97/98 sr 4afe corolla-to 4age motor swap

[stocious]

ok im hoping this works as its gona happen anyway but i like what ive seen in these forums and im reaching out to ye guys now. i am the proud owner of a 97/98 hatchback sr corolla with a stock 1600 4afe fitted, im a qualified diesel mechanic- well h.g.v mechanic so petrol motors arn't my strong point but not a major issue as an engine is and engine and a spades a spade right guys lol.. but anyway this car of mine, the stock motor is great and i mean great 100% but... its gota come out because will be keeping this car for some time and the 4afe is just not a long term tunable engine.. slave cams are no fun and well apart for compression increases and or such things it limited and i dont wana go there in the first place. so i wana go 4age with her but i need to know from people who have actually done this lol.. not from people who think in theory's as im a very practical person.. lol .. so i was thinking a 4age from an ae 86. now mind if i go this direction it will be a full rebuilt motor by myself, including hi comp component,cams,headwork ect ect that list could go on and on but ye get the drift.. on the other hand there are the 20 valve variants wich is not out of the picture just seem a little to compicated for me at the moment, would i be wrong in thinking this? i mean i dont want to take on a huge headache after with wiring and ancillaries ect.. i presuming that wich ever moror i choose from the A- series will drop in without complication's. and i like the simplicity of the ae 86's motor but im looking for answers so if ye know guys please let me know.. so the sum it up again lol. i have a very nice hatchback corrola with 65k genuine miles on it-trd supensions- shes mint lol. i want to take the pokey 1600 4afe out and pute a tunable 4age in. keeping in mind that tuning the motor and the enjoyment of the process being a big factor. wich motor is best in yere opinions and what are the main concerns or issues that i need to adress before such a transplant is started. all in all guys im gona do it lol i just wana heads up before hand. the answer i really want from ye is that any A-series motor will drop right in and paired with the correct engine harness and aditional loom parts. being in the know of the mechanics trade lol.. things like this seem three breasted lady's lol. wishfull thinking but not likely lol. btw i live in ireland, the car was an english import so its a uk spec corolla if it makes a differance. thank you

[Kiwi-Corolla]

Welcome to the forums!

This topic has been extensively covered in the past. Have a search through this particular forum using the search function and a whole lot of info is bound to show up. There is also a great tutorial written by a member on these forums in regards to the 4A-GE 20v swap. You can view it here:

AE101/102 20V Blacktop swap info

I recommend going for the 20v over the 16v since the 16v has around 130hp whereas the 20v has 160-165hp (depending if it's the silvertop or blacktop). The only reason I'd ever put a 16v version in my Corolla is if it was a 4A-GZE. In terms of the 20v dropping in, it has been done many times in the past and it utilises the same engine mounts etc, so the swap should be fairly straight forward.

Both engines have great potential however, but in my opinion the 20v is a much more practical choice

[stocious]

Cheers for the reply man and thats sound advice thank you much!! i was hoping that the 20 valve would be the answer i got lol!!.. but they heres the new question ok as i dont know much about these 20v's.. wich one lol. black/silver? top, year? im presuming the one out of the ae 111 levin is the kiddy for the job. seen as the same car kinda and year ect.. is it possible that the wirring harnesses could be very similar.. so a 20v looms and ecu is what im looking for.. now before this motor goes in it will have a thinner head-gasket fitted maybe valve work.. but defininetly cams im sure of this.. so i will most likly need an after market ecu as im hoping to get quite agressive ones.. now as for gearboxes.. the 5speed in my rolla is perfect not a crunch or grating to be heard.. would it pair up? been thinking bout it and if it did, my rolla should be considerable lighe that a levin so is a 6 speed nessacary.. but hey listen guys if i can ill throw the lot at it because as those of ye who know lol!! there is no time like when you got a motor out to work on it.. so waste no chances get me.. as far as internals on the 20v motor i dont think i would open in just remove the head.. unless i find wad of cash for pistons and bearings lol. but im extactic with the response, knowing that its just not a notion anymore lol.. thank you!

[Kiwi-Corolla]

Originally Posted by stocious

Cheers for the reply man and thats sound advice thank you much!! i was hoping that the 20 valve would be the answer i got lol!!.. but they heres the new question ok as i dont know much about these 20v's.. wich one lol. black/silver? top, year? im presuming the one out of the ae 111 levin is the kiddy for the job. seen as the same car kinda and year ect.. is it possible that the wirring harnesses could be very similar.. so a 20v looms and ecu is what im looking for.. now before this motor goes in it will have a thinner head-gasket fitted maybe valve work.. but defininetly cams im sure of this.. so i will most likly need an after market ecu as im hoping to get quite agressive ones.. now as for gearboxes.. the 5speed in my rolla is perfect not a crunch or grating to be heard.. would it pair up? been thinking bout it and if it did, my rolla should be considerable lighe that a levin so is a 6 speed nessacary.. but hey listen guys if i can ill throw the lot at it because as those of ye who know lol!! there is no time like when you got a motor out to work on it.. so waste no chances get me.. as far as internals on the 20v motor i dont think i would open in just remove the head.. unless i find wad of cash for pistons and bearings lol. but im extactic with the response, knowing that its just not a notion anymore lol.. thank you!

No problem . I personally prefer the blacktop since it provides more power than the silvertop, plus has larger cams and throttle bodies. It also has a lighter flywheel. It basically comes down to what you can afford, but the blacktop is a newer, more powerful engine. Your factory loom only requires a few plugs to be changed for it to become compatible with the 4A-GE.

As for the gearbox, you can use your current one if it's C52. If it's a C50 then I'd swap it since it's not as strong. You can check which one you have on the manufacturers plate in the engine bay (located on the firewall). Or just upgrade to a C56 5-speed instead. The C60 6-speed isn't necessary in my opinion.