Toyota Cressida engine swap

hey i have an 89' toyota cressida and i was wondering which supra engine i should swap the current one with???   which one do you think would preform better in this car.......the 2JZ-GTE twin turbo or the 7MGTE single turbo engine???   could you also help me with other performance parts that would be best for my car???   I saw the 87' cressida in your previous issue and it made me wanna get this car and i just would like some help with getting it nice.............  

I could be wrong, but wasn't the 89 Cressida a front drive plat form. I was never a fan of that particular car. It wasn't very nice looking. It was as bland as cocoa with out sugar. Why would you want to invest in building that? Don't get me wrong, it would be a first for the Cressida. For me it, would be interesting to see. I wonder if the Datsun 510 got the same response I'm giving you about the Cressida. Don't mind me, just build it and see where it takes you. If it's rear wheel drive, go for it. I know they came with a 4 banger, I'm just not sure if it was a rear or front drive. Good luck and keep us posted. Any thing can be done as long as you have the will to do it. I want that same engine for my 1997 Rav4 AWD.  
How you drive is your buisness. Remember that you're not the only one on the road!

well id say 2jz but its gonna be expensive  

Amen! I hope he has a second car while he does this thing of his. I own 4, so, for me it wouldn't be a problem. The lack of money is, though... LOL!  
How you drive is your buisness. Remember that you're not the only one on the road!

cressida aint that the toyota mark2?????  

Ok first, let me clear up a few things for you guys.

The Cressida was produced for North America until 1992 and came with an NA inline 6 called the 7mge.  All years of the Cressida have been rear wheel drive.  Around the world the car has been known as the Cressida, MarkII, Cresta and Chaser.  Outside of North America the car came with the twin turbo 1JZGTE. That's right, just like the SR20 we didn't get the good engine.  

For the North American chassis you have a few easy engine options:

7MGTE 3.0l single turbo - pretty much a bolt in but are usually high mileage. The 7M is also notorious for blowing head gaskets.

1JZGTE 2.5l twin turbo - this is the motor that was meant for the car.  You can do the swap with all Toyota/Lexus parts.  If you want a newer version, the JZX90 Chaser 1JZ is also a direct bolt in.  The 1JZ is also very cheap (I bought mine for $1100 shipped) compared to the 1.5JZ or 2JZ.

1.5JZGTE 3.0l turbo is up to you - this is made by combining a 1JZ head and a 2JZ block.  Everything with this is custom and can be expensive.

2JZGTE 3.0l twin turbo - this motor was available in the US but the sump is in the wrong location.  The easiest version to swap into the Cressida comes in the Toyota Aristo (Lexus GS300) from Japan.  

Support parts are available for all of these motors but you have to know what to ask for. 7M parts cross with the MKIII Supra, xJZ parts cross with MKIV Supra and any Lexus x300 model.  

I could go on all day with info for you but why not start with:

toyotacressida.net is a world wide Cressida forum. You have to be a member to view the forums but there is a lot of good beginner information there and links to parts dealers.

jzxproject.com focuses on the North American versions of the Cressida. You don't have to be a member to view the forums.  There is a lot of information concerning the Cressida you have.

Here is a link to my Cressida build:
http://jzxproject.com/bbs/index.php?showtopic=1221

The Cressida is a lot of work but don't give up! It can be an awesome car if you make it that way.  Let us know how it turns out.  


-Matt-Panic!  

Dang! That was a wealth of info. Where'd you pop up from? LOL! I'm not complaining at all, mind you. It's just that we need more people like you around for this type of info. You know?
I like Nissan and stuff, but my problem is that I don't get deep into the whole line of cars that they make. I stick with what I like. I've had a few 240Zs from the early 70s, a 1977 810 Maxima wagon, a slew of Sentra and half a dozen or so Toyota of different kinds. I wish I had a Supra... But why? I can't complain about what I've had, I can only worry about what I have now. Right? LOL! Any way, it is interesting to know this stuff, even though the Cressida isn't your average tuner car.  
How you drive is your buisness. Remember that you're not the only one on the road!

No matter what you do, you're probably going to have to get work done on the engine wiring harness for where it connects to your dash harness. Either a turbo 7M or 1J would be a drop in, just use your motor mounts for the 7M. If I'm not mistaken, the 1JZ was introduced in 1990. I could be wrong there though. If you can find someone who's parting out a MK3, sometimes you can get the engine for a reasonable amount. Either that or contact an engine importer, such as Kaizen Motorsports (CA), Driftmotion (CA), JHOT (TX, GA), etc. etc.

The JZ engines are more "reliable" than the 7M, but the 7M can be reliable as well. Just make sure that you lap the block, machine the head, use a MHG and ARP studs, and you should be fine.

If you can find a 7M from an 89+ I'd do that, as it has an actual 7M crank which is balanced(as opposed to the 6M crank found in pre-89 engines).

(check out supramania or supraforums for more information on the engines/swap)  

okay so I'm new to the tuner scene, normally I'm a 4x4 guy. In a stroke of panic I needed a cheap car and stumbled on a mint condition 84 cressida with the 5MGE. Now that I've done a bit of google work on my new aqcuisition, my interests are peaked and I want to build a sleeper, the info I keep finding is that everyone has the 7M how different would the swap be from a 7m to the jz1 than the 5m? Is there anyhting I can do for these park bench sized bumpers?  

Costom , custom, custom. Unless you don't like having a place to sit when you're at the beach! LOL! Just kidding. The 1JZ should fit in there nicely, but staying with the 7M is a good thought as well. I've done a little research and they all seem like good swaps. you just need to know what it is you want from your ride.  
How you drive is your buisness. Remember that you're not the only one on the road!

NOT ALL CRESSIDAS CAME WITH A 7MGE SOME CAME WITH 5MGE MOTORS  

It's still an inline 6, though. The first letter is the design designate of that particular engine design. Like the 1JZ when it evolved to a better aspirated 2JZ engine. The first number or letter is the generation of the engines build date. How do I explain it better... It's like the first gen RX7 and how it looked compared to the last gen RX7. It's the same platform except for some modifications of the smae thing. Dig? Any way, he won't go wrong putting in a 1JZ or a 2JZ. The 7MGE just isn't made for that kind of power. All that would have to be done to it would break the bank compared to a 1 or 2JZ engine. I've researched it very well. Only because I planed a turbo build for my Rav4 with the 3SFE engine and it seems as if I'm better off performing a 1JZ swap with all the modifications as a headache of a project. Coin pending, of course. In the end, though, the 7MGE is better than the 5MGE. It's the evolution of the engine to some thing better. O.K.? LOL!  
How you drive is your buisness. Remember that you're not the only one on the road!