hey everyone. im looking at getting a camry. i use to have a 88 camry. and was interested in getting another one for a fun daily driver. but i have afew conditions. and this is where you guys can possibly help me.

i am looking for a camry that has a S series motor in it. so what years have either a 3sfe or 5sfe. i want to get a older camry so i can drop a 3sgte in it.

i am new to the camry platform but not new to the S series motors. i currently own a 1991 celica GT with a 5sgte so this will become a reality

 

For US model Camry the 5S started in 92 and was used until 01. Prior to this the 3S was used. The 3S engine will have something written on the intake manifold in large letters such as 2000, the 5S something like 2200.

The 5S and 3S have been swapped, the 3SGTE will bolt onto the 4 cylinder trans and from what have read also V6 trans, a V6 was an option. Do some checking on this last item as the V6 trans would be stronger.

Additional features of the V6 option car are heavier front springs plus larger front disk brakes and thought rear disk brakes were standard with this engine option.

Toyota used several model V6 engines but settled in 94 on the 1MZ-FE which was used until 2003. Prior to this a 3VZ-FE V6 between 92-93 and a 2VZ-FE before this. Prior to 94 there was a year or two when several V6 engines were offered thus check this out if going the V6 route.

The trans designed changed over the years the 3SFE used an A140 hydraulic shift and later 5S an A140E electronic shift. For V6, before guessing 92 an A540H hydraulic shift was used then later an 541E electronic. The trans type is printed on a sticker on the side of the drivers door. The electronic shift uses a trans computer built into the engine computer.

Not sure how old a car your want. I prefer the Gen 3 and 4 Camry which in the US was 92-96 and 97-01. Again the 5S started in 92. If going the V6 route find a car using the 1MZ-FE engine.

A stick shift was offered but thought only for the 4 cylinder car, stick shifts are much less common.

One other issue on later model Camry (say 96ish) Toyota offered various theft prevention system. One was called the immobilizer which if the battery was disconnected then reconnected the engine would turn over but not start. The system was built into the ECU. Since you will most likely be swapping the ECU this may not be problem but something to keep in mind. The immobilizer cars have a red LED light on the dash that blinks when on.

Keep the electronic trans shift in mind. The trans will not shift through the gears without the computer required to operate the electric solenoids. Manual gear selections are possible without the computer but it will not shift from low to high automatically.

You might also check posts at the Toyotanation site, a much larger site.

 

Thanks for the information. Idealy id use the mr2 lsd trans with the 3s block. I was looking into the 80s style so they would have the 3sfe in them. I use to have a 88 camry so i wanted something like that. A flying box that could be taken to the track to whoop on some mustangs seems pretty tempting.

Like ive said i have alot of expirence with the s series hintz the 5sgte in my 91 celica. I got about 15,000 into

 

Given the high HP and low weight of the 80's cars it should give the Mustangs a go!

The 88 being early would be very basic in electronics which is good.

The same models of 4 cylinder stick shift and auto trans were used in Camry as Celica GT. Might check on the axle length as the Camry may be a wider frame car.

 

i dont think axel length to be too much of a issue. if it does become one all i would have to do is make a hybrid setup and that's not even that hard. doing a 3s swap to any s series camry would be childs play to me. heres proof lol. my old 5sfe in my celica converted to a 5sgte. some of you 5s guys maybe able to do this type of modding too

 

welcome to the forums!