1MZ-FE into my MR2, Building a 3SGTE these days. Options

[95CelicaST]

I don't own a 6GC anymore, but I am attached to this place, so you guys are stuck with me.



The V6 is a swap that MR2 gurus are doing these days. I suppose when you get a bunch of guys in their 30's and 40's with handfuls of disposable income, this is the result. I know there have been a few V6 swaps into the 6GC, and since the MR2 shares a bit with the Celica, I am making this thread in the hopes that someone on here will find it and get some of the information that they need.

Why I chose the 1mz over a 3sgte

Simple, really. I see the MR2 as a cheap exotic, why not make it sound like one? Power is the same if not a bit higher than the 3s, but it has torque the moment you put your foot down. Good fuel economy, reliable, yada yada yada. It actually gives you more room in the engine bay than the 3S, too.

Why the 1MZ over other V6 options?

Weight, cost, and availability. The 1MZ has an aluminum block. It actually weighs less than the 3sgte. The 3VZ has a cast iron block, and people opt for those if going with a turbo, but I'm not. I have my WRX for turbo shenanigans - this car is meant for reliable enjoyment. The 2GRFE would be incredible - 275whp stock... Only problem is finding one, and cheap. Most places that have them are selling them at more than what my swap will cost me... plus I would need to upgrade to the E153 transmission, turbo axles, hubs, brakes, etc. Just pile on the parts. Seems like a more suiting swap for someone who is starting out with a turbo MR2.

I picked my 1MZ up from another NASIOC and MR2OC board member who decided to go for a Honda V6 swap instead. He pulled this motor out of a 94 Lexus ES300 with 90k miles on it. It ran great, just got t-boned. No sludge, either. Owned by an old couple, this car was just in to the dealership for it's 90K service. If it weren't for the fact that timing belts are cheap, I might just leave this one on there. The guy I bought it from had already gone through the trouble of sourcing a new passenger side motor mount from 4v6 on the MR2 boards to make the swap drop straight in. The ES300 never came in manual transmission, and because of the lack of an automatic transmission in my car, this will throw a CEL. I am still trying to think of ways around this, but it'll probably end up with some sort of EMS.


So I started my list of what I still need to source... after compiling the list I thought to myself, I probably should have thought about this more.

- Custom headers Brad Bedell makes a set for $300, but requires a bit of modification to the runners to not hit the oil filter.
- Flywheel Need to get a V6 flywheel for a Solara. Decided on a Fidanza unit. Why not, right? $310
- Clutch The V6 flywheel is the same diameter as a mr2 turbo flywheel, but my clutch isn't. To maximize the surface area and avoid slipping I need to get a turbo clutch kit with a custom 20 spline disk to mount my S54 to the 1MZ. South Bend Clutch can do a kevlar clutch kit with 20 spline disk for $300.
- Tachometer The v6 sends a different signal than the 5s, so you need to source a v6 tach board from a camry for this. Drops right in to the MR2 cluster, but I am having my stock tach modified and recalibrated. $50
- Wiring I know this is going to be a nightmare to wire, so that is a headache I'm passing to someone else. Dr_tweak wants $630 to do it.... WTF happened to the $300-$400 conversions? Luckily there is a mr2 board member who does the work for $430.
- Exhaust work I have headers outlined above, and already have a Greddy SP muffler, so my exhaust shop needs to build a y-pipe to connect the two. Speculated cost with my discount (I refer A LOT of business to them) is around $200.
- Misc. crap Timing belt, gaskets, fluids, etc. I am also bundling kirkosaurus poly mount inserts under this category. $300

I've got about $1700 left to spend on this trip. Already spent $750 on the engine and everything I'll need from the donor car. I've set a deadline of February 28th to have it completely finished. If it wasn't for this Christmas BS (Now I know why adults hate this time of year) I would be well on my way. No problem.

I'm writing all of this out from my cell phone, so its all a bit jumbled and unformatted, but I've been meaning to post this stuff for a while. When I get to my computer I'll organize it and get some real info going. Until then, gaze upon awesomeness.




Okay, I'm home from work... and now I can reformat.....



Alright, now that is over with... I pulled the harness off of the motor last night.... And it's substantially larger than my 5S harness. This thing almost spans the length of my car! I'm not going to work on it tonight, but tomorrow I am going to go through and label the harness, and try and source some injector clips - the plastic was pretty brittle on mine and I snapped all but one of them.

The guy I bought it from partially unwrapped the harness, so it looks nastier than it really is, but this harness has to weigh at least 30lbs. I'd like to see how much it'll weigh after I get it back.



This post has been edited by 95CelicaST: Oct 2, 2017 - 3:46 PM

[Box]

Sorry for having derailed, everyone. Sorry to hatchy as well, don't want to have ill feelings toward anyone on here. Just how you said what you said, kind of rubbed me the wrong way.

Back on topic, what Bitter suggested would be good. If the supercharger won't fit under the lid, could go with something custom on the lid. A scoop of sorts might actually look good, especially with having the vents already.

[kormysh8]

Fox sox man this thread deserves a gold medal with diamonds in it. so good.

[95CelicaST]

aaaaand this afternoon:

[Box]

NICE. I so want to put a 3 post into the Celica one of these days.

[whatthe]

Mannnnnnnnnnnn i was in my friends one. And this sounds soooo dam good. Very good low range, lacks the top abit. But torque is so nice. Nothing like a 3sgte!

[95CelicaST]

Maintenance mode weekend. Replaced front ball joints, tie rod ends, and end links.


The end links that came with my coilovers were too long in the front and made contact with my control arms over bumps. I have been trying to get DGR to replace them on their lifetime warranty for some time now, but they have completely stopped responding to my emails. Never will purchase anything from them ever again. Through trial and error today I found that rear end links from a 2008 Chevy Impala SS are ~1/2" shorter and work perfectly.

[RabidTRD]

I want an MR2 so badly

[95CelicaST]

I dropped Mr. Two off at Polished Image Detailing on Tuesday to have the clear coat on the wheel lips stripped off and polished up for the Forum Fest show on 6/23. The shop owner working on it took the wheels apart and started polishing them up and decided to take it a couple steps past where we had originally planned on going. He sent the nuts and bolts off to be polished in a tumbler and went ahead and polished the inner barrels of the wheels. On top of all of that he painted my brakes black - because he was bored.

I was supposed to pick up the car this morning, but due to the bolts being off-site the shop owner loaned me his personal truck to drive until they're done... How is that for customer service?

I also picked up some new reproduction MR2 floor mats to replace my haggard ones. Pictures to follow from this weekend at Forum Fest.

If you feel so inclined, you can head over to this link on the Facebooks and like my photo - every 10 likes = 1 extra point during judging. You know you want to give me extra points!

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=430...e=1&theater

[95CelicaST]

Hovercraft style tonight.

[95CelicaST]

Wheels all polished up and at the NOS Forum Fest today



Got to have a good look at the 5 Axis FR-S. SOOO small sitting next to some Genesis coupes.


It turned into a sh*t show about three hours in when it started pouring rain, high wind, and thunder. After watching someone's E-Z Up fly away and crash into a couple cars we broke my tent down and packed up. A few hours later it cleared up so I ran out and got another shot, as photography in the pouring rain sucks.

[Ted95]

im very veryy tempted to do this same swap, theres a red mr2 sitting in a driveway near my gfs house begging for attention! car looks great man, it must have good pick up with all that instant torque!

[95CelicaST]

After driving the FRS for a couple weeks, getting into the MR2 feels like climbing into a gokart... And it moves like it, too. I took both cars to a car show two weeks ago. I had my friend drive the MR2 and I drove the FRS. We switched cars halfway there because he was afraid he was going to destroy the front lip... and I forgot just how fast the MR2 is from a stop or roll. There is more torque to the wheels at 2000RPM (~175) than the FRS is rated at peak (151@6400rpm). The MR2 flys!

Some shots from that show (These are linked to FB, so if people can't see them let me know and I'll move them)




I'm taking her in tomorrow to have a full paint correction done in preparation for a huge indoor show on the 29th. I have never been able to get aggressive enough on my polish/pad/DA polisher combo to get some of the larger imperfections out, so the shop that refinished my wheels will be fixing it while teaching me how to do it on my own... can't ask for better.

[Box]

MR2, now with more shiny.

[BonzaiCelica]

why didn't you get the 1998-2001 1mzfe with vvt-i. sorry I don't feel like going through all 23 pages to look.

[Box]

why didn't you get the 1998-2001 1mzfe with vvt-i. sorry I don't feel like going through all 23 pages to look.

Dual throttle bodies and drive by wire if I had to take a guess.

[95CelicaST]

Because I got a hell of a deal on the engine... And it still has a return style fuel system, so the swap was very easy.

[NgoFcukinWay]

aaaaand this afternoon:

OEM Carbon Fiber wheel? Nice. Got one myself waiting to be put in the Poopra.

MR-2 is looking damn nice!

*edit* Just noticed it's red-stitched too. Lucky a$$....Trying to find me the uber rare blue-stitched carbon fiber one.

This post has been edited by NgoFcukinWay: Sep 21, 2012 - 11:22 PM

[oteck]

nice, so im not the only one here with a v6 mr2

[Smaay]

why didn't you get the 1998-2001 1mzfe with vvt-i. sorry I don't feel like going through all 23 pages to look.

Dual throttle bodies and drive by wire if I had to take a guess.

no the VVT 1MZ still had a cable. only the 3MZ has DBW.

i think Oteck has the best setup, 3MZ with VVT 1MZ intake and TB and electronics.

Im running a 3MZ with non VVT intake manifold and TB and electronics. its still a bat outta hell.

[Box]

Early versions of the VVT-i 1MZ used a dual throttle body, cast aluminum intake manifold, and EGR block off plates on the exhaust manifolds. Later versions used an ABS plastic intake manifold to further weight reduction and decrease cost. These versions may also have drive-by-wire/electronic throttle control.

Was just going off of that.