95 celica ST 7afe engine swap to Beams 3sge Options

[foshojerry]

Hello, i am planning to do a small project engine swap on my 95 Celica ST from the US. I see lots of Forums that indicated on a 3SGTE swap into the 6 gen ST, yet i have many doubts on the technicality of the swap due to several problems: replacing transmission, engine mounts replacement, shift cable, smog emission regulation, maintenance!, etc. I then look at other engine option swap like Silvertop 4age 20 valve engine but it is only 160hp. What i want relatively out of this engine swap project is to have "minimal" problems and yet "reliable/powerful". I was looking at the 200hp Beams 3SGE economical natural aspirated engine and sure looks tempting. Several questions: i see many forums on swapping the Beams into their "GT" model which has all the right mounting and assembly in compatibility for the swap. I know on the ST, the engine mounts are totally different. Has anyone done this kind of swap in their ST? Will a fully healthy Beams engine ship from Japan pass US smog regulations? If so, what are the crucial points i need to watch out for and what parts do i need to replace? I am also turning the automatic into a manual as well. (If i am going to go into this project, "i will be getting a full front clip with manual transmission imported here"). If i get the full front clip i have all the parts and mounts for the picking! Well any body out there that can help me out on this topic i am greatly appreciative! I LOVE MY CELICA and kept it in awesome conditon, i will post some pictures up when i get a chance.

[richee3]

The BEAMS does have OBDII but forget about ever using it. No US scanner can read the Japanese signals. The BEAMS will never pass any US emissions, period. As far as swapping a BEAMS vs a 3S-GTE, it's 95% the same process but you end up with less power. The BEAMS is definitely a fun engine to have, and I feel like its how the Celica should have felt from the factory. However, given that you have an ST and swapping will take quite a bit of work, I'd follow Smaay's 1MZ swap advice. It'll be about the same amount of work but you'll have loads more torque, still have N/A reliability, and be able to walk into any parts store and get exactly what you need.

This post has been edited by richee3: May 25, 2012 - 8:56 AM