just bought a '91 mr2 n/a

[itbeme]

my neighbor has had his mr2 since the beginning and is the only and original owner. I finally asked if he'd ever sell the car and said sure he would. its a 91 n/a and was asking $500 for it and i gladly accepted. The only downfall to it was that it has 280k miles on it. but i thought i could buy it swap a slightly more powerful engine (sw20 turbo, 3sgte....etc) and would have a great car for not that much money, but to my surprise it runs extremely smooth and its obvious he took very good care of it. should i wait until it gives out and then do the swap or would that cause more problems to other things?
and i also wanted to know how much would the labor or a swap like these to cost? im sure not going to do it myself and don't want to get ripped off.

[moogleX]

read the thread above lol called engine swap. i kinda outlines a 3s swap there. there is really no harm in using it as is. will help you get used to driving a mid engined vehicle, and will be economical as well. I drove mine for two years on the N/A before doing a swap, and mine was torn to ____ and neglected by its uhh 70 previous owners lol carfax does not even know how many its had. somewhere around nine though according to dmv records. just make sure its in good ruinning order as with any vehicle and when you have saved the cash for a swap do one. keep in mind it may take longer than expected so arrange for other transportation means. have a credit card handy for unexpected things. id say maybe 5k for a complete swap and extra's and about 15-20 hours. less if you go to a specific shop for mr2's or somethin. mostly cuz of the extra things needed besides just hookin up the engine.
a way to save some money is to save up and buy everything at once. there are some things you may want to do, or is easier to do while the engine is out. this will save money in the long run, but increase the swap time and initial cost. can be done cheaper/faster but id say thats a safe estimate. good luck with your 2 and welcome to the community!

[MR2Jedi]

Welcome to TN !
If it ain't broke, don't fix it...lol The 5sfe is an economy engine that very dependable and built to last. Especially it it was well taken care of. I have 272k miles on my Tacoma 4x4 and it still runs great!I bought it new.
Unless you're just looking for more power,I would just run it like it is. But 3sgte is the way to go for a swapped engine.

[itbeme]

Originally Posted by moogleX

read the thread above lol called engine swap. i kinda outlines a 3s swap there. there is really no harm in using it as is. will help you get used to driving a mid engined vehicle, and will be economical as well. I drove mine for two years on the N/A before doing a swap, and mine was torn to ____ and neglected by its uhh 70 previous owners lol carfax does not even know how many its had. somewhere around nine though according to dmv records. just make sure its in good ruinning order as with any vehicle and when you have saved the cash for a swap do one. keep in mind it may take longer than expected so arrange for other transportation means. have a credit card handy for unexpected things. id say maybe 5k for a complete swap and extra's and about 15-20 hours. less if you go to a specific shop for mr2's or somethin. mostly cuz of the extra things needed besides just hookin up the engine.
a way to save some money is to save up and buy everything at once. there are some things you may want to do, or is easier to do while the engine is out. this will save money in the long run, but increase the swap time and initial cost. can be done cheaper/faster but id say thats a safe estimate. good luck with your 2 and welcome to the community!

thanks man for the inf. ill do that