Celica Forums General Discussion Engine and Performance 2zz to 1zz swap?

just got done reading a tech question & answer article from Sport Compact Car magazine (Dear Dave).

a reader was asking if he should buy an elise that he's on a waiting list for or buy another car. dave says buy the elise, take the 2zz out and replace it with the 1zz (everythin mounts up). then turbo the 1zz and it'll be better than the difficult-to-tune 2zz.

my own problem: i have a blown gts engine and i WAS just about to drop my car off at a shop today to get it replaced. the problem really is how darn expensive the 2zz motors are (this will be engine #3 for me..1 being my fault and the other being the mechanics who were installing #2 which i never got to take home).

i understand the 2zz is a better n/a car but the only reason i want to stay n/a with the 2zz is basically because of the cost. with the same $$ i'm spending on another 2zz, i can buy a 1zz and turbo it yada yada yada...

i've read before that you can't drop the 1zz into a 2zz setup without some customization or whatever (but that you can go from 1zz to 2zz). so is this true or not? what is everything i need to do a 2zz to 1zz swap?

please only answer if you know what you're talking about. i don't want a reply just saying the article made sense or whatever..no offense to anyone. if someone actually knows through personal experience or undoutful word of mouth please let me know as i'm doing something very SOON with my car.

thanks in advance for any help given.

i posted a vid of a guy who had a GT and put a 2ZZ in a while back. it can be done. the only thing i can thnk of is to make sure the mounts are the same and to get the 1zz ecu...

I've seen a 2zz to 1zz conver., he had a few things done to make it work, such as modified placement of accessory items and such. He did the drop than put in a c2gas turbo kit. I'm not entirely sure about the engine mounts and how much they have to be changed but I remember something about moving them in a couple inches with a custom bracket. Also the transmission mounts are a little different I believe

you would need the 1zz engine mounts.. ecu, header and midpipe.. i will have a 5spd tranny that i would be able to sell you in about a week or 2 if you actually do this

thanks bro.

i think i'll keep the 6 speed tranny though. if i do go with the 1zz it'll be turbo'd so i'm not worried about staying in the stock power range

i'm prob going to stay n/a 2zz by default though

I'm sorry but those mags guys are a bunch of f*ck nuggets.

but if you gotta do it cause of price then thats a whole other story.

pound for pound a boosted GTS will put down more power then a GT. anyone who cant do that should step away from the car.


good luck.

^^ yea mike..which is kinda the reason i asked. the tech help guy doesnt really write for the mag though..he has a website or somethin and some of the questions get published in scc, but anyway.

and if i could afford a 2zz and turbo i'd definately do it. that's not really the question whether i'd want to turbo a 1zz or a 2zz. it's all about cost. it's either get a non-turbo'd 2zz or a turbo'd 1zz, thats really the question. (i can't afford a 2zz + turbo, i can afford a 1zz + turbo)

Just out of curiosity, what does a 1ZZ run opposed to a 2ZZ? Are they that much different in price that you could get a 1ZZ and a turbo kit for the price of a 2ZZ?

this is not wut you wanted to hear, but i still say it.
i dont think the price range of the 1zz and the 2zz is more than 2,000$
if you wanna put the 1zz in ur car, you have to modify certain stuff so you can drop it in there. custom parts to fabricate will at least cost you a grand if not more. turbo is gonna cost you about 3 grand, install is gonna cost about a few hundred. so i think the way to save money is to get the gts engine i suppose. but it would be nice to see a 1zz with turbo 6spd.
good luck man, you havent had an engine for 6 months atleast for now huh?

the difference is ALMOST enough.

to get a 2zz engine, install, and warranty it's a little over $4,000. it doesnt matter if its a used, brand new, remanufactured, or fixed 2zz engine..the warranty makes them all pretty much the same price.

a good 1zz used engine (with warranty) is around $500 and you can find them even cheaper than that. install is about 1,500 - 2,000 (so now you're around $2,500). turbo is around 3,500 installed..so now you're at (at the high end) $6,000 with a 1zz turbo'd with warranty. it's about $4,300 for a 2zz with warranty without turbo. it's still more expensive but i can afford that.

the other route is to get a 2zz $4,300, turbo $3,500 and thats at 8 grand, which i can't afford.

what exactly is wrong with your engine? is anything reuseable?

perhaps buying it in pieces would be cheaper then buying the whole thing together?

I cant imagine it woudl cost so much for a used 2ZZ.

1 avenue of approach would be to call matt @ mwr and see if he can hook you up with a stock 2zz for a good price.

matt has low mile 2ZZ's for $2200.

I can get them at this place by my house for $1300

hey mike...this is caleb. i got banned or somethin so whatever.

anyway, i'm all ears if i can get my hands on a used 2zz engine with a warranty/guarantee whatever. after last time i just really doubt i'm going to buy another engine without a guarantee that it'll work. does mwr guarantee their work? if so lemme know (my pm's still work)

How are you getting a turbo for 3500 installed? The turbo shipped is about 3400 plus 1000 install plus new clutch and install plus gauges. Your looking at over 5000.

oh and the first engine theres only a bent valve..so we think anyway. the 2nd engine has a cracked head and i don't know what else (didnt look into it)

Matt is answering the phone right now if you wanna give him a call. they do pretty good work over at mwr so I'd trust it.

i would like the c2 but that doesnt mean that's what i'd get. thers a shop over here that has done turbo'd gt's before and its around 3500 (the cars are still running fine as well)

got a number? or is it posted somewhere on his site?

is it crawling with spyder owners?...

why kristen...you're sounding quite 'ballsy' today...

^^ dumbass. f you ct

and yea..we both got our very own bannings today haha

for sure! LOL...tell my buddies at NC i said hi..