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Swap downtime - 6G Celicas Forums

Topic #33074 33 posts Started by jayi12-15psi
Fairly simple question, I wasn't sure whether to post it here or in general discussion. I was wondering how you guys get around to go to work and such when you're swapping an engine into your car? Do most of you buy a cheap pos and drive it around while the celica's in the garage? I know this is simple question, but I was wondering if there's any other ways you guys get around?

[img]http://photos-081.facebook.com/n6/081/n15913038_30266081_3342.jpg[/img]
i questioned myself that too when the time comes for me -- since she is my only daily driver - i had thought about buying a 1) used car for under 3K or a 2) used motorcycle, 3) rental, 4) walk (nah) - because i work odd hours - don't have friends or family to depend on -- so for the 2-3 wk that my car will be down - i think i won't be going anywhere and will probably end up walking to work since it'll only be about a 15 minute walk -- there's always a way around
I could ride my bike to work in the summer, it's about a half hour ride.

[img]http://photos-081.facebook.com/n6/081/n15913038_30266081_3342.jpg[/img]
i took a 2 week vacation from work... but then the swap ended up taking 2 months. so i got rides from my family or borrowed moms car when i needed it. it sucked, but you got to do what you got to do.

a 2nd car isint a bad thing to have tho . you can also look into public transportation if you live in the city.

This post has been edited by lagos: Jan 25, 2006 - 5:32 PM

15PSI - 30MPG - Megasquirt Tuned
I rented a car big mistake, I ended up taking the rental car back and buying a beater from my dad for $500. I also use the beater for my winter car. I would suggest buying a beater, if I would have gotten a 2nd car instead of a rental car I would have saved about $1000.
When people ask me about this, I ALWAYS recommend getting a second car. You can EASILY get a mid-90s Toyota Tercel for under $800 that's a little rough but runs good, I see them on Boston craigslist all the time. A second car, cheap, reliable, and easy on insurance, is the BEST thing you can do if you're going to modify your car.

-Doc

-Dr Tweak, 6GC's resident engine swap wiring expert extraordinaireClick here to see my swapsdrtweak@phoenixtuning.com
im rocking this beast right now while the celica is out.
user posted image
$10 a day in gas. $70 a week. i cant wait for the celica!!

Visit My Automotive & Tech Blog.
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QUOTE(Dr_Tweak @ Jan 25, 2006 - 7:55 PM) [snapback]384345[/snapback]
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When people ask me about this, I ALWAYS recommend getting a second car. You can EASILY get a mid-90s Toyota Tercel for under $800 that's a little rough but runs good, I see them on Boston craigslist all the time. A second car, cheap, reliable, and easy on insurance, is the BEST thing you can do if you're going to modify your car.

-Doc


Agreed. For me it was our old 91 Integra with 170,000 miles and ran like a champ. Sold it for $1750 after the swap was complete.

QUOTE(lagos @ Jul 10, 2006 - 1:55 PM) [snapback]454118[/snapback]i know your trying to do the right thing for your motor, but this is one of those times where you should just trust the guys who have had their swaps for a while and have done a ton of research into this.
well i havent done my swap yet but i already have my daily driver and i didnt buy it so i'll be alright when the summer comes and the work begins on the celica.
hmm...walked..got rides from friends..walked some more..and SOMETIMES borrowed my sisters car..but i mostly walked.. laugh.gif my work is a few blocks from me tho so it didnt matter and it was in the summer...had no classes!

bboy

..(formerly daily driven) 3S-GTE powered celica currently set @ 12psi..
bought an 02 turbo jetta!
lol, playr, lemme go see what I got in the bank...


... ehhh

not quite enough for a turbo jetta.

[img]http://photos-081.facebook.com/n6/081/n15913038_30266081_3342.jpg[/img]
Got a good deal on a 86 celica gts. free!
Gets me around. but it doesnt pick up girl like the 94 does.

Chris MalaquiNon-running Celica
yea, i would definetly say your best bet is to look for a cheapo beater.
unless you can borrow a car from your 'rents or whatever.

Former Team 5SFTE pro member ;)13.6@108MPH, 5SFTE Powered
Cliff notes: Thorough planning and preparation along with a monetary supplement is required to reduce downtime.

The only ways I see downtime being drastically reduced would be if you had an extra engine wiring harness for your car so that it can be combined with the 3S/4A harness prior to beginning the swap. All prep work for the engine (i.e. timing belt, oil pump, water pump, main seals, gasket set, hose(s) from hell, etc.) would need to be done before you pull your engine. If you've got everything ready, and a little bit of extra cash set aside to replace unexpectedly broken or malfunctioning parts, I'd say you could easily have the engines swapped in less than a week, provided you've got the necessary knowledge and equipment.

Project ST204.5 99.88946% complete...
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QUOTE(WannabeGT4 @ Jan 26, 2006 - 10:33 AM) [snapback]384674[/snapback]
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Cliff notes: Thorough planning and preparation along with a monetary supplement is required to reduce downtime.

The only ways I see downtime being drastically reduced would be if you had an extra engine wiring harness for your car so that it can be combined with the 3S/4A harness prior to beginning the swap. All prep work for the engine (i.e. timing belt, oil pump, water pump, main seals, gasket set, hose(s) from hell, etc.) would need to be done before you pull your engine. If you've got everything ready, and a little bit of extra cash set aside to replace unexpectedly broken or malfunctioning parts, I'd say you could easily have the engines swapped in less than a week, provided you've got the necessary knowledge and equipment.

perfect reply man, great post.
what you just explained is exatcly how i am working on mine.
the 3s is in the garage, awaiting all the refresh parts, i got my spare 5s harness (thanks dustin!!! wink.gif )
luckily, i was able to go down and help art and jeff both with theyre swaps, and learned basicly everything i know about the swap in the process.
if everything goes as planned, ill do the swap in a weekend.
pull the 5s friday night, install 3s saturday, running sunday.

This post has been edited by presure2: Jan 26, 2006 - 11:22 AM

Former Team 5SFTE pro member ;)13.6@108MPH, 5SFTE Powered
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QUOTE(presure2 @ Jan 26, 2006 - 10:22 AM) [snapback]384693[/snapback]
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QUOTE(WannabeGT4 @ Jan 26, 2006 - 10:33 AM) [snapback]384674[/snapback]
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Cliff notes: Thorough planning and preparation along with a monetary supplement is required to reduce downtime.

The only ways I see downtime being drastically reduced would be if you had an extra engine wiring harness for your car so that it can be combined with the 3S/4A harness prior to beginning the swap. All prep work for the engine (i.e. timing belt, oil pump, water pump, main seals, gasket set, hose(s) from hell, etc.) would need to be done before you pull your engine. If you've got everything ready, and a little bit of extra cash set aside to replace unexpectedly broken or malfunctioning parts, I'd say you could easily have the engines swapped in less than a week, provided you've got the necessary knowledge and equipment.

perfect reply man, great post.
what you just explained is exatcly how i am working on mine.
the 3s is in the garage, awaiting all the refresh parts, i got my spare 5s harness (thanks dustin!!! wink.gif )
luckily, i was able to go down and help art and jeff both with theyre swaps, and learned basicly everything i know about the swap in the process.
if everything goes as planned, ill do the swap in a weekend.
pull the 5s friday night, install 3s saturday, running sunday.


I hope it works that way for you. What tranny are you going to run Manny?

QUOTE(lagos @ Jul 10, 2006 - 1:55 PM) [snapback]454118[/snapback]i know your trying to do the right thing for your motor, but this is one of those times where you should just trust the guys who have had their swaps for a while and have done a ton of research into this.
you know that GTS corolla is worth at least $1500, right? lol
if it's in good condition i saw a MINT on ebay go for i think ~6k
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QUOTE(jgreening @ Jan 26, 2006 - 12:48 PM) [snapback]384733[/snapback]
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QUOTE(presure2 @ Jan 26, 2006 - 10:22 AM) [snapback]384693[/snapback]
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QUOTE(WannabeGT4 @ Jan 26, 2006 - 10:33 AM) [snapback]384674[/snapback]
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Cliff notes: Thorough planning and preparation along with a monetary supplement is required to reduce downtime.

The only ways I see downtime being drastically reduced would be if you had an extra engine wiring harness for your car so that it can be combined with the 3S/4A harness prior to beginning the swap. All prep work for the engine (i.e. timing belt, oil pump, water pump, main seals, gasket set, hose(s) from hell, etc.) would need to be done before you pull your engine. If you've got everything ready, and a little bit of extra cash set aside to replace unexpectedly broken or malfunctioning parts, I'd say you could easily have the engines swapped in less than a week, provided you've got the necessary knowledge and equipment.

perfect reply man, great post.
what you just explained is exatcly how i am working on mine.
the 3s is in the garage, awaiting all the refresh parts, i got my spare 5s harness (thanks dustin!!! wink.gif )
luckily, i was able to go down and help art and jeff both with theyre swaps, and learned basicly everything i know about the swap in the process.
if everything goes as planned, ill do the swap in a weekend.
pull the 5s friday night, install 3s saturday, running sunday.


I hope it works that way for you. What tranny are you going to run Manny?

jay, i will be running the stock GT tranny, with prolly a stage 2 spec clutch.
im already pushing on it now, we'll see how she fares with +50-60whp lol
if it fails, gt trannys are a dime a dozen..or depending on $$ i can always go to the mr2T or whatever..

Former Team 5SFTE pro member ;)13.6@108MPH, 5SFTE Powered
i was lucky to have you at my swap, manny ! smile.gif

your swap should be pretty easy, you know what your are doing and have pulled out more then one celica motor. so youll be up and running in not time, as long as no unexpected problems pop up.

15PSI - 30MPG - Megasquirt Tuned
It is always nice to have a second car, and I wish I would've had one during my swap. I had to borrow my parents' cars and get rides while my car was down.

I wish I would've bought a cheap beater sooner. I bought a '88 Celica GT with 130k miles for $400 that just needed some TLC and is now my brother's car.

Another good daily driver/beater purchase was my '91 Sentra SE-R for $1,200. It's an enjoyable and reliable car, so I can take my sweet time with the Celica and not rush anything. smile.gif

This post has been edited by Coomer: Jan 26, 2006 - 7:10 PM

New Toyota project coming soon...
A friend of mine has a '92 Honda Accord that he's going to loan me for however long I need it when I do a swap. He's got a WRX and wants to see me boosted almost as badly as myself, so he's been great about supporting my interests and lending a hand. smile.gif

3rd gen ST205 3SGTE - Alive and boosting.
just bought an 04 jetta , my car had been parked since July and I have been bumming rides and car-pooling with my brother because we work in the same town(about 20miles away)

If anyone is missing NASCAR and it's not on Speed Channel, take a fistful of Skittles, throw them in the toilet and hit the flush handle. Instant NASCAR!!!
WOOT!

1 more swapper who bought a jetta!

mwahhahaahaha i'm not the only one!
my car's downtime leaves me driving my parants mini van, it sux but its what i got. I will probably be getting an awd cr-v for a daily driver and turning my celica into my total project car. but I'm having a hard time finding the cr-v i want, AWD (must) Manual (must) low miles (must) little to no body damage (must) the sooner i get it the sooner i can think about really doing the 3s swap, and other projects I cant do because of work.
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QUOTE(playr158 @ Jan 28, 2006 - 3:13 PM) [snapback]385770[/snapback]
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WOOT!

1 more swapper who bought a jetta!

mwahhahaahaha i'm not the only one!


cough cough chick car
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QUOTE(LewFX @ Jan 29, 2006 - 1:40 AM) [snapback]385837[/snapback]
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cough cough chick car

*looks at 6g celica... shrugs*

"It's ok to be naked girl... I'm an artist!"1995 AT200 Celica ST:stocked out daily driver...1984 AE86 Corolla GT-SR5:silvertop 20V 4AGE project car jacked up with goodies...1991 SW2x MR2 n/a:bare bones hardtop model soon to be...
its all good just means my chances of meeting a really hot jetta chick are higher then yours of meeting a hot celica chick wink.gif

plus it just makes euro meets a bit better wink.gif
My car is in my garage now. I use the family car most of the time only because I feel like a pimp in the GMC Envoy even if it stinks like baby car seat smile.gif Or I take my brothers VW GTi that car is slow.
i just started my 3sgte swap the other day. and iam driving around my dads 2002 jeep wrangler now because hes on a business trip for a month, so i lucked out.