Engine Swap Questions

[Eclaire]

Looking at buying a Corolla or something along those lines, then swaping in a new engine. Looking at a 2500cc Turbo engine of some kind. So 3 questions. Live in a snowy hilly area, so looking at the 4WD versions.

1. For 4wd, I'll need a fwd engine, correct?

2. Is it easier to buy a manual 4wd car already and just change the engine, or buy the engine and transmission from a different car and match the transmission to the 4wd? My main worry about adding a v6 to a corolla -like car with its standard transmission would be blowing the transmission.

3. Given these, what engine/transmission would you recommend? My dream would be to add a Rb26DETT plus the Skyline trans.. but Im open to more practical ideas.

Thanks!!

 

[turbonutter69]

TBH mate it would be easier and cheaper to buy the car with the engine you want and then tune that.

 

[ronniecalcutta]

Changing transmission into 4WD is hectic process. You have to make room for the Prop Shaft, then the transfer case arrangement will never come easy...

 

[Eclaire]

Ah, should have made that more clear. Im looking at buying one that is already 4wd, and then changing the engine. I was just trying to decide if the transmission already in the car would be better, or if matching a 4wd transmission from another car would be better.

Id like to buy one already made, but I cant find a 4wd car I really like. All the ones I like are rwd, but living in the mountains in the winter, thats not a good idea. The logical ones would be an Evo or an Impreza, but they are kindof expensive, and there are tons of them all over here..

 

[obi_waynne]

What 4x4 cars do you have in your shortlist? If you choose one with a larger engine then this had quite a bit of scope for tuning and will be worth investing some performance parts in.

 

[Eclaire]

Well, I was interested in the Audi s4's and 6's as well as the Legacy 2500cc turbos, or possibly buying another VR-4 (I have the sports ECU, and other parts for the car from my wrecked Legnum). My main problem is that living in a foreign country, I cant get a loan for a car, so anything I buy I have to pay for in one payment. $10,000 all at once is a bit tough. Which was one reason for thinking of buying a cheap $1000 to $2000 car, and then slowly adding parts into it. Especially the engine swap. Having a ridiculous Corolla or such just makes it all the more interesting.

I was really considering just buying the RWD car I like, and trying to bear through the winter, but with a good 4 months of snow, and a hill with about a 15% grade up to my house, Im not sure this is very feasible...

 

[Eclaire]

I was considering buying a Legacy Engine and mission, and replacing the Corolla AWD engine and mission with it. That's why I wanted to know if it was easier fitting a Subaru transmission to the Corolla's AWD setup, or the Toyota transmission to Subaru engine.

(I havent totally decided to go this way, but I want to look at all my options before I decide anything. I may just give up on the mod, though it seems like it would be fun to drive if it worked.)

If I didnt have to worry about snow, I would buy a Toyota Chaser with no second thoughts. (Thinking of using the Toyota Sprinter as my base, since it resembles the Chaser and I can get a AWD Manual version)

 

[obi_waynne]

I know what you mean about a steep hill and lots of snow!

What about a pickup truck like the Toyota Hilux or similar?

Cheap cars to buy can end up costing a fortune in repair bills if you're not careful and end up sucking up loads of money.

 

[Eclaire]

I much prefer small cars to big ones. Not a big pick-up fan. Plus the roads here are so small, Im not sure one would fit! lol

I know what you mean about cheap cars. For now, I am just trying to decide what to do. Might still get the cheap base car, and just slowly upgrade it over time. Start at the breaks and suspension, then engine and transmission, then looks. Or something along those lines. That way I can do it a bit at a time. Thanks for the help though!!

First I have to decide if I want to just drop the AWD or not.. lol. It would make finding a good car easier.

 

[jarrus]

Maybe a pulsar GTI-r would fit the bill....

they are small and 4wd with a 2.0l turbo engine which was originally made for rallying and loads of mods are available for it...

I would consider something like this...

 

[Eclaire]

Thanks Jarrus. Ill take a look at it. Got hit with a few big bills recently, so the car plans are on hold till I get that taken care of though... lol