6G Celicas Forums

Hey! I have done this before! I am currently running a 89 3sgte (Canadian) in my 94 6th gen front wheel drive.
when you drop that drive line and bolt on the s54 it will pull like a freight train.
what I used for the swap was;

- harness made by prime driven (800$ - 1100$ cdn)

- an updated supra AEM in tank fuel pump (this was needed because at high end the turbo will lean the motor out at 18 psi

- stock ecu from 89 celica all-trac

- AN fitting from fuel rail to new inline fuel filter joining either the existing line pre oem filter or new line all together (as I have opted for )

- 3" down pipe

- 3" under rear frame exhaust. I did 3" all the way back but I would recommend 2 1/2 or 2 3/4 for clearances if your running a lower suspension setup.

- Throttle cable from Celica all-trac

Personally I used the flywheel from the 3s-gte and mated it to the clutch from the 5s-fe (6 puck un-sprung) to the pressure plate of the 3s-gte

The motor mounting bracket on the passengers side if I remember needed to be modified very little, either in the casting mark or some sort of casting bracing needed to be lightly filed away for the timing cover to fit properly.
again this might be because I was using an older 3s-gte that I had the fitment issues, so I cant speak for everyone.

The most difficult part I experienced was mounting all the control modules everywhere. HOWEVER I suspect this is an issues reserved for older engines as modern sensors, resistors, and control units tend to be mounted to the engine or have developed past the point of its efficiency and rendered obsolete.

Oddly an issue I had after the fact was that due to the s54 transmission having an open diff I was putting the power of what would have been 4 wheels to essentially one. I broke three axles consecutively on the drivers side. I found if I restricted the torqueing movement of the motor it no longer created excessive stress on the cv axle cups. I did this with poly engine mounts and so far after a year of driving and occasional tracking it seems to have corrected the dilemma.

I am currently using the stock fuel pressure regulator and injectors and have very little ambition to upgrade as this is pretty close to the level of performance I had been expecting and aiming for.

I did move to a front mount intercooler and noticed huge changes! I had more turbo lag like mad and moved my torque band higher in the rev range. Being an older generation iteration of t-vis I suspect it might also play a part in lack of responsiveness till 4500rpm. If I hard to do it twice I would probably keep the top mount, and better insulate and maybe change it for a more efficient and new intercooler.

Don't know if this was help or not but figured I would throw my two cents in.
-cheers

Well luckily we are all still here, lowkey im kinda worried one day when we get " sever not found" error and it never comes back up.

bought more parts for the 94 white Celica I still have.
anyone ever notice how hard it is to get things for these cars now?
about to install a new fuel tank and some of the hangers and stuff are a nightmare!!!

honestly, just buy a project car that has been built. its the best way to swap. mostly due to cost and all the other.
i just finished a 3sgte/ st204 swap in combination with swapping a friends 3sge beams / st204.
His came from a running swapped car that was in rough shape. mine was out of an st185 all track. his cost in total was 3500$ mine was like 5000$ and his took a weekend, mine, 6 months (trouble shooting, and customer harness).
the GT4 is a nice idea but servicing it can be a real pain. try to find front and rear diff fluid for it and other normal maintenance things.

Dropped a 3sgte out of a 5th gen in my 6gc. Installed the Avalon brake upgrade. installed 7gc seats and steering wheel. ran a wilwood brake diverter along with cooper nickle lines, braided flex lines.
little bit of an update since the last time i was on

YEEEEEP spun a rod bearing in the new motor.... I think I'm just going to rebuild one now

This is probably one of the best builds I have ever seen!!!

Today, well two days ago I changed the motor for the 5th time. SO THATS COOL. fun fact, camry motors are nice in plenty at times but are often high mileage. It dosent matter how " bullet proof" or " grandma driven" they had been the rings wont seat right when you start reving them higher then the normal range of an automatic camry.
This intern will cause blow-by and HEADACHE. just rebuild or buy a celica motor....

today I wired a MSD advanced spark system in my car and it popped my ecu fuse and cooked my distributor.

Hey, how did you end up with such random extra bits? also if you are ever in the Kingston area let me know!!! get some pics together or something!

Today I drove my parts car home from storage, and my white car to work. I know it dosent sound like much but it took so long to even get to that point I try to never take it for granted.

You know you own a Celica when;
A parts car seems like a perfectly reasonably purchase.
You get asked " is that the all wheel drive one" every car meet.
you learned that Toyota does and will change its mind when designing more or less everything every other year.
you get saddened and immediately justify why yours /isn't/ a gt4
the other side of the world will have cooler parts.
when parts shopping you will repeat "will that fit in my chassis?"
bottom of doors, didn't need them anyways, let them rot.
5s-fe, oh you mean 3s swap, oh you mean 3s-gte, oh you mean .....
"its basically an mr2 but the other way"
there is always a big brake upgrade one way or another.
you get told " I like the ______ (supra,mr2,ae86) better"
you google search consists of : Motors that come in celica
5s-fe upgrades
motors swap in celica
beams in celica
beams motor price
v6 swap?

Oh my. I remember stumbling across your celica years ago! it looks so clean and amazing! I love the 7thgen seats and steering wheel! (not to mention the fiber hood!!!!)

long time lurker, but its about time to introduce myself. I've owned a Celica for I think about 5 years now, over the years I've bought many parts cars and done tones of motors in it. Living in Canada has taken its toll on these poor cars being in the terms of rust, road conditions and worst of all the temperature /but/ through it all managed to keep mine afloat.
anyone in this country would understand, but enough about that, I've used this forum for just about everything from motors to internals jeez I've even bough a head and cams from a member on here. But this had left me with a thirst for more, I love the Celica, and Toyota as a whole no question but I love more so meeting people who are equally as enthusiastic about it as I am.
So long story short, hello, greetings, and I look forward to turning wrenches with some of you one day, and there is always a spot in my driveway for a Celica owner in need!

So I found out that there is a lexus es300 dual throttle body that id llove to try to make work on a celica 2.2 manifold. never seen it done so it would be well worth a try

First of welcome! secondly, post some pics of it share the love! After owning it for so long what is your favorite thing about the car?

Honestly, I just built a 5sfe, all I did was shaved the head, clean and polish ports, exhaust, and minor intake work. top it off with an aggressive cam (ive got a delta 262 in it) and it makes a nice rumble and drive beautifully. In my personally opinion it sounds like a classic 22re in the old celicas from the 70s. so build it for what you want man, don't go chasing dyno dragons.
For what it would cost to build something like that you might as well buy a cheap SC400 or something.

looking for any local celica owners?

Member name: ghost010Market: USDM
Year: 97
Model: GT
Frame & Type: ST204- Hatch
Engine: 5S-FE
Transmission: S54

Significant other mods:

•Projector Retrofit
•5x114.3 Rear Hub Conversion
•Plastidipped

WOW, This is probably one of the best builds I have seen so far! so much effort on the details truly an artisan!

Started it for the first time in three years, and drove it around the block after blindly picking a motor out of a scrap yard with some mates. there is something really nice about these cars im not going to lie. its charming to think about all the dedication and designs that peiople have put into them over the years. the body, motors, and styling; all speak to what the drivers love, engineering.

I'm not going to lie, I have been following the work of the many v6 swapers that document it, but that being said this BY FAR has to be the oddest thread i have ever read. Why wasn't the car kept in secure storage, with lock n stuff. And the harness, why wouldn't you keep better track to where you are throwing money and where? Its not a complicated process, you can go to any pip boys or partsource ( if your Canadian like me) and get almost complete harness diagrams. Man i feel for ya, its a heart brake to be kept from your goals, and dreams. but. oh. my. god. stay on track, budget, focus 100%. -just saying- and 600+ for any harness is over paying.