Calyko22

Sooooo, I finally gave up on trying to diag my disappearing coolant and burning oil mystery and took it to the dealership and guess what.....sigh...they told me my motor is leaking from every where underneath and possibly internally as well...


But the great thing about lexus is.....swappable motors ...I found a couple of motors that should go into my car. A 92 LS400 and a 92 or 95 SC400. I believe the sc has close to 100k on it and they want 450 for it...good deal? Speak you mind please....

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

the sc400 motor wont work, sump is in the wrong position. plus wiring should be for OBDII, which means you'll have to convert.

i'd get a second opinion before swapping motors.

VIP92Ls400

I would get an imported jdm engine if i were you. There are a few companies that post them on ebay. You can get a low mileage engine ( about 30k ) for less than 1000 shipped to your door. I found a place in new jersey that imports engines, and since i am close i can pick it up myself...... $950 for the engine and transmission!!!! They are so cheap because there is not a high demand for these engines since they rarely fail. Do some research on which ones will fit, but all 90-97 engines are the same, you would just have to use your engine harness and some peices im sure. I would ask to buy one from another LS400/Celsior to be certain everything is the same, sump etc. I am going to buy one soon and do an engine build-up. good luck.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

you need to do some research, 90-94 and 95-97 engines are not exactly the same, plus they're OBDII, so you'd have to convert. also the wiring on 90-92, 93-94, and 95-97 are ALL VERY DIFFERENT. transmission was changed for '95 as well. you need a motor in your year range.

VIP92Ls400

I am not very familiar with all the differences in the 90-97, but i am a mechanic and I have done quite a few engine swaps so I am used to making things work. Since I am going to be getting a jdm engine to build, a had a few questions maybe you could help me with. I have a 92....

1. although the engine is obd 2, cant you just use the harness from the car and run it the same as the previous engine? are there different sensors that my 92 ecu does not have inputs for?

2. The transmission change in 95.... is the bell housing the same? so you should be able to use the 92 trans? I would assume the trans connector/wireing might be different so it prob wouldn't be worth it to try and run a 95-97 trans in a 92, but could you use the 92 ECU (trans ecu)

I will try to get one from the same year just to make it easier, but I was just curious, and maybe it would help out others.

Thanks alot in advance for your help/info PureDrifter.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

if you're a mechanic you should be rather familiar with the differences between OBDI and OBDII. there are quite a few different sensors and the harnesses are completely different. also, the corresponding ECU needs to be used because lexus changed the head design for '95, raising the compression and making the engine an interference engine.

forget about using a 95-97 engine. besides, you want to "build" a motor, so you'd want an early 89-94 motor instead as they have thicker rods.

really, you need to search buddy. you dont seem to know very much about these motors at all. sure, you may have done a couple swaps but that's not really useful when it comes to picking the best version of the 1uz for your needs.

lextreme.com and google will help you out immensely.

VIP92Ls400

I have made entire engine harnesses before so a "different" harness is not reallly a major concern. Thanks for your help, and yeah a may not be very familiar with all the differences in these engines because I am a little new to toyota, but its really all the same. You can use an obd1 ecu to run a obd2 engine, plus obd1 is much easier to tune with, as Im sure you already know. As I said, thanks for the info, but theres no need to come across like that.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

you CAN use it to run the motor, discarding the unused sensors and using all the ones off the OBDI harness/ECU, except then you will run into other problems, such as HAVING to use the earlier ECU, which isnt set up for the same cam profiles and bumped up compression (slightly) of the '95-97 cars.

python

iTrader: (4)

wow! im not even going to get into this one...funny how people put up arguements when its clear they dont know what they are talkin about...good luck on this one P/D

VIP92Ls400

U are completely right when u are talking about a stock engine. With my setup, I will have to run a stand alone anyway so like I said before, it really doesn't matter what engine I run, in my case. It's funny huh. But to help out the original poster, like pd said, stick with the same year to make it easier. Thanks again for all the info, I never claim to no it all.

3UZFTE

I really don't see what the big deal is, I have done the research, and I'll make an attempt to help you. Why can't he use all the 95' or 96' OBD2 motor, and swap in the OBD1 sensors, harness, ecu, and since he is building the motor, he can easily swap over the pan, sump, and oil filter housing.... I mean... c'mon guys, I know he could have searched a little more, but I would love for someone to explain why he couldn't do it...

Now.... here is some info you CAN use. 89-94 1uz, thickest (not forged, just more meat than 95+) rods, distributors, 10.1 comp.... 95-97 1uz, thin rods, distributors, 10.4 comp, interference (if timing belt breaks, valves and pistons make sweet love). Toy/Lex built the 95' 1UZFE to be "obd2 compliant", which means that since the 95' LS4 is OBD1, the 95' SC4 is OBD2, so they both run distributors, non-VVT-i, 10.4 comp, and the other difference between the motors is that an SC4 uses a different wiring harness, fuel rails, headers, transmission, ecu as well since both ecus control the engine and transmission. One other thing I'd like to mention is that OBD1 uses an AFM or air flow meter, and OBD2 utilizes a MAF or mass air flow sensor, they do not swap, you will need to use whatever sensor the ecu calls for. If you do your research, as advised, you will find that USDM went to OBD2 in 96' due to emissions, however JDM didn't start adopting OBD2 until 98', so if you are fortunate enough to find an early 98' or late 97' OBD1 on eBay with low miles, I'd jump on it...

So re-cap... 89'-94' 1UZFE are almost all the same, the differences being oil pans, oil sump pick-ups, oil filter housing, fuel rails, ecus, transmissions, and you may have to switch over thermostat housings, as the coolant resv feeds into the housing, SC4 might not.... 95'-97' run slightly higher compression, but have thinner rods to achieve that, most are OBD2, however some are OBD1, and if you purchase a OBD2, you will need to swap all the sensors back to OBD1, I'd prefer 95' LS4 sensors, but I really don't see why 89'-94' sensors wouldn't work, however you will need the 95' LS4 ecu (I think) because of the elevated compression, however I am sure Pre-95' would work, just not efficiently.
JDM 1UZFE didn't adopt OBD2 until sometime in 98', you could easily find a low mileage motor, and swap all your existing fuel rails, oil pan and sump, ecu, exhaust manifolds, sensors, and other misc parts including your drive belt accessories, air intake, emission stuff (if not deleted), etc, etc. So, If it were me, I would find out before I bought the parts, what you really want to achieve, because if you start to shy away from the above stated, your going to open up pandora's box.

I am sorry some of this is a little unclear, I am not the best at communicating, however I am working on it. It just bugs me that others would rather post comments that have no relevance rather than helping out, how does that help besides raising your post count? There is a reason why we are on a forum, because we all have asked or needed help with something that is beyond our grasp. Maybe the research that has been done before is inconclusive... There is a good saying, there always seems to be more horse's asses than there are horses... Again, sorry I couldn't be even more help, but I hope this at least stops the nay-sayers, and puts you on a easier path.... Just trying to help.

VIP92Ls400

Thank god! Someone to the rescue!!!! People act like things "can't" be done and I'm an idiot for asking. Thank u for all the useful info, I gretly appreciate it. I would have figured it out but it's nice to have someone that wants to help. And since I have only done a "couple" swaps I don't know much. Hahaha thanks again for all the info, it will help me a lot. If u don't want to help someone, don't post anything.