Cost of a swap, I searched the archives... Options

[ScoobyDooCruiser]

Hey,
I know tons of people are asking about the 3s-gte swap. The only thing I didn't find was info on how much it costs to actually do the swap? I don't know enough to do it on my own, and i was just curious what it would cost to have a shop do the work.

If its already been asked, just someone tell me and i'll search some more.

Also, for those who have done it, are you satisfied with it? And does anyone know of a way to get it throguh the california smog tests, or is it pretty much move out of state?

Thanks

[Four]

heres what i posted in a diff topic a week or so ago. some might not relate since it was from a diff topic and im just copying and pasting.

its not legal to put a engine from a car that is older than yours in you car, example 92 2nd 3sgte ----> 95 GT.

as far as the left hand drive ecu, you can either make a hole in ur firewall so the wires will go right threw (very illegal and stupid) or you can length'n the wires to reach from RHD to LHD.

also every person underestimates the cost of the swap, they think clip for 1500 and 1000 for labor and there done. but if ur not retarded you would obviously change all your belts while the engine is out, and you have to buy coolants and oil, oil filter, new spark plugs, maybe some new spark plug wires, etc. things add up quick.

your stock exhaust will not line up. you need a custom midpipe fabed, you can get a small ass 2.25 mid from local muff shops for 150 or so, or a 3 inch one form a performance shop for around 350. and if u havnt already you need bigger than stock exhuast which can be anywhere from 200-450, depending on custom or greddy.

also to do the swap right you should buy the toyota book for the 3s which is around 65 bucks. now what to do with the intercooler, you can get a cheap setup 400 bucks for a mkiii supra cooler with nasty crush bend pipes. you can get a nice sized spearco cooler with mandrel bends in nice shape for around 850, and you run the risk of blocking your raditor. you can buy a toyota GTfour hood for 550 then paint it and have it up with your bumper. theres also water injection which i dont know a whole lot about for around 500. (ps to all the people who want to run the stock TMIC with the stock st204 hood like im doing at the time, it works like ****, your cooler rest against your hood and is good for nothing really)

then are you going to upgrade fuel delivery at all maybe a new fuel pump which is around 100 dollars. and you cant forget a boost gauge for 125, you really should get a few more gauges. also you need a pillar for 50 bucks to put the gauge in.

now i know theres a bunch of kids sitting there thinking i dont need all that stuff i can do this swap for 2 grand easy he doesnt know what hes talking about. Well i thought the same till i did the swap and found out the hard way.

so with all this in mind lets add it all up shall we

st185 front clip - 1500
labor on 3sgte swap - 1000
belts, coolants, oil, plugs - 450
fuel pump - 100
FMIC - 850
FMIC - 300***
catbakc exhuast - 250
midpipe - 200
boost gauge and pillar - 175

*** - cheap ass cooler

so the total comes to
4525 with spearco cooler
3975 with supra cooler

but you cant forget tax can you, lets say state tax is 8.8% so total cost
$4923.20 good cooler
$4324.80 cheap cooler

now you know where all the swappers get this 5k price tag

[Mynzeyes]

mine's gonna hit about 3k...but that's for the 4agze...but my clip is also 1795...so iono where you get 5k bucks. then again, i'm doin it myself, and i'm not spending 500 dollars on coolant, belts, plugs, etc...that's some expensive ass stuff.....the fuel pump comes w/ the clip, the 2 gauges and pod are gonna be right around 100...sooo, DUDE's estimate is kinda a high estimate...

oh yeah, and my intercooler was 130 shipped. hehe. gotta love the MKiii supra IC. w00t.

but then i have stuff that's not on there too, like a clutch, short shifter, 5spd pedals, etc etc.

-John-

[AJcelica]

i posted this in another thread but i don't think people are reading it so i'm posting it here too...

anyway, i know how alot of you guys kinda look down on people who just "ask" about swapping business but i am so interested by it that i'm am for sure going to accomplish the almighty 3SGTE swap someday (as soon as i get my car and the funds )

anyway, i've spent ALOT of time speculating about the swap and i just wanted some opinions and maybe some clarification on my ideas/plans

when i get my car and the money for the swap (which is probably what i'll save up to do almost as soon as i get the car) i was thinking that i would keep the stock hood from the 6th gen celica, but since the ST185 top mounted intercooler doesn't fit properly without the GT-4 hood, how would i get around this? i've heard that some people relocate the intercooler to the front of the engine bay to get around this problem. plus since the intercooler kind of needs the hood grill to vent air would the engine heat soak because of the lack of ventilation?... is keeping the stock hood feasible?

also, because i'm kind of thinking of this plan in a linear fashion (i.e. what i'll do first, second, third... etc...) should i have anything done to the car, like performance exaust or intake, before i have the swap done?

ummm... i'm planning on getting a front clip of the ST185 so if i get lucky and it comes with all of the rear bits for AWD would it be hard to convert? i was thinking before that i wanted to convert the car from FWD to AWD but i had posted something on www.toyotacelicaweb.com and was told there that it was WAY to costly to do... but here it kind of seems common place and equally as expensive as keeping the car FF.

thank you in advance, this forum is great for everything celica!!!

[Four]

**** on my estiment i forgot to include a 300 dollar clutch,

also mynzeyes, above isnt really an estiment, thats what it cost me to do the swap. and id bet you will run into a few snags with your swap, id keep a hundred to 3 hundred on hand just in case.

[Four]

o i forgot to mention, not to knock your cooler mynzeyes, but a perform shop around here who does many upgrades for supras including new FMIC said i could have the mkiii cooler for free becuase it was not very good for any serious cars goin for loads of horsepower, 300+. he said they usally just throw them away after removal. but for the 4agze it should work quite well. and for people looking into a mkiii supra cooler check ebay 75-125 dollars and you can get a nice one.

[Mynzeyes]

QUOTE (DUDE @ May 12, 2003 - 7:10 PM)

o i forgot to mention,  not to knock your cooler mynzeyes, but a perform shop around here who does many upgrades for supras including new FMIC said i could have the mkiii cooler for free becuase it was not very good for any serious cars goin for loads of horsepower, 300+. he said they usally just throw them away after removal. but for the 4agze it should work quite well. and for people looking into a mkiii supra cooler check ebay 75-125 dollars and you can get a nice one.

yeah dude, for my application, it's pretty nice. i'm kinda wonderin about a FMIC on a 4agze, i hear it causes some pressure loss, but, i really don't want a TMIC w/ a hood scoop, and i also don't want a water = air intercooler, cause they are expensive ass. um...but w/ the NEVO pulley kit, i'll get at least 12-13psi, and i'll be takin out quite a few people... . w00t.

-John-

and i am gonna have a few hundred on the side, just to cover various little crap i may need, like tools, or a little fastener and all that...but hopefully i can get everything knocked out w/ minimal set-backs. w00t.