tonylunchbox19

Okay I am really interested in doing a motor swap on my box. Has anyone done the swap with the celica gts motor? If so please give me info.

draxcaliber

possible yes, economical, no.

tonylunchbox19

Im not worried about economical. Its not a daily. Its my project car. Do you know if anyone or who has done this?

TheTransporter

With the exception of a V8 and a V6 motorswap in progress nobody has had the kahonas to do it yet. There have been numerous threads on this including one I've started once trying to answer this question. I've searched many threads on both this site and others, but still have not found any that have been done.

usdmbB

There was an ax with a swap a few years ago

tonylunchbox19

I am really down to try this but i need to be sure its possible. I dont want to buy all the parts and it not work. I have seen the xb with the small block chevy motor but i am not trying to go the extreme. I want to drop the celica gts motor and do some force inductions. I am not planin it to take it to the trach or anything i just want it to be different and for show.

frogbox

with enough vasaline, a big shoe horn and a hammer anything is possible.
(V8 Vegas , Chevy Chevettes , Opal Cadets , Suzuki w/ Buick 231 V6, Pontiac w/ Jag 12, 1950 Plymouth w/440 6 pack, just to name a few)

With enough money you can get anything to work/fit.

So possible , yes.
probable , no.

you could be a first , IIRC. Good Luck

vettereddie

Can you define possible? Give us some bounds, either maximum you're willing to spend on this or max. modification required. Just with a quick armchair design, I'd say you'd need:

- custom motor mounts
- chopped frame rail with modified front tube suspension
- custom drive shafts
- GTS motor AND trans.
- GTS wire harness
- GTS ECU
- custom exhaust system
- Possibly firewall modification depending on clearance, which also means movin brake, AC and power steering hard lines.

Rough cost would be $10k - $40k depending on how much you can do on your own and how clean you want the install to be. You may lose airbags and all functionality on the stock console (no speedometer, tach, etc), though it may be possible to run the GTS ECU for engine management and the stock xB for instrumentation, depending on sensors required and compatibility.

Honestly, for show points, it's not remotely worth the $$. You can do a lot more custom body, paint, audio / video, and suspension work for the same money and will get you MUCH higer award placement. Sadly the engine only counts for about %20 at most shows.

Turbo the xB with the Greddy unit, get it tuned and powdercoated, definately add the intercooler, and call it done. Should only set you back $3k - $3,500 for parts, tune and paint, and will score just as well if the engine bay is clean.

tonylunchbox19

I have a good amount of money to spend on my box right now. Oneof my cousins works at an automotive shop that has motors and trannys and everything i will need so getting the parts aint no problem. I am planin to turn it into a stick as well. I should have done that in the first place. I just put a new motor in it about 5 months agoand a greddy supercharger. Im just one of the people that trys to push the envelope. Motor not might not count but its just something i want done.

vettereddie

Just my opinion, but on a car like this, there is a quick diminishing return on the power side. On an all-aluminum 1.5L there's only so much you can do, and trust me, nothing else will fit easily. I've done multiple forced induction and now an engine build, and at the end of it I'll be pretty happy with my 150 WHP. If you start going more crazy, it ceases to be a fun car and becomes a constant troubleshooting battle. Parts would never be the problem, it's the labor and custom fabrication work that's the catch. Unless you weld and have a CNC aluminum milling machine, I would not attempt this. Also, how much free labor is your cousin willing to put in. it's not his project, and I've seen a few people already that their "guy" bailed and they were left with an undriveable half-finished car.

Since you're not racing, leave the engine alone with the supercharger and find other creative, unique and fun things to do with it. A short list of suggestions:

- Blended widebody, people have done bolt on, but molded looks 10x better
- Suicide rear doors, I haven't seen a successful one yet but if done right it's sick.
- Shave everything (badges, hatch handle, doors, mirrors, etc.)
- Crazy unique paint. There's a lot of flat metal on this car, it makes a great canvas
- Hardshell interior. All the panels are removeable, fiberglass the headline, sand and paint the pillars, color match all the trim, fabric inserts, custom color seating, it will keep you busy for a while.

Honestly, on my xB after the new motor goes in (pulled the old one this weekend), I'm going to bag it, finish a speaker box, and call it done. The only thing I'd re-sink as much time into would be something classic worth restoring, like a 68 Mustang. Wouldn't have a problem shelling out for a race motor, custom drive axles, stand alone ECU, and custom suspension for that.

daneisthegreatest

iTrader: (1)

I think I saw someone put the 2AZ in their box a few years back, but it took over a year to do and I dont think it ever drove right again.

I wish there was a "easy" swap we could do, the honda guys have it easy, swap their motor to something more powerful and beastly in a weekend and under $1000 but not us.

I hate how slow the box is, but I love the box, its a give take relationship, I am planning on taking the box off the road soon, I just bought a 94 Supra with a T78-33D single turbo upgrade to get my speed jollys off, got a smudge under 600 whp and paid less for the Supra than you would to swap the 1.8 in your box. look at it that way and youll start to think twice lol

tonylunchbox19

I never said my cuz will be working on my carIi said its not a problem getting parts. And dropping more money into my car isnt a problem. I work hard and make good money to go forward with this project. I just didnt want to waist my time and just wanted to make sure this was possible.

tonylunchbox19

Nice Supras are so sick. I have a 2007 BMW 328i sedan as a daily right now and planin on getting another car in a few months. I know it sounds dumb to put so much time and money into a project like this but its just one of things that bugs me.

VIP_CAMO

ill have to agree unless you are going to do the work and plan on fixing it alot i would not even do a swap its just a headache waiting to happen.Its def not like a honda as stated were you can swap a motor and use all the existing parts from the old engine.I said just build your motor there are very few built xa/xb motors on here.

divisii

It's never truly easy, from my experience. Honda parts are getting harder to track down... the newer Hondas, and most cars in general, are not designed for swaps.

To make power I'd do no more than internals (maybe customize the motor's displacement), bolt-ons, & forced inductions. IMO Listen to what others say here.

vettereddie

For $20 mil it's possible to go into space, I'm just saying there's better ways of spending it. Glad you have a 3-series daily driver and the funds to play on a project car, but that's not the central issue. The real question is, is it worth doing a motor swap? If you ask around on here, the overwhelming response will be no. The xB is an awesome, unique, stylishly ugly and versitle econobox, but fast it is not and never will be. If you want a fast project car, you'll need to start with one.

In the end, it's you're money, time and effort, and if it's what's going to make you happy, then pull the trigger and go for it. Just know the risks and plan everthing out first. Even then it's about a 50/50 of getting a fully driveable car at the end and most likely no residual value. That's why I was suggesting something like a muscle car, Supra, or whatever your fancy where through restoring and modding the vehicle you'll actually add value, so if you get bored later or want a new challenge you can sell / trade it. My personal favorite would be an original Z with a small-block Chevy swap, but finding one without body rust is quite a chore.

tonylunchbox19

Well decided to leave the box alone. Instead I ended up picking up a VW mk1 GTI as my new project.

daneisthegreatest

iTrader: (1)

ohhhh I like MK1 GTI's, I almost bought one when I was in highschool but my dad didnt want me having a boosted car (look at me now hahas) have fun with the GTI, they are fun little cars

tonylunchbox19

Thanks man! My dad wanted this car when he was younger and he loves the idea of me having one. It is going to be a father son project.

econobox

I know you aren't doing it, but if I were to go crazy on an engine-modded xB, I'd do a mid/rear engine. Plenty of room for a V8 back there. Heck, I'd even keep the front engine and make it a dual engined car. Drive with the front only and get 25 in the city, then fire up the 2nd and do 0-60 in five seconds with AWD.