US man buys $5,000 of parts to upgrade 'fake' Toyota AE86 from China to see if they can get it to tear up the racetrack

We were today years old when we discovered you can actually buy a fake Toyota AE86 – the Trueno, as most people call it.

This drift icon is still flying under the radar, but that’s probably going to change soon.

So maybe buying a cheap fake makes sense, at least financially.

Although, to be fair, this YouTuber added quite a lot of zeros to the bill in order to make it actually good for drifting.

Where have we seen this car before?

Until now, the Toyota AE86 – both the Trueno, the one people know, and the other model called Levin – has been kept away from the limelight and has flown relatively under the radar in terms of market value.

In general, aside from rarity and technical specs, the value of JDM cars depends on pop culture status.

Over the last few years, we’ve seen the rise of cars linked to the Fast & Furious saga, which may explain why the Trueno is still fairly affordable when compared to the other icons.

It’s all relative, but you can buy a Trueno for $40,000 or less.

Not bad when you remember that most of the other legends – Supra, Skyline, a few Evo models – go for hundreds of thousands of dollars.

But that’s probably changing.

So far, most people have associated the car with the Initial D manga.

Now, Sung Kang, AKA Han from the Fast & Furious saga, is working on an independent movie that will see a modified Trueno as the protagonist.

The value is likely to go up, and that probably also explains why fakes are emerging.

This YouTuber wanted to make his AE86 track-ready with $5,000 worth of parts, and the result was surprising

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so, in a way, the fact that somebody actually built a fake Toyota AE86 is maybe a good thing.

YouTuber BigTime bought one, and then he spent $5,000 to improve and make it track-ready.

Specifically, they wanted to turn it into a drift car, which is what this car is built for.

Among other things, they installed Annex Fast Road Pro coilovers, new 15-inch wheels wrapped in BFGoodrich tires, and a new Momo steering wheel.

They also fitted a new body kit, new OEM taillights, and new headlights – obviously, all of these changes are cosmetic, but, then again, looking cool is an essential component of a drift car.

Amazingly, despite a few minor issues – the front bumper was damaged by the tire, and the car was not powerful enough – the experiment worked.

The car could drift, more or less, and, in the words of the YouTuber, was ‘like a little go-kart.’