Hi

I am new here and it is a very helpful site.

I have a 1995 sc300 with a manual trans and about 10k miles. I bought the car a few years ago at an insurance sale with the front end smashed and the car totaled. I would like to move the engine and most of the car over to a donor body . Being a 1995 , what other years will work to switch over the engine to.

Thaks for the help

Ivan

 

Well, since you've got a 95, it would be best to swap into something that also has OBDI (92-95 SCs). Also, since you've got the entire car, it doesn't matter if you get an SC300 or SC400. You might have to bang the transmission tunnel on the 92-94 SCs, but don't quote me on that.

 

Thanks for the information, I never thought about using an SC400. I guess I would have to change all the engine wiring if I did use a 400 body? If I bought a 92-95 sc300, would I have to change the wiring for the engine and engine controls? The other thiing I was wondering about was the trans , the donor car that I have has a manual trans, it looks like the replacement body car will have an auto trans, if I decided to leave the auto trans in it, will I be looking at any problem issues as I will be using the engine out of the donor car?

This site is helpful, I just joined and love it

Thanks so much
Ivan

 

Why would you want to use the auto trans?

To be honest, I'm not sure about the wiring. It would make sense that the SC400 uses as different harness, so you would have to swap that out. I'm not sure if the wiring is the same on all 92-95 SCs.

 

the chassis harness on the 92-94 sc300 and sc400 is pretty much identical. the 95 is different since it came from the factory with fog light as well as dash temp display. it is minor issues. 96+ would be a lot different since it is OBD2. i dont think you would legally be able to do it unless you swap the motor and change the ecu but then still the engine harness would be a bit different.

i would suggest buying a 92-95 sc to swap all the stuff over to. doesnt really matter sc300 or sc400.

good luck.

if you decide to stay auto i would want to pick up some of the manual parts from you like the transmission mount and maybe the shifter trim doesnt matter if the boot is ripped. i need the plastic piece itself.

 

I am going to do this swap for my wife, and she would rather have the auto trans. I have had the car in my shop since 1999. The car only has about 10k miles on it. She asked me if I would fix it for her. I just know know alot about them, but you guy's have helped me alot. I think I have a pretty good idea on what to look for now.

So if I bought a 92-95 sc400 or sc300 the eng wiring should work out okay. I do have a complete car, with the exception of the damaged front clip, radiator, etc

What ever parts I dont use, I will let you guys know about for sure.

Thanks again

 

If you look into a SC400 engine, the easiest way is to get the complete engine, tranny, wiring harness, and the ECU for the same year model. You can get the ECU separately, but it should be for that year. 1995 SC400 is still OBDI. It can be done in 1 or 2 days without much trouble.