3sgte head in to 5sfe Options

[subpenny127]

can i put a 3sgte head into my 5sfe? im going to turbo it in may but i need to get the motor in better shape and need lots of new parts.

[alltracman78]

First off, there is NO such thing as a aluminum block 3S. Period.

Second, C:R differs depending which gen you get. 1st/3rd are 8.5:1. 2nd and I believe 4th are 8.8:1.
In the thread referenced, he's talking about raising C:R for a NA application, NOT turbo....

Third, while the 3rd gen 3SGTE has some early block problems, the 2nd gen and late 3rd gen blocks are no weaker than the 5SFE....
The main reason the 5S block is used is for the relatively large jump in displacement. More displ = more to spin the turbo, all others being equal.

Fourth, the stock 3SGTE cams are just fine for flow on the stock head.
Nothing wrong with getting better ones, but you don't "need to get better cams".

I don't know how comfortable I'd be spinning the 5S bottom end at stock rod:stroke, even with aftermarket rods [FYI the stock rods are forged, as are the stock pistons, at least on most 5S. The really early 5S might not be, but probably are.]. I'm sure others have done it, but I would rather get custom rods/pistons to address this if I was going to use the 3SGTE redline.