SinisterSC

Ok guys, my girlfreind loves my car, so she had her parents get her a '94 SC30 with an Auto"magic" trans. But theres one problem, she picked one out that had a blown motor! So now I'm in a moral battle. Do I find her a 2JZ-GE or should I just throw in a GTE. I can get both motor cheap. But I need some help, how much did some of you GTE swapped guys spend on doing the job. I have no problem doin the swap for her cause she's comin from driving her older brothers S/C'd M3. So I know she can handle the power. What do you guys think? GE or GTE? And how much if I do the work myself? Just wanna know how she'll be spending on the car.

asnatlas

iTrader: (2)

Damn, that would be nice if I could find a woman with a SC And if she liked to cook and clean I would be in heaven LOL

GL on your girls car, Other then the engine how is the rest of it ?
Shawn

SinisterSC

The body is in ok condition. It has it's dings and dents for a 94, but nothin I can't get out. I'll probably do a repaint anyway. And she wants some AC wheels. I think she should start small and not put me to shame.

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

The car?

Sounds like you have a project ahead of you man. good luck.

bmsport

Your so bad one, lol.

Option 1: GTE swap
Supra TT Clip + Rear subframe assembly = 6000
Rebuilding and freshening up the engine = 1000
Custom fabrication work (drivetrain,exhaust) = 600
Other crap = 1700

So a very vague estimate DOING EVERYTHING YOURSELF would be about $9000-$10000.

Option 2: GE turbo kit
engine refresh (head work, new thicker head gasket, gasket set) = 900
turbo kit = 5000- 7000
clutch and other = 1000

So for a turbo kit its like $7000 - $9000, plus than your still stuck with that semi-fragile 130mph transmission, a non-direct ignition system, no oil underpiston oil squirters, etc.

Don't get me wrong, a turbo'd GE is an AWSOME motor, not like a turbo'd NA eclipse or civic or something as futile as that. The GE oil pan even has a bung for a turbo oil return, so in fact the engine was designed with turbos in mind.

My choice:
I went with #1 because a GTE motor is the most well designed motor in the world imho. What i mean by well designed is that it is over engineered with ridiculous potential in mind. Plus I have plans for more power installing a t78 and big fuel system. Not to mention the sheer pimpness of having a GTE under your hood. The GTE is an improved design over the GE, but not far off. So if you ask me, I’d swing the GTE if your gonna do anything.

sc31jzgte

Ok $10k is total crap. $10k if you want to up the boost put in the 6 speed trans put in the supra rear diff. All unnecessary to make it work fine. I did a 1jzgte swap, used the stock 5 speed (no modification to the drive train needed), stock ECU, stock exhaust, stock headers, custom motor mounts ($500), and a front mounted intercooler (unneeded $850). You can easily use the stock tranny so long as its in good condition, and pretty much the stock everything else for the 2jzgte and you will be just fine. The reason the vast majority of people send so much is A) there having someone else do it and B) they want to up the boost so they buy other unnecessary things IE fuel sensors ECU's Intercoolers Headers Exhaust etc. Trust me i did my for 3k and its a beautiful daily driver. I know it can be done for less because I bought things that weren’t needed also. However do bank on the little things especially when you import an engine (if you are planning to import it, which you dont need to do with the 2jzgte). AC compressor hoses seals, gaskets, it can all add up fast. However i still beleive you can do it right and make it very close to a stock supraTT for under $4k, depending on how much you spend on the engine.

my 2c

1jz-

TurboB6

Ahh I love the GE vrs GTE swap threads.

IMO i serious doubt a "reliable" GTE swap can be done for 4K or under. If this were the case you'd see alot more GTE SC's driving around.

bmsport

Ok, lemme throw another one in there.

Option 3: Halfass GTE swap

2jz-gte engine set = $3000 if your lucky
Forget the new oil pump, water pump, gaskets, etc
Clutch = $500
TT Intercooler setup = $300
Misc crap that didnt come with your engine set = $600++

So your halfass 2J swap is now at $4500ish. Although you CAN do the swap for under $5k, i wouldnt recommend starting out with a budget of $5k. You'd just be setting yourself up for disappointment. And as for the 1JZ, i'm sure that would be much less considering a mkiii clip only runs about $2k, but your heading off into uncharted territory. For parts and info. But to tell you the truth,if i did another one, i might try the 1jz swap for a challenge.

bmsport

sc31jzgte, i'd like some more info on your 1JZ swap if possible. I have always wondered about it even though i have the 2JZ-GTE. Thanx.

SinisterSC

SO I can get a 1JZ and do that swap. Hmmmm, I think that wouldbe nice for her. I have no problem with that. Time for me to do some reasearch on the 1JZ motor and how easy it is to swap one in. And by the way, why would I get an MKIII front clip. Why not just get a JZZ30 front clip with a new 1JZ.

bmsport

Well, if you want an auto soarer from clip thats no problem but it may be a little harder to get a 5sp soarer clip. If you don' have time for GTE, i'd just get the turbo kit, i know a guy here in Florida that will custom fabricate a turbo kit to your specifications. $6k includes everything, ems, turbo, manifold, headgasket, clutch, etc. He can do it in a month too.

sc31jzgte

SinisterSC-
I wouldn’t recommend doing a 1jz if you want it to be a daily driver. It is extremely difficult to find parts for the engine. I did it because I wanted my sc3 to be a true Soarer. However waiting a couple weeks for parts from Japan isn’t always the most fun.

bmsport-
What would you like to know, mine isn’t technically a TT anymore i removed one of the turbos, its pretty common in supraTT owners. A lot easier to work with and I’ve had a fewer problems.

TurboB6-

Supra TT's are reliable, all your doing is taking a SupraTT engine and putting it into the Lexus version of the same car. I could see how it could get really expensive if you wanted to up the boost and replace every little thing like most do, and i would agree that if you upped the boost and wanted to push 450+ whp then yes you do need things like an ECU, oil pump, headers, exhaust, fuel, map, the list goes on. It really can get quite pricy. I think the key to a good swap for under 4k is to do it yourself and use stock components. I’ve been using the stock sc3 5 speed and stock diff and i have had not problems. New clutch and it was good to go.

5speed300

Where? Specifically a USspec 2jz-gte

bmsport

sc31jzgte, i mean the whole swap deal, which ecu used, harness wiring, transmission, etc. I had a friend try and swap a 1J into his SC but met nothing but wiring problems. He eventually gave up ad threw the GE back in.

5speed300, try usedengines.com (Japan Direct), talk with Johnnie, tell him Matt from FL recommended you, he'll find you one for a decent price like mine. Good luck.

TurboB6

You seem to have misunderstood me. I already have this swap done and running so explaining what it is to me is a waste of time. I said a reliable swap can not be done for 4K or less (planning a budget of this will end up halfassed and incomplete imo). I got lucky and bought a 2jzgte longblock complete USDM with 13K miles. Some people have gotten lucky here and have gotten good deals but I believe your spreading bad information to the lexus community in general when you quote that kind of price. 1jzgte engines are not very expensive here in the US on the other hand if you find a low mileage 2jzgte (longblock complete) they can run 6K and up. Your not very up to speed for 450rwhp though. You can easily get that kinda of rwhp bpu. I dunno where your getting ecu changes, header, etc.. Your talking about 700rwhp then.