Current state of Previa modification?

Is there anything notable that doesn't come up in typical searches? I tried finding out if there's been any motor swaps aside from another Previa, or if the Previa motor is sealed specially for its mounting angle and I can't find anything. There's also little to no information on just about anything else. Anybody know anything, or have one? Weighing it off against just buying a wagon, but tuning a minivan just sounds like stupid fun. I'm mainly curious if anyone's fit either a different 4-cylinder or straight-6 under there, but would love to see anything else people have crammed under that car. I'm wondering if the 3.0 Venza motor would be a nice drop-in, barring any kind of special changes for a 75-degree mounted motor...

Why not look at warming over the supercharged mill instead? With Megasquirt and other basic mods there must be some power to be gained.

I was wondering how much boost the block could take before blowing up. Couldn't find an answer so I just assumed I would be stuck with stock pressure

Rymel wrote: I was wondering how much boost the block could take before blowing up. Couldn't find an answer so I just assumed I would be stuck with stock pressure

Never assume. Just because it hasn't been done doesn't mean it isn't possible.

Boost till it blows, insert LSx/T56?

Rumor is the "drift previas" were sporting turbos and 400hp. Never found anything beyond that.

Stock sc14 supercharger has some details floating around the web for use as an Mr2 upgrade. I think the max rpms were the main factor.

Wait til Swank Force one sees this- he'll know.

The 4agze will hold plenty of power to turn that thing hilarious.

Whay I don't know is how much power the sc14 will generate. I'd just add turbo.

Doesn't look like an easy swap candidate to me ...

I would think the simplest way to massively increase the power potential on a supercharged previa would be to add a turbo and create a compound-charger setup with the turbo blowing into the super. Normally that's pretty complicated but most cars dont already have the supercharger installed and tuned for. The real question there would be where you could mount the turbo.

If you just leave the supercharger, i would look into a pulley change, intercooler upgrade, and some kind of pre-charger water/meth injection. IF you're not concerned about MPG you could also look into a rear gear swap for increased acceleration.

I wasn't assuming I couldn't turn up the boost, I just didn't want to assume because I didn't know. I heard the drift Previas sported around that much power too, but not much information past that. Arthur that's why I had to ask regarding a swap...it's damn near sideways (75 degrees). But I don't actually know if the motor has anything special to compensate for the orientation, so I can't just assume "just change the motor", especially with zero examples online. Twin charging was on my mind for long term but I have no idea where the turbo would go. I have a strict 2-seater as my daily so this has to perform people mover duties on occasion for road trips, so I have keep MPGs at least in an "acceptable" range. Or run two tunes. Can I do that with a Toyota? I recall Hondata can switch between two tunes, but never messed with Toyotas

I would start with a wideband and Megasquirting (or your standalone of choice) the stock SC engine to allow for a degree of tunability, then start messing around with smaller pulleys and intake/exhaust mods. I know that the 75* motor has a special oiling system to compensate for the angle so a swap is probably out unless you wanted to hack the crap out of the unibody. Your simplest option will definitely be to improve on an engine that's already designed to fit the car, no doubt. So start with typical FI mods (more boost, more fuel) and go from there.

Ok, that sounds good. Is there any information about said special oiling system?

I dont think there's any real point in thinking about a swap. There's no reason to believe you couldnt get 400-500hp out of that engine with nothing but a set of forged pistons and a bunch of air crammed into it.

Personally, one of the first things i would recommend is to look into the microphone setups people have built to listen for knock using a set of headphones (or even the radio if you wanted..). I'd also look into upgrading the intercooler to the greatest extent possible because even if you DO go for a compound setup, the post-SC plumbing and intercooler would probably not need to be changed again, so do it right the first time, early on.

As far as where to put the turbo on a compound setup, your options seem to range anywhere from the middle of the car, to the rear of the car. You're going to have a long charge pipe no matter what you do, but it really doesnt matter. Intake plumbing, oil plumbing, and exhaust piping will all be larger practical concerns.

ArthurDent wrote: Doesn't look like an easy swap candidate to me ...

Looks like a 4x4 V8 truck engine/trans/tcase with an AWD case would be right at home.

Sure, except he'd have to cut the hell out of the thing and make a ton of work for himself trying to put it back together as a viable family vehicle.

I'm failing to see any clearance issues there, other than up.

An lsx would require using the heads as inner seat base bolsters. Any boxer motor would work with a different intake and trans adapter but at those power levels you should just turbo the stock motor. I would think 200 hp would be just replacing the sc with a turbo and running similar boost.

Plenty of room near the exhaust manifold for a turbo. Some shielding would be essential.

Vigo wrote: You're going to have a long charge pipe no matter what you do, but it really doesnt matter. Intake plumbing, oil plumbing, and exhaust piping will all be larger practical concerns.

Seems to me that if you warmed over the supercharger a bit, you'd have an excellent start to a twin-charged, remote-turbo setup.

Of course, I think there are better platforms for a quick people mover. Swapping a V8 into an Astro is going to give you hilariously more power, and it's easier to boot.

Osterkraut wrote: Of course, I think there are better platforms for a quick people mover.

People see the mid engine layout and assume they handle well. I think Previas drive like crap and if you are over 5,10" they are uncomfortable since the seat will not drop down.

I was under the impression that the previa motor was just behind the driver, so the passengers in back would be the only ones complaining about a V8 in the way.

Osterkraut wrote: Of course, I think there are better platforms for a quick people mover. Swapping a V8 into an Astro is going to give you hilariously more power, and it's easier to boot.

Just dont hit anything, I remember in high school, a classmates dad died in one, hit a tree at ~25 mph, took a while to confirm it was the heart attack before the impact that actually got him. Those vans are so hilariously unsafe I'm not sure how they were sold for so long.

Kenny_McCormic wrote: I was under the impression that the previa motor was just behind the driver, so the passengers in back would be the only ones complaining about a V8 in the way.

Osterkraut wrote: Of course, I think there are better platforms for a quick people mover. Swapping a V8 into an Astro is going to give you hilariously more power, and it's easier to boot.

Just dont hit anything, I remember in high school, a classmates dad died in one, hit a tree at ~25 mph, took a while to confirm it was the heart attack before the impact that actually got him. Those vans are so hilariously unsafe I'm not sure how they were sold for so long.

While I appreciate your anecdotal evidence, for whatever reason the empirical evidence shows that the Astro has the lowest driver fatality rate from 2002-2005. Now, driving habits and vehicle use probably have a lot to do with that, but numbers are numbers.

and don't look up crash testing videos on Previas.