1979 Celica Parts, Where to find? Options

[71firebird400]

Hi,


Just joined this forum in hopes that you can help me out with some problems. I currently own a 79 Celica GT with 155k on it.

Currently the door latches are not holding the doors completely shut- it appears there's some sort of plastic coating on the latches that has come off of both my car's doors and now when you slam them shut they rock about 1/2". This is noticeable from the outside of the car and makes the interior much louder than before.

Does anybody know where I can find good, replacement latches?

Also, I am wondering what bolt pattern, back spacing, and wheel width is required for aftermarket rims? My current plan for the car is to replace the latches, put in some replacement seats (probably from Jeg's) as the originals are pretty torn up. The rest of the interior looks pretty good. Then I'd like to sand it down, finish some minor bodywork, prepare it for paint, and run it through Maaco. I'm pretty sure that if I supply the paint and do all the prep they'll lay down a decent finish.

I'd also like to replace the rims on the car with something more modern just to make it stand out. I'm thinking some thin-spoked black rims with as little dish as possible will look cool (16's or 17's?).

I currently use this little celica as my daily driver- I'd like to take care of some of these issues and get this thing looking good. It's had very few mechanical issues, just redid the brakes, slave cylinder, and starter since I've been driving it (past 20k miles).

Thanks a lot

Mark