just curious... who had the swap?

Guys listen to the ones that actually performed the swap. We know what we are talking about cause we have been there and done that. Everybody else that says its costs 3K is talking out of their ass.

If buying just the motor and slapping it in your engine bay was that easy you would see a lot more 3SGTE converted Celica’s then you do today. The fact of the matter is that swapping in a 3SGTE into a FWD Celica is relatively new to the general public. Few people have actually accomplished this feat and it is more complicated that it looks. There is a lot of trial and error involved with this swap and no clear cut way to an easy install. Many are reluctant to give away their secret as to how they performed such a swap but with the advent of the internet more and more information is slowly getting out on how to perform such a task.
I remember when I first started to do my swap (3 yrs ago) there was no information and a lot of it I had to figure out on my own. I went out and bought every Toyota handbook I could get my hands on. I read countless posts and articles from knowledgeable and reliable sources. I went to reference libraries and took out manufacturer repair books. I visited Toyota Canada Inc. (TCI) and spent several weekends in their training classes looking over books only Toyota would have. I spoke to countless technicians and overseas race teams to leech whatever info they would leak to me.

You definitely need to be mechanically inclined with at least a fundamental understanding of auto mechanics to pull it off. This is no job for the weekend oil changer or tire rotator with limited tools and experience. It isn’t a clear cut path with only mechanical parts to bolt up, there is an electrical process to it as well and is just as time consuming and mentally frustrating.
But to get back to the topic purchasing the motor is only about a third of what you need in order to complete the swap, the other third is misc. parts you will need to accumulate to complete it and the final third is obviously the labour if you cant perform this yourself.

I remember 2 years ago when I typed 3SGTE into eBay search engine I would be lucky to get 5 results...now you type in 3SGTE and you get two pages of shit and half of that is guys selling nothing but motors.

First of all depending on the motor you can expect to pay anywhere from $1000-$4500,
the later being a front clip from a ST205/ST215. Also keep in mind that when you purchase that motor it wont come with everything you need, there will be missing items that you are going to have to source. If you’re lucky it’ll come with an uncut wiring harness and ecu. Did I say lucky you got that wiring harness uncut?...well think again cause your going to have to cut it up anyway…why cause if it came from Japan their wiring harness goes in through the firewall on the other side (driver side US) so its to short and needs to be extended about 16”. Also you’ll be lucky if they include the fuse box.
A lot of the major sensors and resistor packs are bolted to the firewall and strut towers and shit…so unless you got a clip don’t expect to get these in your purchase either.
Ever see what an imported motor looks like when they pull it out of a shipping container?
Don’t be surprised if you have a few broken/bent brackets, covers or dented oil pan that you’ll need to replace.
Think that puny little exhaust you got on your car now is going to be big enough for your turbo conversion…think again. Most of the time the primary cat is dented to shit in the shipping process so your going to have to dish out for a DP and center section. Even if the cat is ok most of the time it’s missing the center section so that will be another part you’ll have to purchase.
Intake is different so expect to have to buy that too…
Even if you plan on running the motor off the factory ecu with no piggy backs cause your trying to save money…your still going to have to invest in monitoring gauges to protect that investment.
Intercooler – didn’t get the clip with the hood scoop well be prepared to cut a hole in your hood or go FMIC and the later is going to cost you.
So you got that turbo but know one knows its there…so you want a BOV to let everyone know what’s what…$$$.
MBC or EBC, SAFC or VPC, ITC, TT, BCD or FCD, RR FPR, BOV or BBV, FMIC, CAI, CBE , WI, NOS etc, etc are all abbreviations for and spell the same thing
M-O-N-E-Y.

And I haven’t even touched on the tranny yet! Think that tranny you got in your car is going to handle the power of your new motor? Well regardless of what others say you might as well just dish out the cash now because you’re going to have to eventually. Oh one more thing…YOU CANT USE THE ALLTRAC TRANNY IN FWD MODE! Its not as simple as unbolting the transfer case, and you can’t just put it in 2WD using the traction selector on the tranny. If you want it done right with no trouble in 3-6 months then do it right the first time because it’s going to cost you more in the long run. Don’t believe me fine I don’t care I’ll take your money either way, but don’t expect any sympathy or ‘hook-ups’ if you come back saying I should have listened to you the first time. Cause I will make you learn the hard way and hit you where it counts…in your wallet. Even if you get the MR2 tranny with your motor you still need AllTrac tranny brackets, shifter cables, gear selector assembly and drive train parts to make it work.

Then there’s the labour…$1000 for an install, sure if you want your ride in the shop every week getting repairs cause of a shitty install. Fact of the matter is not to many shops can even perform this swap let alone ever hearing about the 3SGTE in the first place. I don’t care how many Honda’s they did motor swaps on Toyota’s are not Lego. Do your research into the shop before you decide on weather you want them handling your install or not. Speak to the mechanics, ask for referrals from past customers. Shit chances are they’ll come in hear asking us how to do it…I wouldn’t be surprised if some haven’t already. Everybody and their mother these days claims to be a mechanic.

Don’t get me wrong I’m not trying to discourage anyone hear I’m just trying to disprove some of the misinformation that floats around on some of these boards. Like I said take it from those who know best and who have actually performed the swap, they’ll tell you the same thing just don’t be surprised if it all sounds familiar.

The number one analogy you need to remember is you get what you pay for. So depending on how involved you want your swap to be, expect to pay if you wanna play.