4a-ge in 93-97 Corolla

[undrpreshapnoi]

Hi, im thinking of getting a 1993-97 Corolla 5-Speed to learn how to drive manual.

Once im used to the manual transmission can I swap in a 4a-ge blacktop or silvertop motor? if so, how hard will the swap be and how much will it cost?

[thespud]

Short answer: yes, but...

Long answer: Yes you can, but it is not as easy as it looks or sounds. Alot of people will say that its just a straight swap from the FE to the GE, but there are some differences. The major ones i ran into include the fact that the axles on the Jap C5x gearbox are bigger and have more splines than the US (or aussie in my case) built C5x. This means that you have to change the entire front suspension to super-strut which means one more bolt hole in the sub-frame. You will also have to get bigger rims as they have oversized rotors and calipers. If you stick with the single piston calipers that are on there atm, you will have to go to 14", and if you decide to go with the double piston calipers on a front clip you will have to get 15". This also means the brake lines are in different spots...

The other problem i encountered is the fact that the exaust pipe is in a different location and a different size. This means you will need to spend a bit of extra money on getting a custom 2.25" cat-back system.

And finally, the other major hitch was that the wiring looms dont match. So the dash will have to be changed and re-configured to suit the wiring loom. The only bit of good news about that is that the rear wires (to fuel-pump, lights etc) were the same colours, so it is easy to match up...

So, yes you can do it, and the engine mounts are in the same spot, but there are other snags along the way...

[punter]

Originally Posted by thespud

The major ones i ran into include the fact that the axles on the Jap C5x gearbox are bigger and have more splines than the US (or aussie in my case) built C5x.

Really?? are you sure they wern't axels from supercharged car?
Every C series box I've ever seen have had the same/interchangable axels.

[thespud]

Absolutely positive. CV's are in different spots and axles are bigger... Otherwise i would have kept the macPherson strut on the front...

[punter]

The 4age ones I've seen are definatly bigger and they have the equal length axles, but I've never seen them with different splines.

These are the ones off my superstrut ae101 levin

The axles are different but will interchange with my 4afe ones. (or any of the C series boxes I've seen)

[lightpole]

if the FE strut and stuff are different. what if we change the strut and rotor and brake that came from a 16v 4age? then will it fit with the 20v?

[Dr Tweak]

The 20v uses the same axle setup as any Corolla. The GTZ with the 4AGZE (E58 transmission) is different, and the C160 (blacktop 6-speed) *might* be different, but other than that, the others are the same. I've done lots of these swaps and I've always used the stock Corolla axles, or the 20v axles in the Corolla hubs with no problem.

And I can make the wiring plug and play for you.

-Doc

[lightpole]

Oh i wish Dr Tweak lives in Australia, so i can let him do my car for me.

are there anyone else did this swap in AU?

[diver9000]

Go look up Bill Sherwood and see if he can help you. He lives in australia.

[lightpole]

i dont think he's got time to do my swap or wiring

[diver9000]

Originally Posted by diver9000

Go look up Bill Sherwood and see if he can help you. He lives in australia.

I said "help" not do it for you. I've found that you will get lots of help if you ask for assistance, instead of asking for someone else to do it for you. People love to help and give advice, but dont want to feel obligated to have to do it all by themselves. Do you have tools and a place to work on your car, but just dont know enough about it or what?

[diver9000]

Ask "thespud" he lives in western australia.

[lightpole]

yes i have enough tool to do the swaping. but i dont think i can solve the problem "thespud" has mentioned. because this involves changing strut and brake, and i'm not sure which model strut and brake, and it will cost another grand for those.

[Burger_AE102]

G'day
I've been thinking about doing a similar thing to undrpreshapnoi, with putting a 20V into a AE102. I was wonding if I can just straight swap the engine, and keep the standart gearbox from the 7AFE thats currently in there? That way I don't have to worry about the axles on the gearbox being too big.

Thanks heaps
Eric

[AE92_GTS88]

that sounds like a pretty cool swap, you should get your self an ae92 or ae82 instead.