Completed Engine Swaps., who's got em. add your name and info. ;) Options

[Mynzeyes]

just like the topic says, i think this would be a very good little thread, just to give some insight for the newbs and dreamers as to what the swappers have done, what they went through, and how it's workin out to this day. feel free to add any info you wish, mainly the car type before, the new motor type, info about your personal swap (as all swaps are NOT created equal), a time frame, general cost, how is the performance, are you happy w/ it, etc... . let's see how big this list can get. .

-John-

edit: btw, only post if you are DONE and driving the car. that's what i'm lookin for.

[kuya1284]

Let's see, where do I start... How about I give a timeline of what I went through. I'll try to be as thorough as possible. I may miss some events that I forgot to record. Some of these may be irrelavent to the swap, but I just wanted to give a description of what I've gone through during this whole period of endless waiting.

Late April, 2002 : Received GT-FOUR posts from Mike (Qatar) TopShelfRacing.com... which was the beginning of my GT-FOUR Hybrid Project.

Early May, 2002 : Sent Venus Auto payment for ST205 clip (~$3800)

May 21, 2002 : Flew out to Sacramento (~$120), took shuttle to U-haul (~$15), rented 14" Uhaul for one-way trip back down to SoCal ($283), drove truck to Venus and picked up clip, drove back down to SoCal and made a couple stops for gas ($60)

May 22, 2002 : Dropped off clip to EL Prototypes and returned truck to Uhaul


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June 18, 2002 : Car got broken into and vandalized, gauge pod with Apex'i boost gauge along with radio face gets stolen.


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June 20, 2002 : Took car to Auto Explosion for them to start on body repairs.

July 17, 2002 : Since AE was lagging with repairs and because I didn't want to risk my paint being scratched from performing the motor swap, I decided to perform motor swap first. I took the car to ELP.


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July 23, 2002 : Received my new GT-FOUR hood, which arrived from Toyota World

August 6, 2002 : ELP finally gets around to starting on my car. 7A is removed from engine bay. During this time, I was still sourcing a E-153 tranny WITH LSD for a reasonable price. I missed an opportunity to buy one for only $500 by a couple days.


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September 23, 2002 : Bought Apex'i Boost gauge and EGT from Wholesale Hyperformance.


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September 25, 2002 : Received new set of ST205 turn signals, gen 2 timing belt and spark plug wire set from Toyota World


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October 12, 2002 : Received Walbro Supra 255 lph fuel pump from (can't remember at this moment??)


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October 15, 2002 : Received Redline MT-90 tranny fluid, new gauge pod, and Turbo XS high-performance mechanical boost controller from Summit Racing


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October 17, 2002 : Received JDM sidemarkers from ProCarParts.com

November 16, 2002 : Decided to purchase used E-153 WITHOUT LSD from a JDM 1995 SW20 from a guy in San Diego.

November 26, 2002 : Luckily, I found a person on the MR2 board selling SW20 LSD unit. Received about a week later.

December 11, 2002 : Purchased Blitz SBC-iD electronic boost controller and Power-iD meter from friend's shop, Six Autoworks. This was also around the time that I discovered that my motor may be a WRC version.


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December 12, 2002 : Bought used Blitz Supersound blow off valve from friend. I was also informed that my clutch needed to be replaced. Since I was told that I need to order more parts, I decided that while I waited for the axles and clutch to arrive, that I would just take my car back to the body shop. In addition, the main reason was so that I could get my engine bay sprayed and have a cleaner look.


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December 14, 2002 : Met up with an MR2 board member at LAX, who stopped over from his trip to Japan, to pick up JDM (red-stitched) shift knob.


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December 18, 2002 : Pulled car from ELP and towed to M1 Autobody

January 25, 2003 : M1 completed painting car and installing body kit. At this time, I was still waiting for the factory rear bumper to arrive.

January 31, 2003 : Received a coupe rear bumper instead of a HB type. I had to return the bumper the following week.


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March 28, 2003 : M1 continued to lag, and finally got around to starting work on front GT-FOUR bumper BUT not the rear bumper. This is just another one of the dilemnas I ran into with M1 and ELP lagging.


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May 3, 2003 : Since M1 recommended that I return my car back to ELP to get the motor swap completed, I decided to pick up my ClutchMasters FX300 (stage 3) clutch. M1 told me that since they weren't completely done with my body work that if ELP somehow managed to (accidentally) scratch my paint job, that they would redo it at no extra charge.


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May 7, 2003 : Towed car back to ELP as scheduled... I was promised that my motor swap should be completed within a month from this date. I was also promised that the LSD would be installed into the tranny by this time, and sure enough it wasn't. This was around the time that I confirmed for certain that I had a WRC motor.

July 12, 2003 : Work was finally started on my car by this point. ELP ended up sourcing a JDM E-153 WITH the LSD already installed. Clutch was installed into tranny and motor was dropped in and out to determine proper fitment with motor mounts.


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Late July, 2003 : I was informed that ELP had to order NEW ST204 driver side mounts.

August 4, 2003 : Motor finally gets dropped and mounted (securely) into car. I was also informed that the non-LSD type MR2 axles could no be found.


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August 8, 2003 : Heat exchanger and intercooler sprayers got installed. I was also informed that my WRC motors comes equiped with water injection... WOW!


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Late August, 2003 : At this point, while ELP was searching for my axles, I realized that the axles I originally brought wouldn't work with my tranny due to the fact that it had LSD. At the time I purchased the MR2 axles, I had decided not to go with LSD. I ordered NEW axles from ToyotaWorld later that week.

September 9, 2003 : MR2 axles and 1990 V6 Camry axles finally arrive.


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September 12, 2003 : Gauges and controllers were installed. V6 Camry axles were sent out to be rebuilt. Brought in new hood latch cable.


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September 18, 2003 : Body wire harness was 80% completed. Rebuilt axles arrived.


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September 22, 2003 : Body harness complete and engine harness 50% completed.

2nd week of November : Engine harness was completed. Axles were installed and wheels remounted. ELP called me around this time to inform me that they needed a Power Steering resevoir and high pressure line, A/C lines, and throttle cable all from a GT Celica.


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4th week of November : Intercooler, hoses and wiring installed and mounted. 5 hoses needed to be attached and 1 hose (radiator) needed mending. A/C, PS resevoir, and PS high pressure line got installed. I brought in the throttle cable on the 29th.

December 1, 2003 VROOOM VROOOM... The motor lives!

December 2, 2003 ELP placed an order for a new PS resevoir mounting bracket. Apex'i turbo timer, Blitz SBC-iD EBC, and Blitz Power-iD meter got wired and installed. Blitz DD BOV and Apex'i Power intake installed. IC heat exchange mounted as well.

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December 5, 2003 Power Steering resevoir bracket gets installed. Cruise Control actuator gets relocated and a custom bracket is made. Bracket is made for BOV and is mounted to intake. ELP called me this day to inform me that my Blitz EBC isn't funcationing properly. It apparently powered up, but doesn't show anything on the screen with the exception of a couple lines. Power-iD works. Apex'i turbo timer operational.

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December 6, 2003 Car gets buttoned up. Blitz EBC gets removed and boxed up for exchange. I spent the whole day watching Claude and Robert do their thing. Claude finished up putting my interior together while Robert made a bracket for my IC water resvoir and new hangers for my battery (because the originals were misplaced). They also bled the clutch, which I must tell you feels like my factory clutch and began putting the exhaust on. By the end of the day, everything was complete. Only thing left for them to do is to finish the piping for the exhaust, extend the hook on my hood latch, and bleed the Power Steering. Monday, December 8th, I will be driving my car to M1 for body work completion.

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December 8, 2003 PSSSSH! PSSSSH! PSSSSH! After over 1.5 years of waiting, I finally got to drive my car today! And boy... it sure felt good! Damn good! Although ELP took WAY TOO FRICKEN LONG, I must say they did an EXCELLENT JOB. But I'm gonna have to give MOST of the credit to Claude. He put in endless hours of time and effort. I must tell you that this guy is the MOST METICULOUS person!!

BOOST WAS CRAZY. Well, sorta. In first gear, I was maxin out at only 5 PSI. 2nd was about 7 to 8. 3rd was a WHOMPIN 13 to 14 PSI. Mind you, this is without my EBC. That's right folks... the stock boost was hitting that high. The only reasons that I can think of why my boost was low in the first 2 gears may be due to

1. Lack of traction, which I didn't really notice since I didn't push the car.
2. The exhaust not being connected, thus lack of back pressure.

As for the kickass boost in third, I would have to guess that it might be due to a more agressively tuned ECU. I guess the WRC model has more tricks up it's sleeves in addition to the anti-lag and water injection addons.

Well, the exhaust didn't get finished, but I'm going to worry about that after M1 completes the body work. EL did a decent job with my hood latch. I'm going to get rid of my dual exhaust setup and go with a single until I save up enough for a titanium JIC exhaust. M1 expects my car to be completed within 2 weeks. I'm going to try and push them to finish sooner, regardless of how busy they are. Since I've paid them 90% of the total and since my team has given them LOTS of business and exposure, I SHOULD be given top priority. Anyway, here are more pictures for you peeps...

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December 12, 2003 So M1 called me today to inform me that they were going to start on my car. They also asked that I come down to confirm certain tasks that I requested before. When I showed up, I was pretty surprised at home much they got done (in 5 to 6 hours). David, one of the owners, told me that if things go well and that they don't run into any complications, they should be able to finish my car between the 19th to the 23rd. Things are going to take a bit longer because I requested that they clean up things that weren't done correctly. Pictures below...

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December 17, 2003 So I received a call from my friend yesterday about a photoshoot opportunity. I contacted the person and found out that the shoot was going to bed help in LA on the 21st and 22nd for the upcoming 2004 Celica brochure. So I contacted M1 to see if they could finish my car by Friday or Saturday, and they said yes!

So as stoked I was, I expected my car to be done and ready by Saturday. I rarely get excited, but I certainly was excited, UP UNTIL I received a call about 5 minutes ago. M1 called me to inform me that they were having trouble fitting my front bumper on my car due to frame damage. I was already aware of the (minor) damage and brought this to their attention a long time ago. They told me that there would be no way that my car would be finished in time for the shoot and that they would need to charge me an additional $500 just to fix the damage. So now I'm really bummed and pissed because the last body shop that worked on my car was aware of this problem and didn't fix it. I wasn't aware that the problem still existed until the motor swap.

So yeah... I really pissed about this whole situation and depressed!!!

December 18, 2003 I'm still in shock that the shop is going to charge me $500!!! From what I can tell, the only REAL damage that would affect the bumper from being mounted properly is highlighted in the picture below. I just don't understand! These ****ers are trying to leech off me! I know I don't have problems with tire wear or anything of that nature... so the damage IS NOT that serious and I don't know what would justify a $500 charge!! They told me that the bumper lines up except there's a noticable gap between the bumper and the hood along the passenger side. I'm telling you, it should not cost $500 to pull out the area highlighted below:




December 19, 2003 Well, I just got back from the body shop, M1, and I must say that I'm really satisfied with the work. I'm just disappointed that I'm gonna have to blow an extra $500 for the frame repairs. But overall, I'm very happy. The front lip was molded PERFECTLY to the GT-FOUR bumper and the fit is excellent. The antenna that they sold me is going to look better, IMO, than my last antenna. It supposed to be 10 times stronger than a Fuba antenna. The owner of the shop told me that his single is still clear when driving through tunnels.

Well, the car is either going to get painted tomorrow night or early Monday morning. If the car gets painted tomorrow, I'll be picking it up Monday evening. If the car gets painted Monday, I'll be picking it up Tuesday. If I had gotten to the shop 3 hours earlier, my car would have been painted. They didn't start shooting my car because they were waiting for my approval on the body work.

Anyway, here are the pictures:

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December 23, 2003 Well, I got to M1 around 12 PM hoping that I would be able to pick up my car, but unfortunately, they were still spraying my car. I had a bad feeling that I wouldn't be able to pick up the car to get the muffler installed and smogged... and sure enough... that's exactly what they told me. They told me that since it was raining... my paint would get damaged. I stuck around till about 2 PM, and took off. They told me to come back around 11 AM the next day. They were going to put 6 guys on my car to make sure that I could pick it up right away to get my stuff done... and have enough time to catch my 3 PM flight.

December 24, 2003 I got to the shop at 11 AM exactly and found my car HALF-WAY pieced together. I was really worried because I still needed to get the muffler installed and my car smogged. And the way my car looked, it wasn't gonna get done till 12 to 12:30. Well, guess what? They didn't finish till 1PM. Because of this, I didn't get to do what I planned on doing AND I had to drive back home IN TRAFFIC. So I missed my 3 PM flight back to the Bay Area... but fortunately caught the 4:20 flight. To top it all off... I lost my driver's license at the airport. I also scraped (once) coming home on the freeway... yes... my car is THAT low... grrrrr. So yeah... no pictures yet because not only didn't I have time, but my girlfriend took my camera home with her...

Oh yeah, they also didn't get to install everything COMPLETELY, such as my wing and the weathering strip for the rear windshield. There apparently was a missing rivet-thingy on one of the GT-FOUR posts, which would keep me from using one bolt. I told them to just fix it and have it ready when I bring the car back on the 10th to get color sanded. They promised to get it done, and detail my car...


December 25, 2003 HELL YEAH! I just poured in some Cool Blue (110 octane gas) and took my roommate for a test drive... and this time (unlike the last couple times I drove my car), I gunned it on every gear. 1st gear is so torquey... it took my breath away... I could feel the car WANTING to go faster, but the tires were just TRYING to jump forward to keep up...

So my itinerary for tomorrow (the 26th) when I get up is as follows:

1. I MIGHT install my stock front springs to prevent anymore scrapage... I'm hoping that the springs that I left at my parents house are my stock FRONT springs and not the REAR. This will only be temporary until I get my new wheels and coilovers.

2. Go to DMV to get a temporary license, since I lost mine license at the airport, and a one-day pass to drive the car, since the car is not registered.

3. Get my muffler installed.

4. Get my car smogged.

5. Go back to DMV to register my car.

6. Go to SD to visit my gf and her family... and get my camera back.

7. Take pictures....

8. Come back home and post pictures.

So yeah... it's gonna be a pretty busy day for me.

Merry Xmas again and happy new years people...

December 26, 2003

- Muffler got installed.
- Messed up front lip by hitting a steel metal plate @ 2 MPH. They were doing construction on the road and my car was TOO LOW.
- Lifted car back to stock height.

December 27, 2003

- Passed smog


January 10, 2004

Passenger side hub bearing decided to go out on me. This is setting me back $350, forcing me to put a hold on my wheels...

This post has been edited by kuya1284: Apr 30, 2004 - 3:49 PM

[Xpander]

My car originally started out as a 1995 Toyota Celica ST (7AFE, Automatic Transmission).

I know have a 4AGE 20v Silvertop powered Celica. Also changed the transmission to a 5 speed manual. My engine is stock for the moment with only an Aftermarket 3" Air Filter, Greddy Cat-Back Exhaust, and No Catalytic Converter.

I purchased the Front Clip from Jarco for roughly $1000 shipped from GA to FL. The auto to manual pieces were sourced from TAP Recycling and totaled $250. I had a shop do the actual install of the motor and wiring; I sourced all information needed to perform the swap: Toyota Repair Manual(s) and Toyota Wiring Diagrams, 4AGE 20v ECU Pin-Outs, etc. I also have various part numbers regarding maintence pieces (timing belt, water pump, distributor, etc.) for the 4AGE 20v.

The performance is a much needed boost from an automatic ST Celica. Although I believe the engine is not running at its full potential at the moment. I know that there is a fuel issue with my engine, I'm running lean in the upper RPM's. I believe that if I run higher octane fuel and use a fuel controller (S-AFC) it will correct some of the power problems.

Other than that, I've been running the 4AGE 20v with no engine problems whatsoever. Its is definitely a smooth revving engine and has potential that is just waiting to be unleashed.

[Supersprynt]

Swapped 1994 Celica GT (5S-FE) with ST185 (2nd Gen) 3S-GTE

After a year of info searching and what not - I ordered a 1993 J-Spec 3S-GTE out of an ST185 GT-Four. It had roughly 45,000 miles on it, and I ordered it from Storm Performance in Cali.

I'm not going to give you a date by date like Kuya did, cuz well im too lazy to type that much. But heres a brief overview. Any questions related to this topic, or any other, are welcome. I ordered JUST the engine, and it came with the AFM & ECU. If I could go back, I'd get the clip. Taking the old 5S-FE engine out was fairly simple, LABEL EVERYTHING & TAKE PICTURES, GOOD ONES. I decided to use my stock tranny because it will bolt right up. With new clutch, and the existing flywheel off the 3S was in good shape. Then came the placing of the 3S in the bay, which bolts right into exisiting motor mounts. I connected all plugs that mated and hoses that went where and what not. My entire exhaust was increased by 1 inch to accomodate the 2.5'' exhaust of the 3S. I used the stock exhaust flange and mated it up to the downpipe and then did some custom exhaust work so that it would run straight back to the dual mufflers.
Now comes the hard part.

The mechanical, is a piece of cake. Its the electrical that will leave you in tears. Plugs need to be spliced, connections have to be made, plugs need to be fitted onto cut wires. Its a nightmare, and prepare to regret doing it all...for now. Mike from TopShelf helped me out alot, and I credit him with what he deserves, for basically guiding me through the ECU swap. Even with his guidance it was tough.

As of right now I have one major problem, I cant get over 4-4.5K RPMs. It sucks cuz u dont get max HP until 6K. I do not think this is electrical, I think its either a vacuum leak, a loose/missing connection to the injectors or a bad ground somewhere...its yet to be found.

What I had to buy separate from the engine: solenoid relay (resistor), fuel pump relay, ignition coil & primary wire.
Stuff I bought FOR the new engine: Apex'i Turbo Timer, Apex'i Rev/Speed Meter, Autometer Boost Gauge.

I spent around $3,000 for the swap, but I did all the work, and I did all the research. It took WAY longer than it should've, about 5 months. Keep in mind, I have a full time job, and im a full time student. Just cuz its summer doesnt mean school stops. But it was all worth it. With the current problem of not going over generally 4,000 RPM's, u still hit 90mph and I dont downshift to pass cars, theres just so much more power...and the engine is basically stock.



This post has been edited by Supersprynt: Dec 1, 2008 - 1:51 AM

[thedevilmaycrie]

Feb 23 2003:
Drove my car to Texas and got a swift kick in the @$$ about having my car lowered in a flood..... Seized 5sfe, and blent the #2 rod. Flew back to my station in So Cal, without car and lived wihtout my car

April 10 2003:
Got the call to go to war in Iraq.

July 24 2003
Parents purchased a MR2 clip from Vensus Auto.

Aug 14 2003
Informed that the engine somehow got shipped to Hawaii???

Sept 10 2003
engine arrived in Texas.... Dad pulls 5sfe engine outta Celica.

Sept 12 2003
MR2 in torn to shreds and 3sgte is outta car in engine stand.

Sept 20 2003
Both engines wire harnesses were shipped to Mike at TopShelfRacing....

Sept 29 2003
Ran into problems with the 3sgte tranny decided to use the 5sfe tranny.

Oct 3 2003
Changed timing belt and all the other belts. Engine was ready to be dropped.

Oct 4 2003
Dropped the god of Toyota 4-cyl engines into the car it was meant to be in.

Oct 6 2003
Towed engine down to a muffler shop to make me a down pipe and make the plumbing for the intercooler.

Oct 8 2003
We are now waiting on TopShelfRacing to finish the harness

Nov 2003
Recieved harness and installed

Dec 2004
car complete and is driving from Texas to Calif

DRIVES LIKE A BAT OUTTA H$LL

This post has been edited by thedevilmaycrie: Oct 27, 2004 - 5:10 PM

[ToYCeLi8]

Damn I dont know if i can into as many details aseveryone else but I'll try.

5/25/03
-I saved up enough money and the wait beigns from Venu-auto.com This was the day they told me my clip was coming the end of JUNE.

6/10/03 (give or take)
-Met Pablo from 6gc (sphinx_racer). Found out that VENUS had sent him the EXACT same info i had. BUt the clip was HIS . I now had to wait for the next clip.

7/1/03
-I sent in my $500 deposit to reserve the next st-185 clip that came into VENUS.

7/12/03
-Clip arrives WOO HOO!!!!

8/5/03
-Drove up to Venus, with plans to tow my clip like sphinx_racer. But my friends truck would NOT have made it all the way. Plus i didn't have a shop that could do the work for me. sphinx and i started calling around for shops around this time. So i UNFORTUNATLY i drove back empty handed, but happy to see my clip.

8/8/03
-sphinx called VENUS to ask about who usually does their work/swaps?? Turns out there is a shop about 3 minutes driving from venus that they have a good reputation with. EVOLUTION. I called them that same day and they said YES they CAN and will do it. They gave me the most reasonable price i got from everyone.

8/18/03
-Drove back up north to VENUS to finish paying off my clip and drop off my car to begin the swap. Then meet up w/ sphinx and catch a ride back w/ him. He was droping off his car just to finish the wiring harness and the 3" down pipe. I showed up around 1pm and i was pretty sure that he wasnt going to be there until at least 4pm. Well to make this day a little shorter for you, he never showed up. I ended up taking the greyhound back at 10:30pm.

8/21/03
-Called EVOLUTION to get a quick update. Turns out the the FMIC they ordered was on back order. It would be at LEAST 7 days to get that in. AND the clutch would take like an extra 3 more days to get there. NOW a 2 week project or so, was going to take at least 3 weeks. Also i get an IM'd by sphinx wife that he had to leave the country for a family members death. Thats why he never showed.

8/22/03
-The waiting, bus rides, borrowing cars, and asking for rides begin....

-People i didnt even think cared about my car were asking, "When is your car gunna be ready?" "How much longer for your car to be ready?" "What the hell are they doing to your car that taking SOOOO long?" This got pretty damn annoying. I was sure that the guys over at EVOLUTION were getting annoyed at me calling them too. A couple of things werent going very well. THe IC actually took close to 3 weeks to get there.

9/11/03
-I finally got to see my baby..... WAIT it s not what you guys think. I didnt pick it up. THey sent me pix. I got SOO damn excited. I knew that it was hopefully only a matter of a few days before i got my baby back.

9/28/03
-Took Greyhound back up to Sacramento @ 11:30pm

9/29/30
-Arrived in Sacramento at 7am. Went to a hotel took a nap and off to EVOLUTION. 12 noon i showed.... and there she was.... ready for me 2 take it. WOOt..... my car was reborn again!! i scared the guy that went w/ me on the test run. Well after that little scare we went back to the shop, i paid him and i was on my way back home.
I unfortunaly got a FLAT on the way back so i didnt get home till really late, like 1am.

WELL now 1 3SGTE swap, 3" downpipe and exhaust, Apexi N1 turbo muffler, blitz BOV, Apexi SAFC, AVRC, and HKS TT later I'm here typing up the post.

David

This post has been edited by ToYCeLi8: Sep 30, 2003 - 2:55 PM

[celica3sgte]

1994 celica st, 2nd gen JDM 3sgte, 3" downpipe, 3" exhaust, spearco fmic, TRD pressure plate, 255 lph walbro fuel pump.

Here's how I did the swap

http://www.geocities.com/zegoat2000/HOMEPAGE.html

[NEVERSTOP]

damn just noticed this post... well here goes


4.5 years ago started looking for a new car. I knew I wanted to do something with a turbo on it stock. After looking around for a while I desided that a 5th gen alltrac was the one with the most potential and one of the least modified turbo cars. I started to really look into the 3sgte and noticed that it could be put into a 6GC......hmmmmmm

April 99:
Started looking for 3sgte's

July 25th 99:
Puchased 94 GT liftback with sport package and TRD suspension upgrade for 8999 plus tax, title and a ungodly high interest rate 374 a month for 3 years.. u do the math

October 99:
Located a st205 R/C from a guy in Canada - Bruno.

November 11th 99:
Sent payment of 4,500 plus shipping for 205 3sgte.

November 14th 99:
Bruno calls and offers me a rearend out of a wrecked Gt4 that he was gonna use for his 5gc alltrac but decided not to. Offer him $800 for it with shipping and he accepts. Sent payment same day.

December 4th or 5th 99:
recieve 3sgte and rearend parts from Bruno. Get inspected and repackaged to wait until spring. Part locating begins.

April 00:
Start 1st teardown on motor.

April 16th 00:
Head is dropped off at local machine shop to be inspected. HKS intake and exhaust camshafts are installed along with HKS Cam gears. Full port and polish and replaning are done to head.

April 26th 00:
Head is picked up and intake manifold is dropped off for a full flush and deburing of runners.

May 3rd 00:
Intake manifold is picked up.

May 13th 00:
Lose drivers license for 60 days. Deside to mess around with the 5sfe and Port and polish the head on that since I need a new head gasket. Figured I could sell motor once swap was done. Also started to Port and polish the throttle body for 205 - did work myself.

May 20thish 00:
Take block to Machine shop to have it heat tanked and tested out. A previous owner of my motor had installed JE pistions and needed to make sure everything on them was good, check came out okay. Had new rings installed.

June 2nd 00:
Picked up block.

June 3rd 00:
Started putting motor back together - spent about 2 weeks. Replaced all gaskets.

July 12 00:
Got DL back

July 26th 00:
Relized about 30 seconds to late that knock sensors are important.. I had damged one when replacing the head and tried to jerry rige it... aparently it didnt work right and when my timing slipped the knock sensor didnt trigger and I made a big mess of my interals... only got to drive it for two weeks - and what sucks is I had just put on my body kit 3 weeks before

End of July 00:
Take out harness and start working on 3sgte harness. Takes about 3 weeks for me to go threw everything 3x's to make sure its right.

Mid August 00:
Pull out 5sfe motor and drop in 3sgte - not hooked up yet.

September 3rd 00:
Finish installing motor. Harness and hoses etc are installed.

September 4th 00:
Rear of car is jacked up and stock rear end is removed along with gastank and exhuast, portion of spare tire well is removed to allow room for GT4 rear end.

September 5th 00:
The big day! Start at 6am and work until about 5pm. Rear end is installed, rearend bolted up for the most part with only 2 weilds needed. Gastank is relocated into trunk and new fuel line is ran. drive shaft and front halfshafts are installed. 6pm - key is turned for 1st time... dosent wanna turn over, but kicks off on 3rd try. Test run... OMG! faster than I could of imangined and handles like a dream, bring it home and park it.

September 6th 00:
drive car to local exhaust shop and have custom exhaust made. Spend rest of day fine tuning and then replace fluids to make sure any dirt or dibre is gone.

Octomber 28th 00:
Put car away for winter

April 01:
Bring car back out Notice that when ever car is above 120 it pulls real bad to the side.... problem there, take it for 1st alignment.

June 01:
after multipul alignments decide that the rearend must be slightly off and is cuzing problems.

July 17th 01:
Lose Drivers license agian. 6 months this time

January 30th 02:
B-day also get license back

March 2nd 02:
Meet G/F - start of my problems LOL

April 7th 02:
drivers license is revoked due to unpaid fines $4k+ OUCH!

April 8th 02:
G/F starts driving my car

Mid summer 02:
After damaging my kit and messing up my subs and interior I take the keys from G/F and garage the car.

Week or two later:
Decide to redo the car Am still trying to finish it up.. yea its been over a year and a half but there are less than 10 things on this car besides nuts and bolts that havent been modified or replaced.. trust me one day we spent about 3 hrs trying to think of at least 10 things.. we came up with 7 - lol.

Heres how it stands right now.

Exterior:
About 90% complete
Still waiting on GT4 hood and trying to locate parts for Targa top conversion.

Interior:
About 70% complete
Still need my seats and to finish my Speaker wall thing... hard to explain but will post photos when done.

Motor:
About 80% complete
Removed AWD set up due to alignment issue discussed earlier. Am currently trying to locate a 5sfe bell housing to use on my 3sge transmission. I have also swapped the head and manifolds for a 185 setup (traded rearend for this) - am trying to do a few things with the T-VIS on the 185 head. Also need a new flywheel, clutch, and piping made for FMIC and BOV. Need to replace a few hoses that where damaged when pulling out 3sgte.

Suspension:
About none complete
Still have the old TRD setup and am currently working on purchasing parts for suspension.

Plans:
To break the 160mph mark next spring/summer. I am also going to try and break into the 11 sec bracket on 1/4mile this year.

Future Plans:
deside which head and manifold setup works better and then tear motor apart agian in 03/04 winter and install JUN stroker kit, Greddy T78 turbo kit and a few other go fast goodies.. 10's here I come

Future future plans:
R34... dead serious on this... nuff said

BTW said I wasnt gonna do the but oh well figure I should at least prove I even have a 3sgte.. so here yea go this was taken a few weeks ago and shows the 3sge trans and 185 top end.. please pardon the dust its been a while


will post more pics when car is completely done.

[qatar11]

Jeeze you guys are awefully detailed....

August 15, 2002 - 3SGTE Celica went up in flames: the peasants mourned.
Late August, 2002 - Took delivery of a ST205, cut in twine: the peasants were intrigued.
October, 2002 - Picked up AT200 from a shady dealer in the 'Natti: the peasanst were optimistic
Parts Ordered - Gasket Kit, Rings, Bearings, lightened flywheel, lightened pulley, spoiler lifter blocks: the peasants are feeling the pinch
Ocotober 20, 2003 - Picked up remachinced engine - sent off parts to get coated before engine gets balanced - the peasants are drinking patty water and eating shoe soles.

Spending lots of time doing wiring harnesses to help pay for all of this stuff - Just finished DevilmayCry's harness.... pics up soon.

[dirty]

no big details...but i gotta 3sgte out of a mr2 back in october 2001....played around with it for 2 years and now its out with cracked pistons...i will re assemble in janurary..and be ready for the spring.

[XXX_Mina]

too much details, didnt read half of these posts...
my original car: 1994 celica hatchback ST.
Current car: 1994 celica hatchback with 1997 mr2 engine and tranny :3rd gen 3sgte running 250hp to the wheels @ 9.8 psi and 295 hp to the wheels @ 18psi.

here is my story

september 2003: broke a rod engine breaking after impressing girls doing 115 mph on the highway, took the car home took thier car instead.
4 days later: car was down for 4 days: while taking car to mechanic to fix it rod pirced my engine , blowing it.

spent a few month convincing my dad to the swap... contemplating wheter to get new car or what.... my dad bought a mustang for my sister that i drove around until my car was done.

october 2003: found a mechanic that has done this swap before.... gave him my car and 2500 deposit... came in everyday to see my car being done....

december 2003: dyno tuned my car, and finally got it back after 5 weeks of waiting. Final BILL: 9k : $6700 parts, 2k labor, 300 dyno tunning.

see my profile for pics.

This post has been edited by XXX_Mina: Dec 18, 2003 - 2:59 AM

[XSTeknique]

Glad to finally be a part of this list. Well, no details for me, but approximately 5 months of pain and suffering for this swap.

1994 Celica ST Auto (previously)

Engine modifications are as follows:
-JDM 2nd Gen 3S-GTE
-JDM GT-Four ECU
-HKS Super Power Flow DD filter
-HKS Type S intercooler
-HKS Super SQV
-Custom exhaust system w/ AC Revolution titanium muffler
-Manual boost controller
-Ground wire kit
-Red Optima battery
-Auto to manual conversion

This post has been edited by XSTeknique: Jun 16, 2004 - 12:54 PM

[Mr7AFE]

my hopes of swapping started nov 02 on my way to import xpression.
7afe gave way doing 137mph on the turnpike(thats what i get for racing).
rod #4 kissed the sky and said no more. i still managed to show the car
but my daily driver was gone.
i hated waiting on parts but the job finally got done thanks to
Hux Racing in Cocoa. maintainence and tuning done at CAMS, Orlando.

7afe/at to a 3sgte/mt
engine
gen 2 mr2 3sgte w/lsd
5sfe tranny axles
gt4 hubs
act 6 puc race clutch
fidanza fly
blitz bov, ecu, tt, boost cotroller, boost gage
trd wires, strut brace and caps
custom 3in turbo back exhaust w/ apex n1
hux racing pulley
spearco fmic w/ innovative turbo piping
hks metal head gasket and irid plugs

.....top speed is still unknown.
according to orlando raceway it runs 14.3 qt mile
with nasty wheelspin and ****ty reaction times.

This post has been edited by Mr7AFE: Jan 14, 2004 - 6:06 PM

[toyotaspeed_90]

real fast reply on my end... seeing how i don't have a celica (but should perk the ST guys up a bit)....

1990 corolla SR5.... originally powered by 4a-fe..... GTS c52 transmission swapped out for the old c50 a good year 1/2 ago....

this past few weeks we swapped the 4a-fe out for a JDM smallport (non t-vis) redtop 4a-ge.....

running a tuned 4a-fe ecu and 4a-fe wiring, with aftarmarket MSD ignition/coil, Sard FPR, I/H/E (intake yes... remember, 4a-fe doesn't have AFM... running the 4a-ge Map sensored)....

around $1600 for everything, including motor, header, full exhaust, flywheel, adjustable FPR, fluids etc.....

redlines at 7700rpm's, 70mph in 2nd gear..... MUCH quicker than the 4a-fe... took 2 1/2 weekends (no work during the week itself).... will dyno this weekend, and possibly race (on or off track) coomer when he gets his celica with silvertop swap back

[Chrobis]

Engine $1000
Shipping $420
Add Ship. $95
Part + Install $3600

Feb 14th: 5S-FE screws up on valentines day of all days... me and my lady's night are screwed over.

Feb 27th: Engine supost to arrive.

Mar 1st: Engine arrives at shop, but with no fork lift it cant be removed from the truck

Mar 2nd: Engine gets put on a truck to Tracy (about 3 hours away) by accident...

Mar 3rd: Engine Arrived, Was charged an additional $95 for a liftgate truck. The engine is missing distibuter coil and map sensor. Also the harness is a little cut but Mike says he can handle it. Then engine also already has the older HKS BOV, and a cone filter AFM adapter.

Mar 4th: Got final estimate of $2,200 just for parts and labor, not including the $400 for wiring. But its a long list of replacement parts, and I have been assured its not a bad price.

Mar 8th: 5S-FE is completly out of the celica. Later that day I pick up both harneses and send them to Mike.

April 2nd: (got bored with the journal) Car is finished with some problems, but I take her out of the shop!

May 7th: Car still has problems... Swapping sucks No one knows what it is.

Jan 14th: After replacing the Igniter, Map sensor, Ignition coil, and trying various things engine still dosnt operate correctly. (it has a fuel cut a 4k RPM, making the car difficult to drive and I cant go over 80mph) So, after all that I drive the car 360 miles to L.A. and drop the car off at EL prototypes. (It is assumed by myself, other people here on 6gc, and by EL that the wiring harness, made by Qatar, is faulty and needs to be redone.)

Jan 23rd: El Prototypes is finished with the car, it sounds so much healthier. I drive the car in working, boosting, crazy fast condition for the first time. Problem was faulty wiring, and acording to ELP several problems in the harness.

This post has been edited by Chrobis: Jan 25, 2005 - 6:10 PM

[abatardi]

Do I have to write a whole diary? :-D

May 12, 2002 - Started Swap
Jan 24, 2004 - Finished Swap

3rd gen 3sgte

- aba

[saynug]

agreed.. too many details in too many post, so ill try to keep it simple.
94 st to st185rc swap w/mr2 turbo lsd tranny, literally 3SGTE HYBRID CELICA
started october '03
finished june '04
did everything my self, basically (TopShelf did my wiring *curse curse* so I had to trace and REDO.. err!)
rough lump sum total... around 6k
caught the most beautiful RC clip for 3k from Jhonnie @ Japan-Direct
the rest is performance/aftermarket/CUSTOM nick nack ****- no need to get into
no labor charges obviously

so about 3 weeks into this little project of mine, after 8 months of pure blood sweat and tears...
this baby ROCKS!
havent raced it that hard much yet, but so far everyone has bowed down to my rear end.

MUCH MUCH MORE TO COME... the way i see it, the motor is pretty much stock with all the potential in the world.

-----
ohh bless the Japanese engineering Toyota's for total road domination
and for creating silly Honda's to feed the hunger of our legendary engines!

[lagos]

2nd gen 3ste swap into 98 gt.

got the clip on june 2nd and started working on it righ away. the whole process took about 2 months of hard work. the car is on 4 wheels right now and now i im the testing phase, checking for leaks, broken parts, etc... and getting ready to take it to an exhaust shop.

its a great feeling to be able to add myself to this list!

Edit, added a pic:


This post has been edited by lagos: Mar 5, 2006 - 3:24 PM

[DG_Performance]

Ordered the st185 clip and it took a week to get here
installed the new fmic while waiting for the clip to arrive
It arrived at my buddies shop and i had to go pick it up
Had to get my other buddy with a flatbed trailer to get it for me
Unloading it into my garage took 2 hours
Started to tear down parts and body panels and things i would not need
After i took all junk off the clip i started to pull the engine.
I took off piece by piece labeling and sorting them so i would not forget where they all went.
Got the engine down to the basics with trans still attached and had to take it out from under the clip.... i had my dad come over ans help me lift the clip while i puled the engine out from under it.
after that i took the harness off and started to clean everything off cause it was very dirty.
Painted and cleaned and checked over everything,,, then reinstalled
eigine was ready to go into the car
i had rewired the 3sgte harness and rewrapped it in new loom to make it look brand new.
installed the harness back into the engine
did a quick engine bay clean up b4 i dropped the 3s in
had one of my friends come over and help me lower the engine into the car
connected all engine mounts and lines and hoses
car was ready to go
installed the new 3s ecu in the celi
plugged all in and was ready to start
first start did not go as planned
had to track down 2 wires and then all was fine
i made my ic piping kit and full 3" exhaust the day after the car started
testing and tuning for the next week and after that it was all good
some little trouble with the turbo and plug wires.
as of now the car runns 100% perfect and i plan on starting to mod it up now!
the whole process (from start to finish) took about a month to complete
i could do a swap now in about a week now that i know what is all involved
DG

This post has been edited by DG_Performance: Aug 10, 2004 - 5:56 PM

[Doge]

2nd Gen 3sgte into a 97 GT

This post has been edited by Doge: Sep 1, 2005 - 9:39 AM