[edelmar417]

Originally Posted by Charles Q

I had a simple rebuild. Stock head with three angle valve grind and new pistons. Nothing fancy. If you know you're going over 400hp then you'll need forged pistons and stronger rods but expect to put out some $$$. Keep your power goals realistic. These are very light cars and power to weight is the key to speed. At about 400hp you begin to light up the tires every time you step on the gas in any gear and while that may sound cool now when you need a new set of tires in 3 months it gets real old.
I had a metal head gasket and ARP studs installed as these engines were prone to blown head gaskets (bhg) from the factory. Then you'll need an '85 oil pan. Most of us shop at Champion Toyota in Texas for the discounts as Toyota parts are among the most expensive in the business. You'll need a variety of gaskets and hoses too. You'll want a new oil pump. No point putting this engine in just to have it fail because you wanted to save a few bucks on an oil pump. Fuel is critical in a 7m engine. Low fuel pressure can cause the mix to lean out and there goes your new engine so I installed a mkVI fuel pump not a Walbro though many use Walbro. I dropped over a grand in new parts.
If you have a P Type then you probably have a posi rear end. These have friction disc clutches in them and most wear out after about 100,000 miles. As long as you're replacing that you might as well go trutrac but more $$$. Just keep in mind the stock parts were not set up for turbo power. Do not attempt to do this yourself. Setting up a rear end is very tricky and it's easy to burn out brand new bearings and destroy the new diff. Make sure you have a driveline shop that specializes in diffs do it NOT YOUR LOCAL MECHANIC. It's not cheap. You'll want to address the drive shaft too as the ujoints are not user servicable and you'll need a center carrier bearing. You can bolt up a W58 (the stock MKII tranny) but again it's a good idea to have it rebuilt before the swap. When you're showing off to some girl and your tranny blows you look pretty stupid.
You'll want to consider a larger radiator because the MKII rdaiator is pretty small for a turbo engine. With a new radiator you have cowl problems and you shouldn't run the a/c without a cowl. You'll want to use the 7m alternator as it puts out more amps.
A MKII with a 7mgte is very quick even in stock trim and you'll want to the swap ring and pinion out from stock (usually 4.30) to 3.73 but they're hard to find except in a yard somewhere. This will give it some drivability. With the stock r&p first and second are almost useless as you have to shift so fast.
All of this is detailed in the faq or swap sections of celicasupra.com if you just look. There are also quite a few guys in Washington who have these so you might get together with them and they'll give you some pointers. Good luck

i guess after all this, the more realistic goal would be to restore my '85. replacing the worn parts with aftermarket options...since i don't have much to spend now =/ i will just keep it nice n simple, and keep the car completely balanced. since it is my goal as of a couple months ago to make it into a "mountain carver"