83 celica gt swap Options

[83gt]

Hey guys, Im a new member and I will be picking up a 83 celica gt in the next couple weeks, and id like to build it into a drift car, similar to a hachiroku. I want to swap in a 1jzgte or 7mgte. I know the main problem with these swaps is that the engine bay for the celica is 4 inches shorter than the old celica supras, but i have a friend that can do the modifications to the firewall so the engine will fit.

I have a couple other questions though.

1. Will the shifter sit farther back than the current one because the engine is longer? If so, will other modifications to the body need to be made because the shifter will sit farther back?

2. I know the chassis for the celica was not built to hold the larger I6 engine, how much fabrication will be needed to mount the engine?

3. I have heard that these engines may throw off the balance of the car, will suspension and strut bars add enough balance and rigidity?

4. I have never dealt with an engine swap before, so what does this mean as far as speedo gauges and such?

5. Has anyone heard of any other reasonable swaps for this car? (sr20? )

6. Lets say i wanted to do a rhd conversion also. Would both of these conversions need to be done at the same time?

Keep in mind that i have another car for my DD. This will be an ongoing project for me and some buddies. Also because this wont be my DD, i will be gutting the interior to make any necessary modifications. Im going to start from scratch basically. Once i get the car im gonna strip it down and clean it up and start from there. Should make for a fun project.

[Taskbot]

I am going to have to agree with some of the other posts but offer some other suggestions.

This sounds like a really amazing project for a street car and a car you want to show off. Nothing beats an older restored car with a new or built engine in it. However, I wouldn't take it to the track and subject it to any sideways sliding mayhem. Even the best in the business total cars and when its your own money and your own time and its a beautiful project, you do not want to see it destroyed because you entered the corner the wrong way.

If you're looking for a cheap RWD drift car just sneak across the border and pick up a Skyline GTS-t. They're imported here fairly fequently and can be fairly inexpensive. Like $5,000 - $10,000 CAN which would probably be about the amount of money you are looking at for a engine swap that will produce an equivalent amount of power and a RHD conversion.

Up here there is a 15 year rule for imports. All cars over 15 years can be imported legally and certified to be put on the road. So since you want to do a RHD swap, it might be easier to import or buy an imported car up here and it will save you most of the trouble swaping and such, and it also opens up numerous possibilities for drift cars. Old Nissan Skylines, Nissan Silvias, Mazda RX-7s, Toyota Supras, Toyota Soarers, Nissan Laurels, Toyota Mark IIs, Toyota Corolla Levins, even the 3rd gen Celica you want to turn RHD can be imported.

Most of these can be had for the price of a pre-swapped non-damaged 240sx, Supra, or 2JZ-GTE swap and since you're looking for a car for track duty, you don't even have to have it road legal.