The Iconic KP60 Starlet is, in our opinion, a highly understated car. Built between 1978 – 1984, the Starlet was well in the mix of the Super Mini racing era. Coming up against the Austin Mini, Lotus Sunbeam and the Golf GTI Mk1, the nimble and underestimated Toyota had to battle through all these European cars to gain its rightful place on the roads… That is until 2018….

Dan Thorne purchased this KP60 in 2016. With what originated as a totally standard car, he immediately ripped out the running gear with bigger plans ahead. The build quickly got underway and a Ford RS2000 16V engine was beautifully married to the shell. Controversial on many levels, Dan managed to get the engine bored to 2.2L which went perfectly with the ported and polished head, race spec cam profiles, 48mm throttle body, dry sump system and a 9K rev limit – all controlled by our Link ECU G4+ Atom. The final product produces an amazing 250BHP and weighs in at just 800KG’s meaning this starlet certainly did earn its place on the streets!

He didn’t stop there however. After the engine was complete, Dave needed a good drive train and suspension setup to lay down the power. Naturally, the choice of any retro ford man, is the Legendary Ford Type 9 Gearbox. Once again with every attention to detail, Dan had the box sent to Quaife Engineering to have them put in their 5 Speed Straight cut gears so he knew that once the power had left the box the Ford Atlas Axle could fulfill the final piece in the puzzle!

After working on obtaining so much power and with only 24K miles on the clock (which meant the shell required no welding), Dan set about finding exterior bodywork. Tucking those 15” by 10” wide image wheels proved to be a challenge under such a narrow chassis, but Dan did this beautifully with the help of the Mike Bamber TRD Bodykit custom to fit the KP60. It was then painted and prepped by Pristine Bodyworks Southend and finished in eye catching Kawasaki Green.

Inside you can see the work by Pro Alloy  who made custom fuel tanks, a dash, dry sump tanks, breather system and coolant pipes and Custom Corbeau Seats UK seating. Finally, Luke harness’s diamond stitched to perfection keeps the driver safely locked into the car.

We would like to wish Dan all the best with this different machine and we thank him for choosing our Link G4+ Atom to control his beast!

Shout out also goes to the following companies for their part in the build:
*HT RACING.
*PRO – ALLOY.
*Pristine Bodyworks Southend.
*Corbeau Seats

 

Owner : Dan Thorne

For more information on the ECU used in this build checkout : https://www.linkecu.com/products/wirein-ecus/g4-atom-ii/

To find your local dealer : https://www.linkecu.com/dealer-network/