Ramblerman

I grew up in the muscle era & have teethed on many of the original American muscle cars & still own a couple of AMC Javelins. I have since gone European with a BMW 325I, I know why the Iraqis use them for car bombs, still have it tho. Bought a 96 SC400 last year after doing some research on them. the V8 was originaly built for racing But never used for that purpose. They de-tuned it so rich people wouldn't kill themselves. A few bolt on's and a programable chip brings them back quite easily. The fact that they have true wishbone independent suspension helps keep that power on the road where you want it. THE Lexus version of the inline six produced more horse power than the Supra in stock configuration. but in the end it all comes down to what your willing to strap yourself into & drive at speed in. I like my Lexus alot but still dealing with the sticker shock on cost of replacement parts.

kewlstory

But does the sc400 have good aftermarket support like the 2jz? Does it respond we to bolt ons? does it have the low down torque of the American pony cars? Does iteven pull like a v8 should? If all answers are yes then I may have found a prefect compromise. I haven't driven any sc yet but I loved driving mustangs and a ta.

Albatross

iTrader: (1)

i change my vote. you should buy a third gen camaro. make sure it has t tops.

LEXXIUM

iTrader: (1)

98-2000 sc v8 stock produces 290hp, if that's not enough a supercharger kit as well as headers and nice safc tune will put you at respectable street hp.
You need wide body kit? Spoilers side skirts intake exhaust, pistons,rings, cams? 5 speed manual conversion, turbo conversion, 2jzgte conversion, it's all been done and people smoking everything out there that goes straight line and sideways
It's a lexus man we all love our cars and wouldn't settle for anything out there that doesn't equate, especially how rare they are becoming to find in a good condition...

kewlstory

Gotta be an iroc too rite? But seriously, id love a turbo 2jz lexus. It's the closest I'll ever get to a supra :O

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

kewlstory, Bullet Cars in Australia and a few US companies make upgrades for the 1UZ-FE engine. The 98-2000 version does indeed make 290hp but it has very thin rods (to reduce rotating mass I assume). The older and less powerful non-VVT 1UZ's have beefier rods, ironically. It's less common to see but for the 1UZ aftermarket there are (in no particular order): head and intake porting (obviously), hotter aftermarket cams, beefier aftermarket rods and pistons, a "4.7L" stroker conversion by means of a Toyota Tundra 3UZ-FE crankshaft, superchargers usually in the form of Eaton M90's or similar and a small but healthy selection of aftermarket ECU's for tuning and fuel control. Fuel systems are also available.

And then there are V160/161 6-speed manual adapter plates, R154 5-speed manual adapter plates and W58 5-speed manual adapter plates. No 1UZ V8 SC or JDM V8 Soarer ever came with a manual transmission so you have to convert using SC300 5-speed parts among other things.

The 1UZ is expensive to make very fast. It's not new territory at all but don't expect the cheap upgrades a 5.0/302 or LSx V8 will give you.

The 1JZGTE and 2JZGTE are less costly to make faster in stock form (once you have one in the car). Rule of thumb is that after about 500hp you COULD more or less build a non-turbo 92-97 engine for similar power once you've accounted for the compression ratio. 98-00 and later GS300 and IS300 2JZ-GE VVT I6's have the same rock-solid cast iron block but need a crank, rod, piston and ring rebuild for significant forced induction.

Toyota didn't mess around with either engine.

kewlstory

Everyone says to swap for a 2jz gte. Is the lexus' 2jz just too weak for boost or what? Can't I simply invest in a good turbo and supporting mods? If I someday want to get up to 400rwhp will the sc300's original engine not be enough? Supra dudes pull 600 hp on stock internals, that's a bit, but if they can do it can't the lexus too?

LEXXIUM

iTrader: (1)

The 2jzge block will hold the hp you throw at it. You'll need to spend the cash on the electronics like stand alone management and fuel delivery as well as upgrade the injectors, it's definately a money game when it comes to 500+ hp. If done right you'll need the right suspension as well as tires to put the power down to the grownd!!
Kahn pretty much summed it all up for you.


We don't have engine problems, we have a problems having money to mod these babies!!!

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

^^ LEXXIUM has this right

kewlstory, the 92-972JZ-GE from the Lexus SC300 and the 93.5-97 2JZ-GE from the MKIV Supra non-turbo are the SAME engine. Exactly the same. There are no differences whatsoever other than Lexus dealers charging more for the same service parts and the valve top cover having an "L".

Same goes for the one-year-only 1998 MKIV Supra non-turbo 2JZ-GE VVT-i engine and the 98-2000 Lexus SC300 2JZ-GE VVT-i engine. And by extension the same year GS300 engines and the later IS300 2JZ-GE's. The VVT-i years all have weak and thin rods and pistons that DO have to be upgraded to handle boost safely.

ALL 2JZ-GE blocks themselves are, however, identical from 1992-2005. They are all the same strong cast-iron pieces.

Yes, you can buy a turbo kit for your 92-97 2JZ-GE engine and add fuel management, a thicker head gasket and ARP head studs and many other numerous things and have an NA-T engine. The 92-97 GE engines are just as strong as 2JZ-GTE engines: same strong cranks, strong rods and strong pistons. Those pistons are just 10.0:1 rather than 8.5:1. Going NA-T the reliable way can run as much as about $4.5-5k-$6k though. Reason for the large spread of cost estimate is that there are many ways to skin that cat.

To get a reliable 300-450hp (someone correct me if I should also include 450whp in this) in the most economical way possible you could go with a 1JZ-GTE engine swap and focus on the rest of the car to support its added power.

As with all project muscle cars (yes, this is one of those even though it didn't come that way from the factory in the USA) you have to be clear about what level or horsepower you want initially versus how much you might want later on.

For a lot of horsepower above 500, you may well be better off with either a JDM 2JZ-GTE engine swap OR a very well gone through custom 2JZ-GE NA-T build. This is because at that point the cost of changing to so many custom parts that support high HP more or less evens out. And a 1JZ-GTE is capable of more horsepower than 500 as well but it will deliver it differently (2.5L revver vs 3.0L) and it also becomes commensurately costly at that point.

If all of this is a bit bewildering, consider another way to look at it: there is this great and versatile engine system with many options for different flavors and levels of horsepower.

kewlstory

All right guys. Thanks a lot. Now to continue the car search. One last thing, how many miles or what things should i look out for when buying an sc300? Do these things rust bad, or at least as bad as a mustang or camaro, especially in the chicagoland area? I went to a dealership today which had an sc300 for sale, 99 with 85k miles. They said it was in their garage getting diagnosed cuz it wouldn't start or something like that. Sounds like scary stuff, hope these kind of things are rare or else this incident will change the way I look at these things

LEXXIUM

iTrader: (1)

The underbody of the sc is coated with a exterior ruberized sound deadener, the earlier models in northern climates senn some rust, but for the most part they don't have rust like stangs and camaros.

When you're looking for a car to keep, most important thing is a perfect straight and rust free frame, you always want to look at rear crossmember area for and wheel wells for rust as well as frame rails. The right car will speak to you, the wrong car..... Well you have to look it all over, and then make that judgement and lowball then if now walk!!

That 99 with 85k whTs the asking price ? 8000?

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

Some people have taken great care of these cars and some haven't. Generally if timing belts and oil have been changed there are occasional failures at 200xxx miles or so such as the power steering high pressure lines or worn out front lower control arms (which you can replace with polyurethane or new arms from a Supra MKIV).

Rust can affect them but it would have to have seen many winters consistently. Minor rust is common but debilitating rust isn't common in my experience. Just use your best judgement when car shopping.

Also, if you're set on an engine swap it may be better to search for a pre-98 SC since the wiring is simpler. Better than that, focus on 92-95's due to them having OBD1. 96-97 is OBD2 and that's still OK for wiring I think but if I were looking again I'd probably still look for an OBD1 if I planned to change the whole drivetrain. It just makes it easier.

The biggest thing to also look for is just a car that has a straight body, little or no rust, and an interior that's mostly intact. You WILL encounter cosmetic blemishes on the inside vinyl door surrounds, cracked center A/C vents (ALL SC's develop this issue due to the poor choice of plastic against wood and the stress from thermal expansion/contraction), possibly cracked interior door panels, worn leather seats, etc...

All of those things can be rectified with spare parts still readily available on ebay, some from Toyota/Lexus (don't buy directly from just any Lexus dealer) and through members selling cosmetic parts on the forums. It's the same as with any older car that needs some TLC restoration honestly.

Oh, and the nice looking bumper and body parts from the 97-2000 SC's do bolt right onto the older ones, FYI.

As for the '99 SC300 at that dealer, they have probably diagnosed it by now. They may have not gone through it right away when it was traded in. If they had had a snapped timing belt on the other hand (98-00 SC I6 engines are interference type) that would have been a bad sign.

Good luck!

mecheng10

I had this dilemma when I was looking for a project car.
I ended up with the lexus for one reason
SLEEPER STATUS!
I mean look at how many mustangs/Camaros there are. on my drive to work I easily see 20+ muscle cars.
sure they are good out of the box, but until you build the motor they are pretty limited hp wise.
while on the other hand, I see maybe 1 sc a few times a month and its not built or anything.
but the potential is there in the motor. people have been known to go 1000+ hp on stock blocks (although rods don't last long at those levels) but easily can get 600 out of a stock block.
that's double than any muscle car. and you are a different car on the road!
those Hondas that you will line up against have no chance.

kewlstory

Gotta smoke dem civics and integras but isn't a brand new si faster thsn a stock sc3?

mikef

iTrader: (3)

anything is faster then a stock sc lol