3sgte swap into an rx8 Options

[Malhar95]

[Story]
My other car is a mazda rx8, sooner or later i know its going to need a new motor. And i'm not at that level of learning and understanding everything about a rotary to build one(or get one built and manage it correctly), so i was thinking out swapping a piston engine into it (getting it done by a shop ofcourse, maybe ATS or DDperformance, but havent decided yet).

My first option was a LS swap, because its 'murica and we like v8s.
But then i would prefer toyota since im more familiar with them...so i thought about 1jz/2jz. I know theyve been done to million rx7s and few 8s, so there are some off the shelf partially ready swap kits for those.

But im not looking for that much power, maybe 300 whp for now, and later upto 500 once im used to power.
so that being said, i figured a 3sgte would be a good candidate since its EASILY capable of that power, im familiar with it. And its also going to be smaller, so less weight going towards the front, so closer to stock handling (comparing to ls and jz) and lighter too.
[question]
But i havent been able to find any swaps similar. Im trying to find a transmission that is going to work with rwd. from what ive read, the 1jz mounts to the stock transmission on the rx8, so is the 3sgte and JZ have similar bolting points? If so i can just use the stock one.
Also, any suggestions of how to tackle the exhaust problem, the 3sgte exhaust side faces the driver side, so its opposite to both the stock 13b and JZ, so the turbo might not fit. I was thinking of doing a semi-rear mount turbo if thats an issue.

last question, i read alot about people running two seperate ECUs to run different engine. how does that work?

does one tell the engine what to do and the other the dash?

If you guys find any builds simliar to this or have seen it in person. i would really appreciate some suggestions/tips
Also i know "anything is possible if u have money" that being said, i was quoted 11k for a LS1 swap out the door.
so im hoping to spend equal if not less for this swap.

[Bitter]

A complete LS1 weighs 430lbs.
A complete 3S-GTE weighs 421lbs.

An engine that cranks out 300whp+ in STOCK form is going to be more reliable than one that must be modified to produce 100whp more than in it's stock form. Not only that, you've got way more head room to increase the power without loosing reliability since you're straying far less from stock configuration. I think you're blinding yourself to a great engine choice with your fanboi-ism and desire to be 'unique'. There's a reason the LSx swap is so popular, it's a great choice!

Even a Toyota V6 is a better choice HP/Lb taken into consideration. 2GR-FE is 1.3hp/lb and weighs LESS than a 3S-GTE and makes MORE power in stock form. 259lbs

A bare RX8 rotary weighs 210lbs, however I believe all the engine accessories and fluids add about 70lbs, so figure 280-290lbs complete weight I guess. Bare engine means no intake, exhaust manifolds, or fluids, complete engine means ready to drop in and run.

This post has been edited by Bitter: Jul 19, 2014 - 10:47 PM

[Malhar95]

A complete LS1 weighs 430lbs.
A complete 3S-GTE weighs 421lbs.

An engine that cranks out 300whp+ in STOCK form is going to be more reliable than one that must be modified to produce 100whp more than in it's stock form. Not only that, you've got way more head room to increase the power without loosing reliability since you're straying far less from stock configuration. I think you're blinding yourself to a great engine choice with your fanboi-ism and desire to be 'unique'. There's a reason the LSx swap is so popular, it's a great choice!

Even a Toyota V6 is a better choice HP/Lb taken into consideration. 2GR-FE is 1.3hp/lb and weighs LESS than a 3S-GTE and makes MORE power in stock form. 259lbs

A bare RX8 rotary weighs 210lbs, however I believe all the engine accessories and fluids add about 70lbs, so figure 280-290lbs complete weight I guess. Bare engine means no intake, exhaust manifolds, or fluids, complete engine means ready to drop in and run.

Ah, I wasn't aware of that. I was under the impression it's less.

But I still would have a wieght distribution advantage since it would be closer to the middle of the car.
And yeah, I'm guilty of being biased because of my "love" for the 3s and toyota. But doing something not everyone has was also a factor.

As far as the ls swap goes, not a lot of people have actually successfully completed the swap with proper documentation.
Yeah, th kit is like 3500-4k with everything included, and the engine/trans/ecu combo could be found for another 3k high side.

And then custom fabrication and labor would run be another 3-4k
So not bad.
But then most people have issued with steering and the dash not getting proper data.
YES, I would have to deal with the same problems with the 3s too.
That being said, I'm not sure myself what I want to do now. Lol.