So I'm contemplating selling my turbo civic for something with more power and more luxury.
I'd like a Supra but I simply cant afford one and would rather have the luxury and lesser insurance of a Lexus SC300....

Here's what I'd be looking to do ... I'd want to know if its possible and if I'm correct in what I think I know...

SC300s come with the 2JZ-GE nonturbo Supra motor.... you can find a 5 speed but its rare. The idea would be to bolt the 2JZ-GTE bottom end to the GE head and turbocharge it with a large single turbo.... and run a Supra Automatic tranny with a nice sized stall converter.... to make 600ish whp.

Will that work? or would I need to swap the entire 2JZ-GTE over and then go from there?
Also whats the deal with the auto trannys? What will hold? What won't? I'd like a manual but I think the 6 speed will be too expensive, if thats the case, I'm a-ok with an auto tranny with a nice stall converter that'll handle the power I plan to make.

Thanks!

 

The GTE short block is a common swap, I'm running it right now in my 93 GS300..currently non-turbo. Several members have run on the stock GE motor, nothing but a thicker metal headgasket to lower compression and resist detonation better. These are usually reliable to mid 400s on the stock GE motor, but a few have made much more. If you are wanting 600ish rwhp then the GTE shortblock i the way to go. The stock Supra AT is good to the 500s usually so you should do a little work there. I'm going to be converting my GS300 to manual tranny so I have a spare Aristo (2jzgte) tranny for cheap if you want to get started.

 

The bottom ends on the two motors are more or less identical. The gte bottom end has slightly lower compression pistons and oil squriters for the block. The gte motor as a whole also has lower compression [10.x to 8.5] for the obvious reasons. You don't "need" the gte bottom end to make power. The fastest na-t swap Supra is running 9.47's on the stock bottom end.. It's up to you whether you want to go na>turbo on the GE motor, or swap in the whole GTE motor. You can make good power on stock twins.. it's really up to you. IMO all the parts it takes to make a real good na-t swap are rather expensive. You would have to get the lexus auto tranny built, buy the turbo kit, fuel, and of course fuel management. Do some research and find out which project suits your power needs and budget of course. We will always be here to help you along the way..

Chris

 

Alright ...
So I can just swap in a 2JZ-GTE bottom end and then a supra auto tranny (or even a 6 speed if I want) will bolt right in correct?

Then I just find either a stock twin setup from a turbo supra to run for a while ... or do the single right then? Correct? Will manifolds and everything thats made for a 2JZ-GTE bolt right up to the 2JZ-GE head?


Thanks


Also ... how much is your average shortblock? and auto tranny? 6 speed?

 

Nope, the exhaust flanges are different on the GE and GTE. I wish it was that simple.

On a side note, I sold my old GSR swapped, turboed Civic to get my 92 5spd SC almost a year ago..you won't regret it.

 

autotranny swap may run into a snag... do you know if the computer for the 2jz-ge auto tranny will control the gte tranny?

And no, the heads on the GE and GTE are completely different so far as bolt patterns and some with spacings, etc... plenty of manifolds out there for both now though

shortblocks used run around $1000 or so I'd imagine... new with a warranty from toyota is around $1500-$2000 depending on how well you get hooked up (there's a toyota dealer sponsor on this forum actually, i'd start there)
auto tranny? not sure... not a whole lot, pretty common... in fact i think the SC400 auto tranny is very similar if not the same (cant remember been such a long time)

6-speed trannies by themselves run around $1500-$2500 used and depending on different things
thats not including the gte flywheel, gte clutch, different driveshaft (and might as well get a LSD too), not including the new slave cylinder, etc...
and if you buy an original auto, you need all the auto to manual conversion stuff... like a clutch pedal box, different brackets iirc, you need to cut the tranny tunnel (and bang it out depending on the year)...
its a lot of work as you can see when starting from ground zero (starting with an auto i mean)

EDIT: there's a used shortblock for the 2jz-gte on ebay right now in good shape, $1000

EDIT x2 : There's also a V160 swap "kit" available for $3k on ebay as well

 

I think you should just do the motor swap.. how much power are you looking to make?

 

Alright
Thanks for the info so far....
Here's then what I think would be best...

I'm thinking an automatic for sure.... So lets just stay with those.

The options then are ....
1 - GTE bottom end and GE head with SC300 auto...
2 - GTE engine in total (head and block) with sc300 auto...
3 - GTE engine and Supra auto tranny.... ( might need the entire tranny ECU right?)

Power? 550-650 on a single turbo setup....

So whats the options for me to do? Whats best for the power I plan on making? And what are the pros and cons?

 

You make it sound so easy, you will spend around or over $10,000 just for this alone.

IMO I would buy a complete 2JZ-GTE swap with the auto tranny, wiring harness and all (you can find them for around $3000-4000) and buy the swap guide that a member sells that takes you through the prosses step by step with in depth wiring diagrams. The supra TT motor has been well known to hold much more power that your goals are set which gives you room to grow if needed (boost is adictive). Also, the stock supra tranny doesnt hold past 400-500WHP, so that will need to be rebuilt as well. Just start with a BPU supra motor ( know to make 450 WHP) and built from there is my suggestion.

 

Your options depend on your budget.

 

If it was me I'd do the whole motor/gearbox swap to the 2JZGTE with a V160 (would be fun) or with the Supra TT auto gearbox (do they run an A340?)... alternatively you could rock a 1JZGTE motor with R154 manual gearbox (JDM Soarer) or with a built A340E auto tranny (ie. shift kit, stronger internals and TC).

 

V160 and A340 I assume are the codes for the manual and auto trannies respectively correct?


Well ... It'll be an over time thing because I'll have another car to drive so ... money isnt a HUGE issue ... but ... I don't wanna be 10 grand deep in parts. You know?

 

JDM SupraTT 2jz-gte on ebay right now for $2400 buy it now... comes with auto tranny and full uncut harness....

USDM 2jzs are way more... but JDM is more affordable (sounds funny saying that)...

1jz is best bang for the buck at the moment it seems... the 2jz swap is not so easy

 

You can't beat how easy it is to make power on the stock twins [2jz] .. Bean - what are you refering to that is harder about the 2jz swap over the 1jz?

 

ummmm

you put in a 1jz and plug in the harness and you're done... only involves extending some wires

for a 2jz, you've got a lot more work ahead...
the wiring is more complicated dropping it into an SC300 since the car never came with it, etc... Chassis/dash harnesses are completely different than the Supra counterpart, etc

Its kind of elementary, how much do you know about the turbocharging options/aspects of SC300s?

Why do you think there's a manual out there being sold for $150+ that gives you detailed info for swapping the 2jz-gte over into an SC300? There doesnt need to be one for the 1jz,because its one of the easiest swaps in existence.

Plus
1jz + tranny + harness + ECU = $1000-$1200 if you know the right places
usdm 2jz-gte + V160 + harness + ECU = $5000+

Not hard to do the math... the extra $3500 being dropped in the 2jz would buy you a single kit, upgraded fuel, and a few other goodies for the 1jz and would make much more power