just bought a 79 hatch

[Cynical3liss]

Alright, $400 for a 79 corolla hatchback, runs great, 144k miles, looks like crap inside and out.

Any aftermarket parts avail. to make these cars fun or not really?

My other car is a 89 camaro and there are tons of things that can be done to them easily and lots of resources to learn how. Anything like that for an old corolla?

Also, is anything compatible from newer ones? seats, rims....anything really

[danbennett2u]

Yes, there are lots of parts available for that engine, you can even swap in some alternate ones.. you can go as fast as you want with the 2tc or 3tc engines, which is what you have under the hood if you are in the us. They make cams, pistons, weber carbs, for this engine. People have even added turbos to this engine. It is a hemi pushrod engine, and is very popular to customize in puerto rico from what I hear.

[Cynical3liss]

Wow, thank you very much...I need to find out what engine it is for sure, and then start working on getting it a lil power...just doing a search for 79 corolla doesn't turn up too much, but having some specifics like the engine would. Swapping it might be a good idea too..I'll have to look into it.

Any specific part names or numbers, like that 2tc 3tc would be very helpfull in finding things. Thanks a ton- Chris

[Toyrolla]

Originally Posted by Cynical3liss

Wow, thank you very much...I need to find out what engine it is for sure, and then start working on getting it a lil power...just doing a search for 79 corolla doesn't turn up too much, but having some specifics like the engine would. Swapping it might be a good idea too..I'll have to look into it.

Any specific part names or numbers, like that 2tc 3tc would be very helpfull in finding things. Thanks a ton- Chris

Your engine is a 2TC.

A 3TC from a 80-82 will drop right in.

You can also pick from the following:

2TG - Twin Cam version of the 2T engine.
3T-GTE - Twin Cam turbocharged version of 3T engine.
4AGE - 16valve or 20valve versions.
4AGZE - Supercharged version of the 4AGE engine.

If your car is automatic, you can swap the tranny for a T50 manual tranny. T50 trannies came in 2 flavors:

Earlier version - Pre '84 RWD Corollas
Later version - 84-86 AE86 RWD

[Oz]

4AGE Powah

[tuquoque]

I have a 78, will the 4age drop in or how difficult is the swap? what advantages do the 3tc offer over the 2tc? Are there any websites you would recommend that i can go to so i don't have to ask a million ?s?

[Toyrolla]

Originally Posted by tuquoque

I have a 78, will the 4age drop in or how difficult is the swap? what advantages do the 3tc offer over the 2tc? Are there any websites you would recommend that i can go to so i don't have to ask a million ?s?

2TC is 1.6L, 3TC is 1.8L.

A 4AGE will fit. It's just a matter of working out the ECU and wiring harness, which you will need to order with the engine.

Most of what you're looking for can be found all over the net. The fun part is searching.


A couple of sites to consider:

Club4AG: www.club4ag.com
ToyGarage: www.toygarage.com

Good luck,

[Cynical3liss]

Lost where this thread was for a lil bit, just found again.

I have the 2tc with a manual 5-speed tranny...forget the number on the tranny.

=) I'm gonna spend tonight looking up those engines and seeing how much they range from....don't wanna dump too much into this car, but could be fun to get it runnin faster.

Thanks a ton once again for all the info on engines that can switch in..I really don't no too much about cars, but I am learning...the net is a great place for it.

[Cynical3liss]

wow, those engines look cheap from what im seeing so far....just replaced a 5.7liter 350....and we'll just say it costed a lil bit more......a little bit more than 3 times most of the 4AGE's I'm seeing on ebay


what exactly is AE86? and TE37?

and how can i tell if im front or rear wheel drive...car doesnt have much power..hard to tell really.

[Oz]

FWD VS RWD? Do a burnout

[Cynical3liss]

heh ok, wasnt sure if this car would...it will..just wasnt thinkin about it...have only had a manual for like a week now....and it is lucky if it can get up to 60mph =/ ...oh well..ill check that tomorrow.....

so after reading a lot, theres some sort of law about no engines over 30-40k miles in japan? anyone know of cheapest way to get ahold of one of these....ebay, 750+2-300 s&h seems to be the norm for 16 or 20 valve 4age engines.....also tryin to figure out the diff between silv top, black top, pro's and cons for 16-20 valve and if its worth it to go with the supercharged one for an extra 2-300...still lookin for more good info, tons of crap...few good sites ive found.

[Cynical3liss]

rear wheel drive....glad too....so far ive been happy with everything ive found in this car....was suprised it was a 5-speed, runs great, passed emissions, rear-wheel drive....tons of guages which is cool.....pretty standard soundin engine swap....

i might try and clean the car up a bit...maybe get a cheap cdplayer and hide it in the glove compartment or some crap and replace the stock speakers...add 2 other small ones somewhere hidden away too

anyone know how the seats on these cars work with other seats? Ill check myself, but itd b nice to hear if anyone else has swapped newer seats from diff or same vehicle...maybe even power seats of some kind

[Oz]

Don't bother. Drive it till it dies.

[Cynical3liss]

=) well i actually get decent deals on audio crap....so I can get the car to sound decent for under $100..just got it a pioneer cd player for 30....lil worse than my camaro's deh-6600...but who needs pretty dolphins and crap

..or if you meant dont bother replacing the engine, I think it could be worth it, I actually like the look of the car a lot. It looks much better than the other year corolla hatch's and honda's like it....it has curves..I like this car a lot, and not everyone in the world has one. When I fixed up my camaro, no one notices, there are tons of late 80's camaros and firebirds, and tons with the same exact 5.7 liter tpi 350...I don't see many nice lookin old corolla hatchbacks =)

The seats I just want to know for if I stop by a junk yard...couldn't hurt to look while I'm there, but it'd help to look for something that won't be too hard to fit in there...just bolt right in would be nice.


As far as engines go, the jdm stuff seems more than reasonable, I am talking to a few ebay sellers (I'm eDirectElectronics on ebay) and it looks like I could get a 30k 4age silvertop with 5 speed rwd tranny, wiring harness and ecu for around $900 after shipping...not bad in my opinion...shipping is quite a bit.


I need to know more about the differences between the silver and black top ones, and 16 and 20 valve. I have heard the 16 is much more practical, cheaper and parts more available, but if I'm gonna upgrade the engine why not get a decent one for a lil more and get the 20.

Anything in specific to look for in these engines? I know they can varry quite a bit.


I have been focusing a lot on the 4age so far though..I'll have to look into what could be done to the 2tc also, which would be better? Replacing with a 30-40k 4age or fixing up an old 2tc?

Thanks-Chris

[Cynical3liss]

Ok, another quick q..would I need to replace the stock 5-speed rwd tranny I have now if I went with the 4age, or is it alright to just keep mine as is?