Hypothetical: would things be different if the SC had come with a 1JZ-GTE in the US?
05-20-13, 09:44 AM
#32
1JZ-GTE Soarers, especially in automatic, came with Toyota's TRAC or ETCS system. I don't know if they improved it for the 1996 revision but they definitely had traction control just like the V8 models, our SC's (excl. 5-speeds), and Supra TT's.
05-21-13, 02:55 AM
#34
A 5-speed 2JZ-GE vs auto 1UZ really blurs the performance advantage line.
I agree that generally they don't like to overlap motors with similar power characteristics.
That being said, the 1JZ in stock form is such a responsive motor it really puts the truck-based 1UZ to shame in just about every regard. I get the idea that v8's should be smoother than a comparable 6 cyl but in this case the 1UZ is just crude compared to the short stroke inline 6 with telepathic ceramic twins. I think it was a simple matter of lifespan remaining in the 1JZ. The Soarer was already on the market as a RHD car for a year before the 2JZ so why change such a fresh model? For the US market, the SC did not appear until almost a year later. If you're going to retool a car for a foreign LHD market with emission constraints, why drop in the already aging yet 'new to the US market' 1JZ when a 1UZ has been here for years in another car and laid out all the framework.
Doesn't hurt that american marketing mentality would favor a 4.0L v8 as an 'upgrade' over a 3L inline 6. Selling a 3.0L base model and a 2.5L higher end model just wouldn't mesh well in the post 80's car market where this newcomer Lexus was trying to establish itself as a premium alternative to GMs and Fords offerings with 8 bores.
05-21-13, 09:45 PM
#35
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If it came with a 1JZ, that model would be somewhere between the current value of a Supra TT and an NA. I like to think that the V8's and na 2J's would command Supra NA prices, but who knows.
05-21-13, 10:01 PM
#36
Lexus did it themselves with the 2JZ-GE and 1UZ side by side
A 5-speed 2JZ-GE vs auto 1UZ really blurs the performance advantage line.
I agree that generally they don't like to overlap motors with similar power characteristics.
That being said, the 1JZ in stock form is such a responsive motor it really puts the truck-based 1UZ to shame in just about every regard. I get the idea that v8's should be smoother than a comparable 6 cyl but in this case the 1UZ is just crude compared to the short stroke inline 6 with telepathic ceramic twins. I think it was a simple matter of lifespan remaining in the 1JZ. The Soarer was already on the market as a RHD car for a year before the 2JZ so why change such a fresh model? For the US market, the SC did not appear until almost a year later. If you're going to retool a car for a foreign LHD market with emission constraints, why drop in the already aging yet 'new to the US market' 1JZ when a 1UZ has been here for years in another car and laid out all the framework.
Doesn't hurt that american marketing mentality would favor a 4.0L v8 as an 'upgrade' over a 3L inline 6. Selling a 3.0L base model and a 2.5L higher end model just wouldn't mesh well in the post 80's car market where this newcomer Lexus was trying to establish itself as a premium alternative to GMs and Fords offerings with 8 bores.
A 5-speed 2JZ-GE vs auto 1UZ really blurs the performance advantage line.
I agree that generally they don't like to overlap motors with similar power characteristics.
That being said, the 1JZ in stock form is such a responsive motor it really puts the truck-based 1UZ to shame in just about every regard. I get the idea that v8's should be smoother than a comparable 6 cyl but in this case the 1UZ is just crude compared to the short stroke inline 6 with telepathic ceramic twins. I think it was a simple matter of lifespan remaining in the 1JZ. The Soarer was already on the market as a RHD car for a year before the 2JZ so why change such a fresh model? For the US market, the SC did not appear until almost a year later. If you're going to retool a car for a foreign LHD market with emission constraints, why drop in the already aging yet 'new to the US market' 1JZ when a 1UZ has been here for years in another car and laid out all the framework.
Doesn't hurt that american marketing mentality would favor a 4.0L v8 as an 'upgrade' over a 3L inline 6. Selling a 3.0L base model and a 2.5L higher end model just wouldn't mesh well in the post 80's car market where this newcomer Lexus was trying to establish itself as a premium alternative to GMs and Fords offerings with 8 bores.
Interesting thing is that in the Japanese market, Soarers had only two engine options for the first couple of years: 2.5L turbo inline-six with 280hp or a 4.0L 250hp V8. Manual option only on the turbo of course. Around 1995 the V8 was discontinued and they changed the options to: 3.0L non-turbo inline-six 225hp and the same 280hp turbo six.
I find it fascinating that upon introduction, the '91 Soarers really had no underpowered base model... just a choice of engines. I think the V8 was discontinued because of the high tax rate on engines at 4.0L or more over there.
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