ST215 Caldina Swap

[Alvos]

Gotta drag my ass out to Mission Hills tomorrow to check out a sweet-sounding AllTrac with the 3S-GTE "Caldina" swap. Paint job is Ferrari Light Blue. For those not familiar, this is the color:



...Yes, I'm aware that's a Bentley... but it's the same color as the AllTrac I'm looking at.

I just got off the phone with the seller, and he says it's a straight swap. No added mods; perfectly stock, minus the wee fact that it's got a ST215 motor. ::EDIT:: It has a custom airdam...not sure if that's going to conflict with the job of moving the intercooler.

i.e.: no gauge pods, standard Celica rims, original interior, etc...

The only thing that's really been changed outside of the engine bay is the exhaust, and it uses the CS hood (may have to move the top-mount A/A intercooler to the front, which isn't terribly difficult).

I'll upload pictures as soon as I get some in person.

[tankd0g]

Is it hard to put a WTA on it? Might as well use that big hole in the hood.

[still_stoned]

rally car with that color?......hmmm............gotta see the pics

[Alvos]

Originally Posted by tankd0g

Is it hard to put a WTA on it? Might as well use that big hole in the hood.

At the moment, my primary concern is moving the A/A intercooler so that it's not experiencing so much heat soak. The CS hood is a nice addition to vent the engine bay in conjunction with a front-mount IC, but it's not aerodynamically designed to get a nice airflow across a top-mount IC. My neighbor is a plumber, so he quoted me about $80 on material, and the rest of the fabrication is being done with the help of a friend of the family.

EDIT:: Okay, like halfway through typing this message, I got a call and I'm going to check the car out right now @__@ I should be back with pics in a few hours

[Alvos]

Things that will be done before the purchase: possibly redo the paintjob (nicks and scratches here and there), install a new third amp for the sound system, replace bulb in passenger side fog lamp, install new rams on the rear hatch, reupholster the front seats (possibly, but not a big deal)

Things to do after the purchase:
option a) purchase a custom hood with an intercooler-friendly scoop
option b) relocate the intercooler to a front-mount location
option c) replace A/A with W/A intercooler

[lpugfan2004]

Looks real clean let me know if u get rid of the hood i know a friend who might be interested

[tankd0g]

What do you use for an ECU with a Caldina swap if Caldinas were all automatics?

[Alvos]

Originally Posted by tankd0g

What do you use for an ECU with a Caldina swap if Caldinas were all automatics?

It still uses the Caldina ECU, it's just not racing-spec.

[spoolin_gt]

I say you keep the body the way it is and change your intercooler as your first mod. That's really killing your car because the hood vent is not meant for the A/A intercooler and you will suffer from heat soak.. A FMIC would be bad ass with that bumper...

[tankd0g]

Slightly OT but can someone tell me what the round hole next to the vent in the hood is for?

[spoolin_gt]

The st185 3sgte CS and st205 has the opening at the end of that scoop for the cams and belt..

[Alvos]

Originally Posted by spoolin_gt

I say you keep the body the way it is and change your intercooler as your first mod. That's really killing your car because the hood vent is not meant for the A/A intercooler and you will suffer from heat soak.. A FMIC would be bad ass with that bumper...

Yes, FMing the IC is definitely a priority. Even so, that's really more of a long term fix since the Caldina's stock ECU is REALLY what limits the capabilities of this car...so the first thing to do is rearrange the IC so that it's not running so hot and my timings get delayed. Then I'll look into getting an aftermarket ECU.

Supposedly, Toysport dynotuned the ECU for optimal daily-driving, but I heard that it comes locked, so if that's true then I don't know how they could have tuned it....and it definitely feels sluggish at certain points of the climb

A couple people have mentioned that I should move the Greddy intake to a CAI position, but if you look at the pictures (and maybe you can't see it so well from my dad's photos...I'm the guy with the bandana) you can actually see that there's practically a gaping hole to the right of the engine assembly. Since the motor is direct-ignition, there's no distributor/rotor assembly, which means:

a) a lot of air passes through there, which is bittersweet because it can help cool things down, but it also allows for more drag
b) I can reach right in and pop out my fuel filter without spending 1~2 hours removing and replacing everything above the driver-side front tire well

[spoolin_gt]

the intake looks good the way it is...it will suck fresh air from the vent on the hood, plus it's going through the intercooler anyways so there's really not much of a difference if it sucks hotter air..

I'm more worried about your intercooler. That hood is not designed to ram the air into the intercooler but vents the heat out. Long or short distance driving will still affect your car's performance due to heat soak.

[Alvos]

Originally Posted by spoolin_gt

I'm more worried about your intercooler. That hood is not designed to ram the air into the intercooler but vents the heat out.

Thanks for bringing that up! I haven't addressed that about 5 times now. =)

[lpugfan2004]

Originally Posted by Alvos

[IMG]
Things that will be done before the purchase: possibly redo the paintjob (nicks and scratches here and there), install a new third amp for the sound system, replace bulb in passenger side fog lamp, install new rams on the rear hatch, reupholster the front seats (possibly, but not a big deal)

Things to do after the purchase:
option a) purchase a custom hood with an intercooler-friendly scoop
option b) relocate the intercooler to a front-mount location
option c) replace A/A with W/A intercooler

Originally Posted by Alvos

The only thing that's really been changed outside of the engine bay is the exhaust, and it uses the CS hood (may have to move the top-mount A/A intercooler to the front, which isn't terribly difficult).

Originally Posted by Alvos

At the moment, my primary concern is moving the A/A intercooler so that it's not experiencing so much heat soak. The CS hood is a nice addition to vent the engine bay in conjunction with a front-mount IC, but it's not aerodynamically designed to get a nice airflow across a top-mount IC.

Nope i havent even heard you say it... not once

[spoolin_gt]

i just wanna see another fmic on a cs bumper..

[tankd0g]

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