Quote:
Originally Posted by DieselHybrid
Funny- Thanks! That is a great suggestion. I'm sorry I missed that in your earlier post. My only concern is that the Echo FD was designed for a rather low-revving engine putting out <100bhp in a car weighing ~2,000lbs, while the XRS 2zz-ge motor was designed to pump out nearly 200bhp while spinning up to 8,400rpms in a vehicle that weighs ~2,700lbs. Can the Echo reliably handle these higher loads?
|
First off, I never said that the axle or final drive could handle it
. You must do a little work in lightening the car (if possible), and I sure hope you aren't revving to 8,400 rpm
.
Also, consider the manufacturer's point of view. They design the axles and transmissions to hold up under much harder abuse than the average driver will ever deliver to the drive-train of any vehicle they produce. As a result, most drive-train parts are over engineered by as much as 400% from the factory. That is proven time and time again by tuners that keep the bottom end, pistons, cams, valves, clutch plates, etc. of their Honda, Nissan, Toyota, or any of the luxury variations, and still boost with 10 psi or higher on turbos. Nonetheless, this must all be taken with a grain of salt. You must understand that the stock variation is more likely to last longer than a swap from a lower end vehicle. It is just the way it is.
When you take the axles to the machine shop (if you need to, I have not done this kind of swap myself) you should do a tremendous amount of research beforehand. First, check the length required to fit in your wheel wells. If you need the axles to be longer, check which (if any) half-shafts will work, or if it is to be a custom fit up. Second Check the torque rating in the Echo and the XRS, Horsepower means nothing compared to torque. If they are fairly similar, there is a good chance it's going to be a good swap. Also, (SHAMELESS PLUG ALERT!!!) check out
Monkey Wrench Racing, because those guys work day in and day out on your engine and mine. They are a helpful bunch, and will probably answer most of your complicated questions. Hope that helps.