94 Celica GT ST215 Transmission Advice Options

[Kevchek]

First off, my names Kevin. I’m new to the forums over here. I’ve owned my st215 swapped gt for about 2-3 years now. It was stock when I bought it, the turbo went so I slapped a ctx15b 58mm on there and drove the piss out of it until I finally threw a rod and piston out the side of the block. It sat for about a year and a half and I’m finally buying a new motor and bringing Cali back to life. I pulled the motor and trans this past weekend and decided to see how much a rebuild would cost on the s54 transmission. The trans would grind third on downshift unless I revmatched and shifted without the clutch. I figured it would only be as simple as syncros. Well that wasn’t the case, turns out everything needs replacement. I got a quote from a very reputable shop, that I’ve used for years, with a price tag of 2100$! For a transmission that was only meant to handle 200hp. I thinks that’s insane. I was looking into an e153 lsd from an Mr2. If that’s even possible how can I achieve it. Basically I’m looking for a better alternative than the piece of garbage s54. Suggestions ?

[Box]

You can use the E153 from the MR2, but something about the shifter/gear selection is opposite of what it is in the E153 used in the Camry/Solara and needs reworked for use in FWD applications. Though for what it's worth plenty have used the S54 in V6 and 3S-GTE applications without problems, so long as you aren't pushing crazy numbers and don't drive like a gorilla a lightly used S54 should serve you fine. The other thing with the E153 is the mount/axle carrier bearing and axles as it was never used in the Celica. There are a few V6 and 3S-GTE swap threads in the project section that went into detail on what all was needed to use the E153 though. If it's a car you plan to keep it'd be worth the hassle and expense of the E153, especially if you're wanting to do 300-400+ hp. Also don't worry too much about a factory LSD E153 as they were viscous, so they sucked new and by now they're most likely worn out and operate as an open differential. If it were me I'd find an E153 out of a Camry/Solara and go with an aftermarket helical or 1.5 clutch unit.

This post has been edited by Box: Apr 24, 2018 - 11:02 PM