Is It Worth It!!!??? Options

[Bradley]

Hey guys... Ive been in the 3sgte market now for about three years.....

Now that the swap is been becoming more realistic for me financially Im starting to have my doubts about the swap....

I came up with a total of like $8k i need to have in order to do this swap...
that includes...
vented/slotted rotors and pads and braided steel lines
tein ss coilovers
st185 front clip or maybe st202 (praying for the WRC)
3" back exhaust and down pipe
Clutch
electronics including a boost controller and timer as well as a standalone
installation and all the other stuff not listed...


Though I must say I love my celica is this really worth it...??

A gt4 I would say hell yes.... awd 3sgte in a car as beautiful as the celica is my dream

but a fwd 200hp or so celica with a chasis of 190k miles plus on it.... it just doesn't seem like a good bang for the buck

Plus I will be using this car for a dd... i dont mind the 93 octane but how much and how often will the routine repairs be.... Will I have to be importing little pieces between japan every other month? Going to school in the mountains of Western MD will the snow and rough conditions be too much for the car??

sorry for all the questions/doubts It's just that I feel for around $8-10k you could build a sweet 240 or buy an older already turbo wrx and be able to build a lot better of a street car. A celica is cosmetically pleasing and the 3sgte is one hell of a powerhouse but the parts are rare and honestly I just don't see as much potential


any ideas?

[supra12big]

go with gen 3 with that money, should be good enough for u, put some mods into it, and you will be happy

[jason]

i think the 3rd gen, some minor enhancements to that (intake, exhaust, ebc)

the tein ss is a great mod, along with some suspension tech sway bars

also should look for some 16 or 17" wheels that are 8" wide and some nice tires to go with them to hold all that power and offer traction when cornering fast

you have a gt, i wouldnt worry about the brakes. when pads you have now wear out, get some good pads, thats about it

3s celica's are more fun than modern cars with similar performance

[Bradley]

I agree.... and I actually found a 3rd gen front clip shipped to my door for $2,500

To be more specific about costs
$2,500 -front clip
I work at a shop and don't have time to do the swap myself so they will cut me a deal at $500 for labor
looking at about another 2k in the coilovers, tires and the rest of the suspension mods
About another thousand in boost gauges, controllers, timers, and maybe a safc II although im unsure about ecu tuning for our celica
500 or so for the transmission upgrades
Thats already $6,500 and I know there is a ton of stuff im leaving out

My goal is to have a fun car/project while being somewhat financially responsible

Im just saying for the lets say I can get 2 or 3 thousand for my car as well as the 8 I have saved up for the 3sgte swap, would I be better off putting a down payment on a wrx or is our celi with the 3s just that worth it?

[lagos]

If this is your only car, and you need a daily driver, then a swap is probably not the best thing for that.
I daily drive mine, but then again, I think I'm one of the very few on here that does.

[jason]

a swapped celica will eat wrx's and stock sti's

i however do have an eye on a wrx for a daily car which should give me lots of time to fix up the celica

[Bradley]

One day I can say Im gonna have a bad ass car as my dd then an even more bad ass car as my "weekender" lmao, but for now as a (BROKE ASS!!) college student, im trying to do the best I can to give justice to my celica by outfitting it with a 3sgte...

I think I made up my mind, Im really leaning towards this swap I just wanted some opinions from people that have already done the process.

Im starting to collect parts of course starting with the clip... I found that vividracing.com has a good ammount of things I need and are willing to work with me for bulk purchases.

Im hoping 8k is enough... I know price varies on options but how much around would a project like this be?

[bccentaur3]

Why do you want to go standalone? You can save 1500 by sticking with the 3rd gen ecu. A few bolt ons and a piggy back will give you enough power, if you plan on keeping it your DD.

[Bradley]

Im thinking of the standalone honestly just because I was advised to...

Im certainly looking for power but also just as much for reliability.... if a standalone would help the car run better im not concerned spending money... I just don't want to spend unnecessary money... you would pass on the standalone just go with a piggyback? are there any flashing options for the 3rd gen ecu

[Bradley]

Better yet... for discussion sake (and for some ideas)

what would be some setups I could do for up to 8k

Keep in mind that I already have 17's and exterior mods

[lagos]

Alight, since you asked via pm, i might as well break it down and elaborate a bit here...

Question: Is the 3sgte swap worth it (in terms of performance)
Answer: 100% yes. Its like a whole new car with the 3s under the hood. I couldn't imagine driving a celica without it.

Question: Does a 3sgte swapped celica make for a good daily driver
Answer: Not really

I daily drive my 3s and have been doing so for 4yrs. In the mean time, I have also gotten just about every question/pm/phone call, etc... from dozens of swappers over the years. So Im going to try to be very honest with you...

1. You will have issues that you need to work out after the swap.
2. Your going to regret having any shop install the motor for you
3. If you want to own a swapped car, You need to take the time to do things yourself and learn whats under the hood.
4. The more power you make, the more stuff can break.
5. You will have issues that you need to work out after the swap.

The problem with your plan is that your going to take 1990s junk yard motor, hand the keys to some shop that doesnt care about you or your car, and expect to never have to pop the hood again while at the same time spending as little money as possible and the things thaat actually matter when trying to have a reliable car.

This post has been edited by lagos: May 1, 2008 - 9:54 PM

[njccmd2002]

^^^ he knows the subject.

Hey listen, since you want a daily driver, have you considered a beams red top swap. Yes of course its not turbo, but throws better hp than stock. A clip will run you about the same, no FMIC needed, IDK about the gas octane. But i think for a daily driver option its my choice.

In 1 year, (honest to god) i will have myself a 98-99 SSIII clip, and i will be doing the swap (that is if im still alive, and my celi not wrecked).

Why beams, its 197 hp, i dont want to deal with hassles of turbo, it really is an upgrade, and i think mechanically easier swap. I have read the wiring is a vitch. but i really dont want to cut the crash bar, and the FMIC thing. the only setback is you cannot turbo in the future, which i dont care.

Many are against this, of course they are rare engines. But i have seen them in 5gc, MR2 and corollas believe it or not.

Why coilovers, 2000 usd on a DD. I have teins, with 215/45/17 and i do feel the road every day. IDK how coilovers drive or last, but def not for a DD.

Start with some basic susp techniques, once you can afford a DD, then do the coilover setup. that will save you about 1600 usd.

my 0.02.

[Bradley]

Thank you Lagos...

that was the answer I was looking to get out of this post...

The shop that is doing the swap for me is the shop that I actually work at. Not to say that they won't half ass my car... but for the year and a half that I have worked there it seems to me that the quality of there work is good.

Of course im expecting to have some problems with the car,
(that brings me back to the second part of my main question.... is a stock turbo car like a wrx a better choice for a perfomance minded dd)

But will the problems be frequent enough (weekly, monthly??) to make the common person regret the decision. Obviously lots of people have completed the swap..... is it a decision that is commonly regreted

[Bradley]

"Hey listen, since you want a daily driver, have you considered a beams red top swap. Yes of course its not turbo, but throws better hp than stock. A clip will run you about the same, no FMIC needed, IDK about the gas octane. But i think for a daily driver option its my choice."


You know I never thought about that..... in fact I haven't even looked into a beams swap... I really like the mechanics and design of forced induction systems, hence my passion for jdm tuners rather than american muscle. How is the Beams engine as far as parts and upgradability (I know thats not a word but you get my drift)

[lagos]

The shop that is doing the swap for me is the shop that I actually work at. Not to say that they won't half ass my car... but for the year and a half that I have worked there it seems to me that the quality of there work is good.

Your missing the point.

is a stock turbo car like a wrx a better choice for a perfomance minded dd

For you... yes.

Obviously lots of people have completed the swap..... is it a decision that is commonly regreted

There is one common trend in this community. The guys who did their own work tend to keep their cars for a long time to come, while the guys who had someone do it for them tend to get rid of them asap. Why? Because when simple issues pop up, the guy who did the work will be able to fix it in 5min, while the other guy will think his car "sucks" because its not "running right" and end up spending a fortune dealing with mechanics who either dont know what they are talking about or over charge you for the most basic repair.

[Bradley]

valid point.....

As much as I have read into the mechanics of the swap... I just don't feel confident enough myself performing the swap especially as a dd.... Your probably right in saying the wrx is a better car for my style I would just hate to give up the celica....

I guess there is still yet more thinking to do on the matter

thanks everybody for your guys help..

by the way lagos im damn impressed by the ride man nice work... thanks for the help

[njccmd2002]

yummy.

[Bradley]

damn that does look delicious

[lagos]

yummy.

^ Slow and overpriced

[Bradley]

What kind of problems usually happen after a 3s swap€?