MR2QIK

How'd you get that working?

Nice car dude! First saw one when in KL (before they were eligible for import here). Test drove a few locally & noticed they really drive a lot better with a nice free flowing exhaust. Still considering buying one actually. A black one would match my black MR2 turbo in the garage :) lol Hows yours been going after a good amount of time on the road? Any maintenance issues/dramas? Only gripe I had was the 4speed transmission, 1st gear felt too long.

Quickie I took of yours:

Cheers dude! Back @ ya. Got a new prime lens, so got my bokeh on these days....lol

Cheers dude! I see you're building one too Let me know if you have any dramas.

Sure dude, that'd be great. Jus give me a quick lesson or two as you go along. One of my 2012 goals was to improve my photography....hehe

Cheers boys. ZR6XY, yeah, I remember see your ride & some pics of it floating around there & afterwards. Cool car dude. Was a good meet, I like seeing some variety as I tend to frequent MR2 events only.

With its best friend Tommi: Thanks Racesolutions in Penrith for the long nights: At the AllAboutStance meet: It's running well @ the moment. There's usually a paranoid period after a rebuild, so I'm slowly starting to regain my confidence in it again. Completed the first 500km of the run in, so another 500 to go before I do the oil change & give it a new powertune to compensate for the lower comp/increased displacement. Have a busy work schedule these days (including a few trips abroad), so will likely get around to that around May. For those of you who don't know 3SGTE's, somewhere around the 500hp+ mark they have a tendancy to crack blocks between Cylinder 2 & 3 due to the water gallery's design (or over-boring in some cases). The 5S-FE block (yes, from Camry's, Celicas etc) is actually of a stronger cast, with more meat & thickness around the water pump area too. Most of the high-hp 3SGTE's around the world actually use 5S blocks & they've been proven to hold up (no reports of any cracking) @ 1000hp. Sleeving the 3SGTE block is also an option, but given mine failed & the lack of proven aftermarket sleeves for the 3S, I pretty much gave up on the 3S block. That's all for now, wish me luck that it holds up.

Back @ home & loving it. Got a much deserved wash after it sitting around for a few months.

Dummy fitment of oil cooler fittings/lines: Motor raised back in: Had a little electrical drama with my alarm etc, which delayed start up, but once I sorted those, she cranked over without issue. Replaced the vaccuum lines again, set timing, checked for leaks etc etc. Matt/Hitman gave it a quick look over & it was pretty much spot on for run in tune (a bit richer than before due to displacement change & lower C/R).

After modifying the coolant passages on the block to suit the Apexi gasket/3S head & original coolant flow design: Starting to come together: Powdercoated the valvecover & intake manifold: Was a pain to clean out the valvecover after sandblasting (had to dissemble & spend hours cleaning it). Happy with the result though.

Block as it arrived after machine work: Engine dropped: The elements weren't kind to the old bottom end:

New pistons & HG: Block from a mate in QLD:

^ HAHA Cheers! So been a long time since I posted here. A lot has happened with the SW20. Developed a coolant temperate issue, which was eventually diagnosed to be another cracked block. Happy times Pretty much give up on 3S blocks (cracked both unsleeved & sleeved blocks now). Pondered moving onto a new project, but couldn't bring myself to do it, so 3rd rebuild. 5SGTE Since it was already a stroker motor (Gen3 based), wasn't a huge drama parts wise. Breakdown below: 98 5SFE block CP 87.5mm off the shelf pistons (C/R of approx 8.5:1) 5S crank (re-using from my previous bottom end) Pauter I-beam rods (re-using from my previous bottom end) ARP fasteners/head studs (re-using from my previous bottom end) Gen3 water & oil pump (re-using from my previous bottom end - very new - less than 20k on them) Apexi 1.1mm MLS HG HKS Gen3 timing belt New bearings (King Bearings again) Gen3 sump (required a bit of tampering to mate to the 5S block) 5S rear main seal 3S main caps (line-bored) Removing the factory oil cooler & running solely with my aftermarket unit (simpler/less mess) Required new oil cooler fittings/lines Quick breakdown of 5SGTE block work: Deck plate boring & honing Tapping in for the alternator bracket, axle carrier Line-boring for the 3S main caps Drilling/elongating water galleries to increase flow with the Gen3 cylinder head Blocking the oil feed for counter balanced yadda yadda yadda Minor sump modification for use with Gen3 dipstick/union/tube I made the decision not install oil squirters & to stick with regular ARP head studs (not exxy L19's etc). It's very much a street car & whilst it will likely see E85 in its future, I don't intent to push the envelope too far with this one.

A few more pics I took the other day: