Alright, so I haven't driven the 140 since november last year because the bushes have started to degrade to the point of where it's unsafe, most notably a balljoint almost separated. So i have a full bush kit and balljoints sitting in the parts pile. I have a full spare front end suspension setup which will be sandblasted and powdercoated and all new perishables will be replaced. The rear end will get the same treatment. This will all be done once the 2zz swap is complete.
We were driving to get coffee and Tim and Steve were talking about picking up a car with a 2zz in it and how cool it was, and i said jokingly that we should put it into the 142, and the idea was born.
We got the car back and took it for a few test runs, I was blown away at how the vvtli pushed you back into your seat, this little engine is a weapon! from 6.2k to 8.2 is just takes off! Then i started imagining this engine in a car that weighs 50kg lighter. The 2zz and getrag combo (140kg) weigh around 60kg lighter than the b20 with m40 (200kg). There should be roughly 100kg removed from the front once complete (a few other things are getting removed)
The next step was to start making an interior loom and getting rid of everything that isn't needed for the 142. This took about 2 full days of playing with spaghetti, i was pretty delirious just staring at the hundreds of wires, im sure Tim remembers me constantly trying to cut the obd port out.
The loom is complete!
I was looking around for a rwd adapter belhousing to use a supra 5 or 6 speed, but at $800 for the adapter alone i wasn't too interested as there are still many parts that would need to be bought for it to work.
As a man who loved a bargain i started searching around for an alternative, when i came across a 2zz rwd conversion into a fwd celica on some random russian website (what could go wrong following this right?) He used a getrag 250g that bolted up into 2 points, and using some fab work made 3 others. The standard 2zz flywheel and pressure plate are used and the bmw clutch disc sandwiched between the two.
Steve found me a bmw that exactly matched the criteria and i bought it. This bmw was used in the bathurst sprint last year and came 20th? I think.
So the bmw clutch disc was a 228mm disc and would never work, so online i went and bought a 215mm disc and Tim and i cut and clearanced the starter motor and got the clutch aligned and box bolted on with 1 bolt. Turned the motor over and wallah! all gears turn, were onto a winner so far!
The next step is to make up some adapter and strengthening plates to get the box completely bolted on and to test the clutch and whether the throw out bearing can be used or need to be made longer or shorter.
I'm currently modifying the pedal box for the bmw clutch master and the bmw brake master for a boosterless system. As my rebuilt brake master has just started leaking and will be thrown out.
I'm also getting a plate made up to flip the intake manifold so it can then be facing forward, instead of at the firewall. Most people cut and weld this, but i think an adaptor plate will work better and will help others to make this conversion a little easier.
