Some Engine swap questions.

[Roboman125]

I have a 2001 LE corolla and I would like to know as the mileage is adding up, what is the best performance engine to replace the old stock one with on this model?

[fishexpo101]

Depends on what sort of performance you are looking for, what your budget and time constraints are, and if this will be "legal" to be registered in your area.

Best performance as in reliability and good fuel economy or best performance as in overall engine power? What other mods are you planning to do with this project - upgrade the suspension, brakes, chassis improvements?

Three primary choices are - could rebuild/modify the old engine, you could swap in another engine from a different generation, could swap in another engine from a different model.

Primary driving force is budget. If you want to spend under a couple thousand dollars, be hard pressed to do a performance engine swap unless you got a killer deal on a clean engine. Even so, depending on the engine, the amount of fabrication required could easily eat up hundreds of dollars to start. If you are planning to dump in up to $10K-$15K, that would cover just about all reasonable swaps you could get in there. If you do the work yourself, you can shave off quite a bit in labor costs - but that depends on your comfort level, experience with swaps.

[Roboman125]

Thanks, I was thinking performance in engine power since the parents passed this car to me. Ill keep it legal and wont be doing any illegal racing, but as my original plan would be to make this car look better (body kits, maybe a spoiler, different lights, etc.) Id like the engine to be able to back it up with power.

[fishexpo101]

Unless the engine is having some sort of catastrophic issue - ie, excessive oil consumption, loss of compression, blown head gasket, etc. - an engine swap may not be the best use of funds, especially if you have other things planned for it.

Another possibility is to make maximum use of the available engine power. This generation of Corolla takes very well to suspension and brake mods, upgraded tire and wheel packages. Even modest changes (better brake pad material, lowering springs, on stock struts) can make a marked improvement in handling for the car.

If you pump in a little more money - upgrade the pads to high performance street compounds, upgrade OEM flex brake lines to Stainless Steel braided lines, flush out brake fluid with performance fluid - even running the stock sized rotors, OEM sliding calipers, and untouched rear drums can have a huge impact in braking performance.

Decent quality performance springs - like Eibach, H&R, others coupled with a performance strut will greatly improved cornering and handling. The car is already pretty light, a little improvement in the suspension will make the car track like it was on rails.

Both of those upgrades will be augmented with proper tires and wheels. You don't have to go to extreme wheel sizes, unless you like the look. But upgrading to performance tires and lightweight wheels - can really make suspension and brake mods shine.

Pumping up engine power will be the most costly project with this sort of car. Options are forced induction (turbocharging and supercharging), nitrous injection, build up a N/A beast, or swap with a more powerful motor. Forced induction, N/A builds, and nitrous would be good options if the base engine was in good shape to start with. No sense throwing that away if you can build up on it. How much power can be unlocked will depend on your budget. Most forced induction setups will run in the $3K-$5K+ depending on power goals, where the parts are sourced, choice of EMS, tuning. Nitrous is good option for those that need power on demand. Costs will be under $1000 for most systems, some start in the low hundreds for a modest bump in power. The 1ZZ-FE has been shown to handle a 50HP shot without issue, some have been pushing a 75HP shot with no problems. Build up the engine can be one of the most costly options - encompassing things like raising engine compression, reworking the induction / exhaust for max flow, bore and stroking of the engine, custom cams, dry-sump setups, etc. Engine swaps - those are pretty much self-explanatory.

In your quest for more power, the part you have to worry about the most is the transaxle. That has been a known weak spot on this family of cars. Even with the TRD S/C offered on the early 9th gen Corollas - that modest 66HP boost was a huge strain on the transaxle. Automatics will suffered greatly elevated heat levels, manuals will see a lot of pressure on the gears / syncros if you shift sloppily. Much can be mitigated with auxiliary cooling and frequent fluid changes, but you have to keep an eye on them. Swapping to an e-series transaxle is an option, but quite costly. A brand new one will set you back about $5K easily. Used ones are not that much cheaper.

[Roboman125]

Yeah, Ill probably build off the old engine like you said. Thanks for all this info btw. With the info you gave, what do you think the HP, least to max, can be on this engine?

[fishexpo101]

In stock form on the 8th gen Corolla/Prism:

1998-1999 1ZZ-FE - 120HP/122TQ without VVT-i

2000-2002 1ZZ-FE - 125HP/125TQ with VVT-i


With typical tuned bolt-ons - including header and cat-back exhausts and aftermarket intake - possibly a 10-15HP net gain (7-12WHP) - so up to 140HP. Add cams and engine management with stock bottom end, might see a total 20-25HP net gain - so up to 150HP. Lot of depends on the parts, who made them, how much additional tuning was required, who tuned them parts, condition of the engine.

Don't read too much into the numbers, as a particular mod might not make stellar numbers, but might increase throttle response or fatten the power curve somewhere else. The 1ZZ-FE is already pretty decent at the lower end, anything the enhances higher RPM breathing will help. The key is matching the right part to the car. Unfortunately, each situation is different, each car is a little different. Some engines just run hotter than others, even with the tight QC with modern engines.

On the upper end - depends on what was done to the engine to reinforce it. On stock bottom ends - I've seen turbocharged applications run to the 180-220 HP range with little to no issue. Build it up to take boost - 250-350 has been seen on 1ZZ-FE engines. Some even hit bigger numbers - good examples are Monkeywrench Racing and their 508WHP! 1ZZ-FE powered MR2 project car, though on a fully built 1ZZ-FE.

http://www.monkeywrenchracing.com/ex...php?pages_id=6

In all cases, the key was the right parts with the right tune. Need quality parts to get to the power goals. Without the right tune with the appropriate engine management, you will grenade the engine - regardless of the quality of the parts, just a matter of time.

[Roboman125]

You've been a huge help man, thanks. One last question, does anyone know of any good or usually legit websites for some of these products?

[work1]

Those swaps are all slow, 3SGTE with a few bolts on and I have 300hp in my Corolla.