The Great Celica
Published August 17, 2019
Greetings and welcome to my first post on this platform.This one is a very special post because this is the car that I was impressed with all the modification and details. I saw the car for the first time at a Hot Import Nights show back in 2017 in Downtown Los Angeles area. This event became the first carshow I have ever attended. Since then I started going to even more car shows in the Los Angeles area whether is a big or a local event. I introduce you to “The Great Celica”. This is a 2004 Toyota Celica owned by Joseph Warasky. When I saw the Celica for the first time, I was really impressed with all the investment and modifications made. Especially with the lights that stand out visibly in the evening. Let’s walk through the transformation phase from its original state to being among the most popular rides in the modified car scene of Los Angeles.
The Beginning Phase
.Joseph’s journey in the car scene began in High school. By the time of his graduation in 2005, he owned two cars before acquiring the Celica. His one dream goal was to create a “show car concept” inspired by the 1st Fast and Furious movie and the Need for speed Underground game series 1 and 2.The photo above (left) shows the 2004 Celica in its original state purchased in 2011. At the time, the Celica had Blue body paint and installed Stock Enkei Wheels. Before Hyper silver (original) and currently white colored. Lightning was also installed in the beginning transformation phase.The trunk had lightning added as well as an amp for the Orion Speakers. All the changes were made by Joseph himself in his garage before acquiring sponsorships.
Motor/Engine
The motor components consist of the black basic panels and blue wire covers. These are the following items added to the Celica:
-carbon fiber engine cover
-custom carbon fiber ecu cover
-new engine intakeon motor bay
-blue Megan strut bar
-engine panels (custom painted)
-2 custom fuse relay boxed with plexiglass and leds
-blue and white wire covers
-custom lightning
-DC sport exhaust
-Braided hose lines
Interior/trunk
The interior of the Celica shows significant upgrades based on color and personality of the car. As ofrecently, it has come a long way. The items added in the interior section include: white marble panels hydro dipped by image hydro graphics, blue panels (custom painted), cluster pieces, nrg harness bar, sparco blue 4 point harnesses, custom upholstery seats (blue and black) by Mac and Fabric from J & JAuto Fabrics, NGR Neo chrome and carbon fiber shifter, Ngr Neo Chrome and Carbon Fiber foot pedals, NGR neo chrome brake handle, kicker speakers (all the way around the cross covers), custom white face gauges with blue led inside gauges, carbon fiber head liner, custom blue carpet from J & J Auto Fabrics, custom interior lightnin gand lastly an arm rest cover (carbon fiber). For the trunk section, a custom subwoofer box with kicker amplifier, 10” sub and led marine kicker speakers, marble laminate tile floor, lazer grid, hydro dipped panles by image hydrographics and custom lightning were installed. This is along list of items added to the interiors. If you ever get to check the inside interior details, I canassure you will be impressed.
Car body/paint/Lightning
In this section, you will read the accessories and paint added to the Celica with the purpose to catch the attention of the spectators at every car show. When it comes to creativity, there are no limits and it is proven with this ride.
Sides: Custom carbon fiber fenders, custom carbon fiber gas door, white tribal graphics, JNC 006 wheels in white original trd body kit, original trd wing with carbon fiber center, F1 style mirrors custom painted white rain guards, K Sport coilovers, custom painted nrg canrads with carbon fiber inserts custom side skirt diffusers, custom painted white for side skirts.
Front/Hood: Vis carbon fiber hood, spyder aftermarket headlights retrofitted by A sun garage with litlights halo rings, custom made splitter for the trd front bumper with neo chrom spitter rods and fiber roof done by slick carbon.
Back/Trunk: Carbon fiber trunk, carbon fiber bill win obx chrome tail lights, custom splitter (made for tdr rear lip), custom painted white trd rear lip wing and a Celica name plate.
Finally, the lightning (crucial for the Celica’s appearance) were all installed by Joseph himself. The following lightning were installed through every place possible from the exterior to the interior:
*Headlights-retrofited by A sun Garage
*Underglow and Wheel Lightning
*Litlightz Regular
*Driving lights
*Head lights
*Taillights
*Lasfit leds
*Light strips
Sponsorships and Awards
With the investment of money, time and effort, it brought attention of several sponsors and car groups along the way to make the Celica among the most attractive rides in the LA car scene. Currently, the Celica is part to one of the most prestigious car groups in California, known as Team Hybrid (IG: @teamhybrid_95). Most importantly, the Celica would not be in the top leagues without the following sponsors: Lasfit Automotive Lighting, Litlightz, A Sun Garage, 360 Products co., Auto Detail Supplies Outlet, Smileys empire tire, J&J Auto Fabrics, Prevail Tire Lettering, Image Hydro Graphics, Custom Upholstery By Mac, Endless Auto Salon, Slick Carbon, GB composites, BF Goodrich tires, Amsoil, Push Athletic Wear, Push Screen Printing, Racing Performance and Motorsports. Some of the awards the Celica has been granted include Hot Import Nights Hottest Lightning, Hottest Toyota, Hottest Overall, Best of the Show trophy from Jamacorfest. Joseph has several trophies in his collection and of course there are more to come.
The Great Celica is no stranger to the Big-League car shows. You can catch the Great Celica in shows such as Hot Import Nights, Extreme Autofest, Spocom as well as local car shows in the Los Angeles Area, San Diego, and Arizona. I would like to thank Joseph granting me the opportunity to write this post dedicated to his fabulous Celica. Make sure to follow the Celica on Instagram for pictures, upcoming events and more @hemet_proto_x. I would also like to thank every single one of you reading this first post. More blog publications are coming soon, stay tuned for more content along the way. Thank you once again.
