nice job man. Now tell us how it feels to drive

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If he were to put steelies on there then the car would have massive torque steer and traction issues thus negativing any lightweight gains.

It's not a 7a, when you have torque then extra weight slows it down less. Eg he doesn't need to put his foot to the floor to cart around passengers like you would.

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I've filled the tank with 98 octane plus a bottle of 2.5 octane booster, so I should be sitting around 100 now. I haven't really driven it over 4,000rpm since then, so I can't say if it's made any noticable difference. I'm going for a longer drive today were I can get stuck into it a bit more.

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I highly doubt it to be honest. Maybe on a super light weight car when comparing lap times at the track, but I doubt the average person would feel any difference on the street. When I switched from the standard 15" alloys to the current 18"s I felt no difference, so I wouldn't expect anything different if I switched back. Not on the street anyway.

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Thanks man, I appreciate it. The car feels good, but I think my expectations of the Beams were a little high. I need to take it for a run through the mountains or on the track to really get a feel for how much better it is.

But overall I'm pretty happy with the result, and it's still way cheaper than if I'd have bought something newer of similar spec. In the back of my mind I'm still wishing that I went 3SGTE instead, but I'm sure the Beams will grow on me as I learn how to get the most out of it.

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Yeah traction would be an issue. Even with the old 225 tyres I was getting plenty of wheel spin. The new stickier 225s are much better though. If I went back to 185s or similar I think I'd be struggling big time!

In other news, I just bought a GT4 rear strut brace and plastic covers on ebay for $150 shipped. I had priced the same parts new from Toyota and it was about twice the price!

Thise octNe boosters are marketing scams they might raise ur octane to 1 point. Make sure u buy some fuel injector cleaner or if i was u i wud of got my injectors cleaned n tested by a shop. 98 ron will do just fine.

Yeah 98 is perfect, even 95. Just not 91 (this is what Americans call 87 or something), which is what you would have been running for 5S-FE

Ur wrong 91 octane equals to 95 ron. In the us we measure the amount that fuel reacts by octane as to europe n japan use ron.

95 ron is not recommended for beams motor only 98 ron and even better 100 ron

Do you read before you correct? In this part of the world we use RON (Australia and NZ), 91ron does not = 95ron. 95 ron is sold at some petrol stations as premium, while others carry 98ron as premium. All gas stations carry 91ron as regular unleaded. In this part of the world (AUDM, NZDM, even JDM) Toyota FE engines run on 91ron which is what he would have been using with the 5S-FE.

It is perfectly fine to use a 3S-GE (Any gen) whether ACIS, Redtop Beams, or Altezza Blacktop Beams in areas that only carry 95ron, but as I mentioned theres still a little more performance to gain by filling up at a petrol station that sells 98ron.

Probably similar in Australia, but we have in NZ

Shell V-Power - 95 octane
Caltex Techron - 95 octane
BP Ultimate - 98 octane
Mobil 8000 - 98 octane

here we all drive JDM Japanese used imports, depending on the area you're in, you won't always get a choice of stopping at a petrol station with 98, sometimes you have to settle for 95. It's still supposed to be alot more powerful running a Beams on 95 than a 5S-FE.

Our engines have things called knock sensors for a reason...

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wow dude no no no, did you read correctly???? I said >>91 OCTANE!!!>> not 91 ron duhh

and yes I am well aware as I previously stated that all other countries besides the USA, uses ron as their anti-knock index!!! ie europe, japan, australia, russia and so on.... yes i'm aware of the so called knock sensor on our engines thank u.

on second thought I didn't fully acknowledge your comment but I am in no way wrong in what I said. yes 87 octane does equal 91 ron which is something you do not want to put in any 3sge engine, unless you plan on blowing it up.

This post has been edited by BonzaiCelica: May 29, 2011 - 10:41 PM

Well, whatever measure they use here in Australia I've been using the 98 stuff. I was using the 95 with my 5SFE anyway, not the cheap 91 stuff. I've also run some injector cleaner through as suggested.

After two weeks with the car back on the road I am reasonably satisfied. The power is still below expectations, but I'm having fun with it.

One thing I have definitely noticed is the improved fuel economy. With the old 5SFE I would struggle to get 500km out of a tank, but with the new engine I'm not even two thirds through the tank and I've already done 450km. And I haven't exactly been driving in a fuel efficient manner if you know what I mean!

But I'd give up the fuel economy for more power....

I do have a problem with the car though. It's making a strange creaking noise from the front end at low speed. I've started a new topic in the suspension section here. I've been told it could be the tie rod ends. I swapped these over with the rest of the front end from the donor car, so I'll fit some new ones and see if that fixes the problem.

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Out of curiousity, have you had the chance to check the VVTI? Is it working correctly?

This post has been edited by TRD-Corolla: Jun 5, 2011 - 10:45 PM

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No, I don't know how to check its operation to be honest! I've searched these forums and the MR2 forums without any luck.

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solution: go put 98 ron fuel in the tank, go to a shop and get it dynoed!!!! then you can go from there. ask guys with 7th gen celica gt. The 1zz-fe motor is built almost the same as the 3sge beams motor. As far as testing the vvt-i.

This post has been edited by BonzaiCelica: Jun 6, 2011 - 2:00 AM

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Absolutely! I'll definitely be getting her on the dyno some time soon.

It's really a win-win situation. If it is making the right power, then I know everything is running properly. If it's not, then I know there's room for improvement.

Are there any codes that come up when you put it in diagnostic mode? then it should be working fine

You could put a voltmeter on the VVTi solenoid to see if its getting a signal from the ecu.

I fitted the GT4 rear strut brace today. I also scored the vinyl sleeve and plastic covers which was a good bonus. The plastic colour looks a bit different thanks to the camera flash, but in person you can't really tell. Not that I care anyway, since no one looks in my boot!

I don't know that it will make too much difference, but for $150 shipped and about five minutes of labour it's worth having, especially since I intend to head back to the track once I get a few other little things sorted.



I intend to keep this car for quite a while, so I figure it's better to grab this type of thing while it's cheap and easy to get, rather than waiting until it becomes rare. It's the same deal with my GT4 bumper and bonnet that are sitting in my shed. I might not have them painted and fitted for another year or more, but at least I have them now.

The car is going pretty well otherwise. After a few tanks of good fuel she seems to be revving much better and feels really strong. It's quite gutless to around 4,500rpm but after that the fun starts. I'll still get it on the dyno eventually to check the power, but for now I'm happy.

The bar made a difference for me. I noticed a definite stiffness that I didn't have while hitting corners at 35+. Rear doesn't squish as much. I'm also used to auto-xing a sedan which was stiff to begin with, so this was a squishy car when I took a corner the first time.

Cool, that sounds good to me. I haven't cornered the car hard yet, as I still have some noises post-engine conversion that I want to sort out first.

Suspension is next on the list, but I'm torn between the BC Racing coilovers and the KYB GR2 shocks. It's a $900 difference between the two, and I already have suitable lowered springs if i go with the KYBs.

I've started a new thread in the suspension section here.

Glad to hear its starting to work out for you, Yeah as I suspected, once you get that nasty 91/95 RON out of there in place for some BP Ultimate 98 or Mobil 8000, 98 the Beams will go to work for you in those high revs like it should.

Don't worry about the sub 4500 performance, I noticed when I went from 3S-FE to 3S-GE (SS-I to SS-III) the lower revs were pretty much the same, but on the FE when you got past 4000 it felt like it was about to pick up but then quickly fell flat by 5000, whereas the GE felt much the same down low (little bit more responsive) but once 4500 came around, it pulled all the way into the red without falling flat, it just picks up and keeps going and going and goin, I think your 5S-FE to Beams experience will be much similar.

And if you can afford it, BC's are the way to go. Shouldn't be tooo expensive I paid $1300 for my ST205 set which is less than half the price of a Tein set but not half as bad

Im all for stiffening the rear on these cars too, understeer is a problem lol

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Check Koni's. They're more affordable and you can use your lowering springs. The nice thing about them is that they can be adjustable too... so if you want to race, simply stiffen them. If you want to daily drive, loosen them.

http://www.koni.com/

I think the BC coilovers will be the go. I thought the KYBs would be more of an upgrade, but having read that they're merely an OEM equivalent I wouldn't bother.

The Konis are an interesting idea, but I think I'll just go coilovers and be done with it. Now I just have to convince my fiance that $1,300 is better spent on suspension rather than going towards our wedding, honeymoon, house renovations... the list goes on!

If you're low on money just go the kyb's and a rear sway bar, thats pretty much all I have on my setup and the handling surprises most people when they come in it/drive it.

One thing that I did recently which made the ride better, turn in better and less noise was the strut mounts, seeing as the ones in it were gone it made the thing ride horribly.

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Koooonnnnnniiii... (shhhh) wife won't even know because they're not $1300 lmao.

I must admit, I used koni yellows on the track in another car and they were fkn awsome, the adjustability made a big difference!

Just ordered the BC coilovers.

Regarding that creaking noise I was complaining of a while back, a mechanic mate of mine drove the car and said it would be sway bar bushes for sure. I haven't had a chance to get under and check, but hopefully that's all it is.

So once the coilovers are in and the bushes are replaced it will be time to hit the track. I've also just landed a decent promotion, so there's a little more play money available for the car.

I picked these up today:





I've also ordered some nolathane bushes for the front sway bar, so I'll wait for those to arrive before I fit everything.

Really looking forward to getting these in the car and hitting the track again.

The best part is the top camber adjustment. That'll make alignment so easy. Also, if you need rear camber adjustment beyond the strut, I can get you camber bolts with cams at a 12.5 grade

*Like this*

I just finished installing my new coilovers.

I've taken the car for a quick drive, but nothing too serious so I can't comment on the handling just yet.

What I'm most happy about is that my annoying creaking sound has gone!

I have some nolathane bushes on order and was going to wait for them, but I got tired of waiting and decided to install the coilovers first. Then I realised that I still had the swaybar bushes from my old setup which seemed to be in good condition, so I gave them some grease and installed.

I don't know if the creaking sound has been fixed thanks to the swapped bushes or the coilovers, but either way I'm happy.

The car sits too high now, but I can lower it back down later.

A couple of pics:



You can also see my twin piston front calipers in this shot:



I'll take a pic of the car once I've adjusted the ride height.

Congrates with the install and for getting rid of that creaking noise.


So are you going to see how it goes at the track first and then upgrade your brakes, or upgrade the brakes first?