I've seen 1J's from $600 to $2300. (from JZZ30)

Then there is the newer VVTI 1J from the Chaser that i've seen going for $1200...

1) What have most people paid for their JZZ30 1J? (be sure to post if you got a clip or just the negine, etc.)

2) Do you reccomend the newer single turbo VVTI 1J? I plan on 400hp or less with alot of weight reduction. No internals or crazy turbo setups.

 

As a rule of thumb, when it comes to front clips you get what you pay for. I've heard a lot of horror stories of people hunting for unobtanable parts because they opted to get a cheap motorset instead of a clip.
For 1JZ-GTE's www.jarcoinc.com has a stellar reputation for clips, supra people have also had good luck with www.venus-auto.com and www.driftmotion.com
Being that you're in california Jarco might not be the best bet because of shipping costs from Georgia. I'd recommend going to places in california like Venus and Driftmotion and looking at each clip personally and picking the one you like best. If possible have a Lexus buddy who has done the swap before accompany you when you go looking for clips.

As for the vvti vs non-vvti, parts support is much weaker here for the vvti so in the long haul that might cause headaches. the vvti's primary advantage is its fantastic mid-range torque over the original TT 1JZ, which loves to be revved out.
I'd recommend sticking to the non-vvti because neither one will do 400rwhp on the stock turbos(without nitrous anyway) and turbo kits and supporting mods are harder to find for the vvti.

 

I'm not too worried about parts support in the U.S. I have a good OEM Toyota connection in Japan and I work for several Japanese performance parts companies....

I heard the older 1J turbos are extremely weak ceramic snails only good to 14psi. I had a CT20b ceramic turbo on my GT-Four and that thing spooled like a supercharger. What turbo comes with the VVTI 1J? I thought I read that it uses a CT26, meaning that there would be alot of aftermarket support for it in Japan, turbo-wise. I've done alot of searching but I've yet to come up with HP figures between the 1J and the VVTI 1J. If anyone has the numbers, please post them here

I guess the main reasons I'm considering the VVTI are reliability, newer engine, newer technology, and because I'm more of a suspension and weight reduction fiend....big HP looks good on paper but I like to actually drive my cars.

 

VVTi is a wiring nightmare. Contact VuduDoc if you want to go that route. He already did it but it took a lot of work. I suggest the non and then switch to a single turbo if you want to go that route.

 

hehe, wiring nightmares are my specialty. I heard the VVTI single turbo exhaust manifold is totally different and won't work with non VVTI engine, is that true?

 

I can't say for sure, but I would think that the aftermarket exhaust manifold would be good for every model.

 

All the documentation I can find on the VVTi 1JZ's turbo refers to it as a CT-16. Considering a lot of the changes made to other toyota motors in recent years, the improvements and "newer technolgy" are all geared for emissions and smog purposes, and not strength or reliability with higher power levels; ala VVTi 2JZ-GE.
You have heard correctly about the stock twins on the 1JZ-GTE, and at 14psi on the stock twins the most I've seen someone make is around 340whp.
But again there's a lot more support for the non vvti here with things like aftermarket turbo manifolds, etc. So you would have a large range of choices for turbos, etc. Another negative of the VVTi 1JZ is that it uses rather exotic top feed injectors and its hard to find upgraded replacements. Engine management is another hurdle if you're going to do anything more complicated than a SAFC.
Its a known factor that the non-vvti will run on stock internals all day long and then some at the power levels you desire, and its an available and straightforward upgrade path to get there and the swap is much easier.
IMHO you should go with the non-vvti.

I'd also note that the 3rd gen 3S-GTE's CT26 is indeed a CT26, just an improved one, and that CT-20B is just a misnomer that rooted from a confused typo on the TTE WRC Corolla's spec sheet. the CT-20 is actually a dinky turbo that was used on the 3T-GTE's and the 22R-TE's There's a lot of confusion about that it seems.

 

That is true we tried it at the shop and was different .

 

umm, my stock 1jz twins have been at 1.10bar (like 16-17psi)for almost half a year now.... before that they were at 15psi for about a year. Still no shaftplay in them and they still work fine.....


a bpu 1jz can easily achieve close to 400hp. If you want 400hp or a little more, swap in the jdm 2jz 440cc injectors