[Pancho_Vanilla]

I've been wanting to ask these questions for a while while now. I wanted to ask everyone, coupe, sedan, FX16 and pretty much anyone who has, has had or plans to have a 4A series engine in their car.

-If you swapped your engine, which one did you go for? Why? Are you satisfied with the performance? Any upgrades engine-wise? How much WHP?

-If you haven't swapped, are you satisfied with your current 4A? If not, are you planning to build it or swap in another engine? Why?

Personally I'm an not satisfied with my 4AFE, sure it's great on gas but that's about it. If I get the chance I would like to build a 4AGZE with an SC14 pulling around 180-210WHP. I've seen N/A B18's on some Honda's pulling that much WHP and I know it's possible with a boosted engine. Anyways let's hear about you guys!

 

[SR5_GT-s]

if youre going to go for a 4A engine, go for a G-head, the F-head is the gas saver version of this engine, the 4AF has a 15degree valve angle, and the G-head has a 45degree valve angle. not to mention aluminum pistons and hardend crank shaft stock. i have one in my GTS and i love it, the difference is like night and day, especially with a webber carburator

 

[rdyzz]

are you going for drag? the only engine i've ever had the most fun with was a 3sgte from my old mr2. other than that i've owned a 20v bt in an ae92. it was a very nicely balanced car, sounded beautiful. it was probabally around a gsr wtih bolt ons.

 

[Evo_lucian]

Went from smallport 4age to 4agze and now to 4agte. Looking back at it probably shoulda just saved up and gone 3sgte in the 1st place

 

[Flashmn]

the 4AF has a 15degree valve angle

22.3degrees, not 15

 

[Pancho_Vanilla]

are you going for drag?

Not really, I just want a very well balanced car, a car that handles great and picks up great too. I live about 20 min from Willow Springs Raceway and I'd really like to be able to race my car there every once in a while.

 

[PhatRoyale]

Went from smallport 4age to 4agze and now to 4agte. Looking back at it probably shoulda just saved up and gone 3sgte in the 1st place

Good tip!

 

[4doorGTS]

I currently own bigport, smallport, silvertop and the 4agte. If you want anywhere over 160whp I would go some type of forced induction as the cost to build NA just gets crazy. The 3s swap while powerful has alot of fab work involved and if you can do all the work yourself would be the way to go because you can reach your power levels on a near stock st185 or sw20 3sgte to keep it reliable and easy for replacement parts. Your only other choice is the gze with sc or turbo. I currently love the 4agte I built in the sedan, spools quick, feels alot faster than with the sc, and sounds great spooling up, also it will bolt in with just wiring to deal with and possibly fmic if you go that route and keep the sc.

 

[canadianae92]

well i had a smallport 4ag and it was ok i guess, really not much power though
ive been building up a 7age for a little more pick up and go, got 13.5 compression, using 4age oilpump/wp, smallport head that's ported and got a 5 angle valve job, crower 288/298 cams hks valve springs and one piece lifters, also with dual dcoe 40s and msd ignition

motor should be going in reasonably soon, waiting for a new weber manifold

but i have to say, no matter how good it feels it probably would have been MUCH cheaper to do any sort of forced induction or a 4agze swap, what i spent on my head could have bought me a 4agze shipped to me and payed for all the customs charges and tax

 

[Pancho_Vanilla]

well i had a smallport 4ag and it was ok i guess, really not much power though
ive been building up a 7age for a little more pick up and go, got 13.5 compression, using 4age oilpump/wp, smallport head that's ported and got a 5 angle valve job, crower 288/298 cams hks valve springs and one piece lifters, also with dual dcoe 40s and msd ignition

motor should be going in reasonably soon, waiting for a new weber manifold

but i have to say, no matter how good it feels it probably would have been MUCH cheaper to do any sort of forced induction or a 4agze swap, what i spent on my head could have bought me a 4agze shipped to me and payed for all the customs charges and tax

Wow can't wait to see that running! About how much $ have you spent on it? Thats sounds expensive as hell...

If you want anywhere over 160whp I would go some type of forced induction as the cost to build NA just gets crazy. The 3s swap while powerful has alot of fab work involved and if you can do all the work yourself would be the way to go because you can reach your power levels on a near stock st185 or sw20 3sgte to keep it reliable and easy for replacement parts.

Those were my power levels because I figured those were the max that the 4A series could handle somewhat reliably, but if I were to go for a GTE I'd probably push it to 210-240whp. Do you know of anyone who has actually done the swap though? I haven't seen any GTE swaps into an AE92 on TN so I'd appreciate any info on the swap. BTW your sedan is coming along clean, and if I had the money right now I'd start tearing down my Corolla and start building it from the bottom up just like you . Anyways for now I'll have to stick with my 4AFE and my crappy seats.


One other thing, the 5SFE and the 3SGTE have the same mounting points right? Because we bought a 1990 Celica GT-S about a week ago, and it has a severe rod knock. We already have another 5SFE ready to go in, and I was wondering if the engines have the same mounting points, I could try to fit the old motor 5SFE in my Corolla to see somewhat what I'll need to get the 3SGTE in there.

 

[DennyTsao]

Do any friends know this scan tool for Toyota?

Very interested in this tool "pq-tls diagnostic tool"
Do any friends use it for your car?
I would like to know if it is suitable for my personal use or it works for repair shops only.

Thanks for share

 

[Ghostyman]

One other thing, the 5SFE and the 3SGTE have the same mounting points right? Because we bought a 1990 Celica GT-S about a week ago, and it has a severe rod knock. We already have another 5SFE ready to go in, and I was wondering if the engines have the same mounting points, I could try to fit the old motor 5SFE in my Corolla to see somewhat what I'll need to get the 3SGTE in there.

3SGTE and 5SFE use the same mounting points. The biggest hassles with the 3SGTE are the axles and then dealing with oil pickup angle. Neither are that big of a deal and there's not much fab work compared to most swaps.

3SGTE is the only swap I'd consider for performance. Best bang for the buck by far.

BTW, the 5S block is an upgrade over the 3S block -- both in displacement (2.2L vs 2.0L) and strength. If you're going to rebuild a 3SGTE before putting it in, consider using the 5S block with a 3SGTE head.

 

[Pancho_Vanilla]

3SGTE and 5SFE use the same mounting points. The biggest hassles with the 3SGTE are the axles and then dealing with oil pickup angle. Neither are that big of a deal and there's not much fab work compared to most swaps.

3SGTE is the only swap I'd consider for performance. Best bang for the buck by far.

BTW, the 5S block is an upgrade over the 3S block -- both in displacement (2.2L vs 2.0L) and strength. If you're going to rebuild a 3SGTE before putting it in, consider using the 5S block with a 3SGTE head.

That's great to hear! So I'll probably end up salvaging the 5S block then.

Then again about the GTE swap, wouldn't that make the front end heavier since its a bigger engine? I really don't think that swap would be good for track so I'm still gonna think about it.

How about the 20 valve, I haven't seen much love for it recently.

 

[Ghostyman]

That's great to hear! So I'll probably end up salvaging the 5S block then.

Then again about the GTE swap, wouldn't that make the front end heavier since its a bigger engine? I really don't think that swap would be good for track so I'm still gonna think about it.

It's heavier but the Corolla will really benefit from the extra power. You're adding 100+ pounds but also close to 100hp. More than a fair trade. It would have to be an incredibly short and tight course for the 4AGE to beat the 3SGTE.

I have a 3SGTE in my MR2 and it is far and away the most fun out of any Toyota 4 banger I've driven.

And not to be a dumb kid, but there's nothing like the kick of a turbo pushing you back in the seat.

Where in Cali are you?

 

[PhatRoyale]

3SGTE is the only swap I'd consider for performance. Best bang for the buck by far.

+1

It's the ultimate swap for a Corolla as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Pancho_Vanilla]

It's heavier but the Corolla will really benefit from the extra power. You're adding 100+ pounds but also close to 100hp. More than a fair trade. It would have to be an incredibly short and tight course for the 4AGE to beat the 3SGTE.

I have a 3SGTE in my MR2 and it is far and away the most fun out of any Toyota 4 banger I've driven.

And not to be a dumb kid, but there's nothing like the kick of a turbo pushing you back in the seat.

Where in Cali are you?

Sounds like a fair performance trade, and yeah the kick of a turbo feels great, except the lag doesn't... any way building it and tuning it properly would help get rid of that issue.

I would also have to use a 5SFE transmission right? Anybody have any clues about the axles I would have to use? The wiring could be done by Phoenix Tuning right?

I live in the Antelope Valley BTW about 40 minutes from San Fernando. The heat has been horrible this past week, and my Corolla's A/C doesn't work right, guess I'll have to deal with it a while longer.

 

[PhatRoyale]

Get in touch with these guys:

http://www.speed-source.net/products/GT28RS.htm

It's one of the fastest spooling turbos out there. I've read numerous reviews indicating almost no lag.

 

[Pancho_Vanilla]

Get in touch with these guys:

http://www.speed-source.net/products/GT28RS.htm

It's one of the fastest spooling turbos out there. I've read numerous reviews indicating almost no lag.

Nearly crapped myself after I saw the price, but it looks like a worthwhile upgrade seeing how much I hate turbo lag. Bookmarked save that page for later just in case I decide to go for the swap.

 

[Ghostyman]

Sounds like a fair performance trade, and yeah the kick of a turbo feels great, except the lag doesn't... any way building it and tuning it properly would help get rid of that issue.

I would also have to use a 5SFE transmission right? Anybody have any clues about the axles I would have to use? The wiring could be done by Phoenix Tuning right?

I live in the Antelope Valley BTW about 40 minutes from San Fernando. The heat has been horrible this past week, and my Corolla's A/C doesn't work right, guess I'll have to deal with it a while longer.

You'd want to use the turbo from a MR2 Turbo -- you need to switch the linkage form the front to the back but it's not difficult. I forget which axles ended up working but if you get serious about the swap let me know and I'll find out for you.

Turbo lag is minimal if you don't stick on a stupid-big snail. The stock CT26 turbo spools fully by 3000 RPM or so. I've got a slightly upgraded version (CT27 from ATS Racing) that pulls hard to redline and gives me over 4000 RPM of fun power band -- it's not hard to stay above 3k RPMs if you want to drive fast.

You can easily be pushing over 250whp with everything on the motor stock except for a boost controller and exhaust. And that's on the cheapest option, the gen2 USDM 3SGTE... the gen3s are significantly better. Good luck approaching those numbers with any of the other options.


I hear you on the heat. This weekend I drove from Vegas to Socal and then up the 5 to the Bay Area... beats all the fog we've been having at least.