Ran my '90 Supra out of oil...

[Ratman]

....or rather, my grandson did. It's a 7MGTE turbo model. I wasn't there but he said it started banging and he drove it 5 miles home. A check of the dip stick showed no oil.

I'm assuming the engine is toast. Are good used engines available for them? and where, if at all, can I get one?

The car is pretty straight, had a recent cheapo black paint job. Windows rattle.....any idea what it's worth like it is?

TIA Pete

photo of car...
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/phot...eat=directlink

[supraheelfan]

Just make sure you get the ecu to match the new engine (match the yellow plug ecu to yellow plug harness 87-88 and vice versa with the grey plug 89-92). That was my only issue when I had to order an engine back in the day. The entire undertaken of swapping another engine is basically if you're up to it. I ordered one from Japan Star Motor, I think it was.. but that was almost 6-7 yrs ago and it was $1250 shipped to my door step.

That is one nice mk3, I would definitely just go ahead wit the swap. 7m is the cheapest way to go. Just slap some coilovers on there and drive the $h!t out of it.

[Ratman]

Originally Posted by supraheelfan

Just make sure you get the ecu to match the new engine (match the yellow plug ecu to yellow plug harness 87-88 and vice versa with the grey plug 89-92)...........
That is one nice mk3, I would definitely just go ahead wit the swap. 7m is the cheapest way to go. Just slap some coilovers on there and drive the $h!t out of it.

Thanks for the ECU wiring tip. Man the last time I swapped an engine was in 1970 (big V8) or so....but I just did a timing belt/waterpump on a '91 Accord. I'm not used to so little room to get a hand in to get parts on/off.

Looking for an 7MGTE long block now.

[cre]

I wouldn't go used. Anything that old (especially that's probably been sitting outside in a high humidity environment) should be rebuilt anyway. Stick with the devil you know and just rebuild it or have it rebuilt.

[Ratman]

Originally Posted by cre

I wouldn't go used. Anything that old (especially that's probably been sitting outside in a high humidity environment) should be rebuilt anyway. Stick with the devil you know and just rebuild it or have it rebuilt.

That's prolly good advise, but those Japanese engines with only 60000 kilometers on them should be damn good, but a little expensive.

I have priced a reground crank kit for it. I'd just as soon get a core short block for the crank and rods. It's be kind of a fun challenge to do the work since I'm retired and am not in a rush.

[cre]

Yeah, they always "sound" good. They look even better when you get a one minute video of it running but it doesn't really tell you anything. I worked for a very large US company selling such engines (we had to replace them all the time)... trust me, if you buy one, rebuild it before you ever drop it in. It's not just about cylinders pitting or the head gasket going out either, there are a lot of seals and hoses throughout the engine which age poorly. I'm not saying don't do it, I'm just saying that whatever you put in should be rebuilt accordingly.

Once in a blue moon you get lucky as hell though. A few years back a guy on Supra Forums was tearing down his JDM sourced engine to rebuild before installing and found it had not only been freshly rebuilt but VERY thoroughly upgraded.