Engine Swap

Hey guys this is my first post in the celica forums(i am a regular in the eclipse/talon/laser fourm) Anyway, ive been looking for an AWD Turbo car for under 5k and I think i may of found one with the all-trac celica. Until recently i had no idea there was a turbo awd celica model. I know their really rare but I think ive found one, it has a bad engine and i was wondering how much it would be to get a new engine and maybe a tranny since its over 15 years old. Are these cars reliable? Do they mod well and is buying one with 150k miles a good idea? thanks for the input!

Celica`s are pretty much bomb proof. Whats wrong with the old engine, cause if its nothing major like a cracked block, it might be worth stripping the old one down and rebuilding it with newer performance parts which should last you longer than a second hand engine, and give you more HP or at least more potential for high HP depending upon what you do.

the guys im might be buying it from says theres a knocking sound from the lower left of the engine. Would rebuilding be practical/ more cheap than buying a new engine?, and should i get new pistons, rods ect if i do

also where are some good celica communities? i come from DSMs and theres a huge community like dsmtuners and here at af

Well I`m afraid its one of those take a chance moments, dont know how much second hand engines go for, as for a rebuild being cheaper, it depends whats up with it, if the crank shaft has snapped then it wouldnt be worth it as pretty much all the internals would be damaged in some way. if its just a case of a snapped/broken piston ring then its gonna cost hardly anything to repair, only your time. If your a confident maechanic then go and take a look for yourself, if not, I`d go with a recon engine and just do a straight forward swap.

Check out www.gt4oc.net and post your question in the general repairs section, dont forget to mention the knocking sound etc.