Engine Swap Help. - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

JDMdynamics · 02-21-2006, 12:18 PM

Hello everyone. I really really need help with an engine swap decision. A while back a was racing one night and I blew a rod bearing. Now I have to change the whole block of my engine. The car still runs but I don't want to mess it up any worse than it is. Mechanic shops estimated $2,800 - $3,000 in rebuilt and repairs as well as labor work all together. It's a lot of money and savings. NOW, here is where the questions pops in my head.

I have a 95 Celica ST with the original 1.8L 7A-FE engine in it. It outputs about 112hp stock. My celica has 192hp dyno'd as of right now. I have really awesome low end torque and was planning a custom turbo kit project for it soon (before the accident) to jump it an extra 100+ hp. I love the way it is right now but I have to either repair it for a lot of money or swap it for half the cost to repair it.

I was thinking about swapping in the 2.2L 5S-FE engine which is for the GT version of my car. Outputs about 135hp stock I think. Then later I could swap the head with the 3sgte head. The engine will run me $700 and an extra $500 - $1,000 for labor since it should perfect fit? I don't know. But anways...

BUT then I came across the 2.0L 3S-GE engine (NOT BEAMS cuz they too hard to find and a lot of money). Outputs 160hp and the engine is only $400 with low mileage. I would really love to have the 3rd Gen 3S-GTE but engine alone is $3,000 - $4,000. But I was wondering I could always turbo the 3S-GE to make it 3S-GTE. Or would it be 3S-GET? O_o? And would this engine fit perfect for my car and would take a lot of work just to make it run right? It's the 2nd Gen 3S-GE engine. I'm trying to find a 3rd Gen because the power outputs higher.

I NEED HELP! What should I go with? Overall I am looking for power with a good low-mid range money usage. I'm just a minimum wage guy earning 2g a month. Please help guys. I really need my car to be running again. I hate taking the bus to work because it's a 2 hour bus ride everyday.

3SGTE@daSpeedof · 02-21-2006, 10:03 PM

you should either throw another stock 7a-fe in there to get it back running, or swap in a 2nd gen 3sgte a front clip will run you about 1500 to 2500. Well worth the money. And its turbo'd already. Don't bother getting a 3sge to turbo it. Unless your looking at a 3rd gen 3sge which is gonna run you a lot more dollars. Keep in mind any motor you get weather it be a 3sgte, or 3sge you will need custom mounts other hardware.

JDMdynamics · 02-22-2006, 01:46 AM

I guess I'll have to find a 3rd Gen 3S-GE. Otherwise I'll have to just go with the rebuilt engine block on my 7A-FE for better performance and power. But with that amount, I could buy a 3rd Gen 3S-GTE... But what about the 5S-FE? I read from other posts that it's a dissapointment and I don't know why.

Pineapple · 02-22-2006, 09:34 AM

Too much work for you to throw in the 5S. You'll need same amount of work and parts as the 3S-GTE swap.
The 5S is not bad just not build for performance so not much aftermarket support. With current technology even a snail got 130HP.
You have the A-Series engine which is in Corolla also. Check out Corolla forum for info on 4A-GE, 4A-GZE. Its less work to swap in the A-Series in your car but might cost about the same as a 3S-GTE swap. A complete goes from $3000-$5000.