Engine Swap For A 95 7a-fe Celica

[6th gen axis]

I own a 1995 toyota celica with a 7a-fe engine. As you probably know that engine would be better off in a golf cart. I have decided to do an engine swap. The problem is I dont know what engine would be the best choice? I would not like to spend much more than $1000 on the engine,ecu,tranny,etc. what is a good choice for an engine that will give me more hoarsys for the least amount of material costs.(labor I already have taken care of.) Maybe 5s-fe, or 3sge? which engines are a straight drop? Will I need a new clutch?

[Kelvyn]

How common is the 3S-GE engine where you live? Here in the UK its quite common as its used in Celicas and MR2's. Here, in standard trim that engine gives us 158 hp in its early revisions or 174 in its later ones. There are very few 5S-FE engines here but as far as i know it gives only around 130 hp but has much more torque. The most popular engine swap here seems to be to fit the 3S-GTE engine either from the Celica Altrac (GT4) or the MR2 GT Turbo. This engine has 240 hp and has lots of tuning potential. To fit this to the Celica you need the transmission and driveshafts from the MR2 Turbo.

[6th gen axis]

the 3sge is common as well in Ohio. Other than the tranny and drive shaft is the 3sgte a straight drop? How much do you think it will cost? Will I need a new cluth /brakes? How reliable is the 3sgte engine? how many miles in your opinion would it

be unreliabe to purchase a 3sgte. Is a rebuilt engine a good or bad idea?

[Kelvyn]

Over here in England you can get a very good 3S-GTE for about £1500, so you would be looking at $1500 i guess.(Things are very expensive here). The most common Celica engine in the UK is the 3S-GE which is why the most common conversion is to 3S-GTE (its basically the same motor with some uprated internals). Wether you need a new clutch or not would depend on the mileage of the donor engine and how it had been used but it would be a good idea to fit a new friction disc at least. That way you would know it was ok and anyway with the motor already out of a car its only a few minutes work. If they are regularly serviced then you should get big mileages from these engines before they need major work. You could set up a poll on this site to see who has the biggest miles in their turbo car to get some idea. As for getting a re-build well if its done properly then its almost as good as a new engine and in some cases better .