thing even funnier. Some people were convinced a manufacturer was testing a new car. Other people knew it was me. I definitely got a kick out of this. Test, break, fix, and repeat. These four things are critical if you want to build something that you believe in. This is a car that I can stand by and believe in because I've truly tested it by driving it very, very hard. I'm sad to see the prototype wrap go, but I'm just as excited to see the final color go on the car. We pulled the camo wrap off and found a problem. At one point during the Rally excursion, the front bumper did hit the ground. So it smacked the ground and there is a little crack that happened because of it, which really is not that bad considering if a bumper is going to smack the ground and it cracks and doesn't break apart, that's already a really good start. We welded the cracks back together and filled them smooth as if they were never there. We can add more fiberglass reinforcement and make it even stronger. Some of the paint lifted from the primed panels, so we filled and smoothed those areas again. It wasn't ideal, but it also wasn't a surprise. We sprayed these parts outside with rattle cans and since you can't wrap directly over raw 3D printed plastic, we had to work with the setup we had and get the surface as smooth as possible. Now that every body panel is ready, there's only one thing left to choose, the final color. From the beginning, the renders showed Rally Rolla in silver, and now we're finally making it real. But there's a problem. My GR Corolla is red. If I wrap only the outside, every time I open the door, the red jams will stick out immediately. So before the silver goes on, we're wrapping the door jams in black. Black blends into the gaps, works with the silver, and gives me the freedom to change the exterior color later without redoing the jams. To get a clean edge without using a blade directly on the paint and risk scratching it, I'm using knifeless tape. It has a thin string hidden inside, and when I pull it, the string cuts through the vinyl from underneath. After everything it took to design and build this body kit, I'm not cutting corners at the finish line. For the cleanest wrap, you have to take a lot of the car apart. That means removing the door handles, mirrors, taillights, and anything else that gets in the way. The more parts you remove, the easier it is to hide the edges and make the wrap look clean. Since the car was already taken apart, this was the perfect time to fix a problem we found during testing. The headlights did not have enough support. On the gravel road at night, they bounced up and down which made it hard to see. They even wobbled so much that the mounting bracket broke. We were able to fix this with plastic welding, so we made a support bracket to hold them firmly in place. And of course, it was 3D printed as well. Now for the fun part, we can finally add some color. Before wrapping, I like to lightly wax the large, flat areas. This lowers the surface tack so the vinyl does not grab the paint before I have it in the right position. Around the edges, I do the opposite. I clean them with isopropyl alcohol to remove any wax or oils because those are the areas where I need the vinyl to stick the strongest. With how large the pieces are, I needed all of the boys to help me hold up the wrap. Laying it down is the most important part. The smoother you lay it down, the easier it is to wrap it. Wrapping the spray painted wide body panels was much harder because the paint might peel off with the vinyl. That meant I only got one chance to place each piece correctly. Once the vinyl touched the panel, I did not want to lift it back up. If I lifted it, the vinyl might pull off the paint. Then the vinyl would be ruined and we would have to repair and smooth the panel all over again. The very first wide body piece is now wrapped and we're going to put it on the car for the first time. So, no holes, no screws, just clips. Oh my gosh. How do we feel about that? Looks like an OEM panel, like it genuinely looks like it could have come from the factory like that. So I'm so excited to see the rest of the car come together. This car has to be finished by tomorrow because this car is going to go into Atlanta and then from there we're going to go to the unveiling and then I'm driving it straight to Monterey for car week and we still have this entire side to do, both front fenders, the front bumper, the wing. This all has to go down tonight. Let's get it. The boys and I locked in to get the car done. While I worked on the wrap, they finished the vents. This is the perfect time to show you what we designed. As the car moves, air can get trapped inside the wheel wells and behind the wide body panels. Without a way out, parts of the wide body kit could start catching that air like a parachute, creating pressure and drag. These vents give the trapped air somewhere to escape and help guide it around the car. That fits the whole idea behind Rally Rolla. Yes, it's a wide body, but I still want it to feel complete, almost like Toyota built it this way from the factory. Every detail should feel like it belongs there and serve a real purpose. And just like the body kit, the vents are also 3D printed. When it was time to install the vents, we quickly ran into a problem. The fit was already tight and the wrap made the openings even smaller. To help the vents slide in without damaging the wrap, we put a little butter around the edges. Once they were in the right position, we sealed them in place. Next, we're spraying the wing black to create some contrast against the silver body. But black is not the final look. I have one more surprise planned for the wing later in the video. Then I got a knock on the door because my new wheels were delivered. The boys had no idea I had new wheels coming, so I was excited to see their reactions when we opened them. What does that say? Look at it. Matt. What does it say? Bronze. Alright. Wait, I want some guesses though. What kind of face design do you think they're going to look like? I think they're going to look like Rally, but they have to be deep for the fitment. How many spokes? Five. I think like six to eight. Whoa. Oh. Wait, feel them out. Feel them out. Oh, they're going to be flat. They're going to be flat. What? I know these wheels. Do you know these wheels? I swear you sent me pictures. These are sick. That's crazy. Dude, this is. Yes. What do you think of it? These are awesome. Oh my God. Look at that barrel. It's an 18 by 10 minus 10. I wanted a flat face, but I needed it to work with my spec, right? No. Awesome. So you get the flat face and you also get the deep dish for the spec, which is. Best of both worlds. Exactly. Best of both worlds. That's insane. What I really wanted was like a concept Rally look, where like it has that old Rally feel, but it looks modern. Like a wheel you could put on a concept car. I'm so excited. I think this color is going to look really good with the silver. Let's test fit them. This is the moment of truth. They look great, but this wide body has never been done before. So I had to do some calculations to make sure that these would fit and we're going to see what they look like on the car. Oh yeah. That's pretty flush. Yeah. That's pretty good. That's going to be perfect. That's way better in the spaces. Yeah. Oh yeah. It's out a little further. That looks really good. And then we're going to put a 275 on it, which is pretty wide considering it's a Toyota Corolla. So yeah, it'll look, it'll look really good and it clears the brakes of course and it's not going to rub anywhere on the chassis. I think we're, we're pretty good. Oh my gosh. It looks like a concept car. Like this wheel makes it feel more concept car. You cooked. Impressive. You got that spec perfect. You were working in the shadows. You cooked. Hey, what are the wheels? What wheels? I don't know. What color are they? I forgot. I don't know. I was just going to run spacers. Theoretically it should fit the same in the front, but we're about to see how it looks. Yeah. Identical. Has like the same fitment front and rear, even with our new wide body. Going for the OEM plus look with the car, we had to do fender liner and of course it has to be functional as well. So the arrow from the front flows into the wheel liner and then also the vent on the fender will be functional as well. If you didn't have any of this, it would not look too good because you would just have holes in your bumper. We wrapped the last parts of the car and then it was time to get the tires mounted and drive to the unveiling. This is my first time hosting a local car show, so I have no idea what to expect. But as the cars start rolling in, I'm blown away by how many people show up. And somehow the whole show feels right up my alley. Celicas, GR Corollas, 86s, and so many other great cars. I'm incredibly grateful that everyone came out to share this special moment. So let's waste no more time. It's time to unveil Rally Rolla. This project has meant a lot to me because I've always had a passion for cars. I've always loved cars and I wanted to do something that would be representative of what I see in a car. And the CRG boys have brought that vision to life. So I just want to give a huge shout out to them and a huge thank you to them. But I think we want to see this car, right? And see the Rally Rolla. And just like that, Rally Rolla was finally out in the world. Seeing people surround the car and react to something that once only existed in my head made everything come together. After months of designing, printing, testing, fixing, and late nights in the garage, I finally got to share the finished car with everyone. But this moment was bigger than the car. It was about everyone who helped build it, followed the journey, and believed in the idea along the way. Rally Rolla started in my garage, but getting to share this moment made it feel like something we all experienced together. I used to think finishing this car would feel like reaching the end. But standing there, it did not feel like an ending. It felt like proof. Proof that an idea does not need to start with every answer figured out. Sometimes it starts with a car in a garage and a group of friends willing to solve one problem at a time. Marizo-san, you challenged me to a race. Your GR Corolla versus mine. What would you rate my GR Corolla Rally 2 on a scale of 1 through 10? Let's compete first. Compete first? You are GR Corolla Rally 2 versus mine. I will gladly accept your challenge. Now comment down below, who do you think will win, Marizo-san or Nikolai? I'm so happy with how this car came out. In the beginning, I mentioned that this car, I wanted it to feel like a Lancia Delta Integrale or maybe like an Audi Quattro, those 90s rally cars that just look so, so good. From the front, the way the bumper flows into the fender and just has this flat surface, I could probably eat a sandwich off of it or put my drink down on it. That's something I really, really wanted. And the whole purpose behind this project was to extend the language that Toyota has done with this car. I did not want to change it. I simply wanted to dive deeper into the purpose of the GR Corolla, which is a rally car. The Night Top wheels really finish off the car. It was really interesting making these work for the car because I wanted a flat face, but the width of this car is three inches wider per side. So how do you get a flat face with a deep dish wheel that doesn't require an offset? Well, Night Top, these wheels, you guys did a good job on them because it's a flat face and then it has a deep dish in there that makes it work with the car. So it looks like I could literally eat soup out of it. The vents that we added to both the front and the rear of the car add a lot of depth to it because when we had the camo wrap on the car, it did feel a little blocky. It just had this really big surface coming out. But now that we've added the vents, you can actually see into the fender, it adds more dimension to it and they are actually functional. So from the front bumper, we have a channel that runs into the back so you can actually see it from the fender liner. And then these vents also relieve air pressure out of the fender and the same with the rear. So everything on this car has purpose. Everything is functional and it has to make sense and also look good at the same time. The wing is arguably, I think what I've heard a lot of people said was their favorite part on the car. It's so massive, but yet we still make it make sense. So the design we wanted with this wing was to have it feel like the Celica GT4 wing. So one of my favorite cars that I've owned is my GT4 and I love the design of that wing that the car has where it comes out here from the side and then swoops over and then does the same to the other side. We wanted that same energy with this car. So we have this section here that folds over it and just looks like the Celica, but yet it works on the Corolla, which I'm super thankful for. And like I keep saying, I wanted to extend what Toyota did with this car. I didn't want to change it because I love, love, love how the GR Corolla is. And I just wanted to carry that out and just see, hey, what would an ultimate rally version of the GR Corolla look like if it came from the factory? And huge shout out to Crazy Rocket Garage for bringing my vision to life. Without them, this project would not be possible. It was super smooth working with them and you can see the end product has come out amazing. I'm so thankful to be closing out this project, but that does not mean that that is the end of this car. This is only the beginning and we still have a lot more cool stuff that we can do with this car. So please do make sure to like, comment and subscribe. I'll see you in the next video.