With the recent GM recalls many of the vehicles have lost value and gone down in price. This is unfortunate for current owners but provides for cheaper prices for potential buyers. One of the vehicles that is affected by this is the Pontiac Solstice and its twin, the Saturn Sky. Seeing these models going for as low as $6500 in good condition and even seeing a few pop up with sub $5000 prices with blown motors I have started thinking about the next swap. This one will be a bit out of the box again and will turn the Solstice into a 2JZ turbo beast.
The Donor
The Solstice is a great donor that has many positive factors going for on top of the great prices. As I have written previously, the Solstice manual transmission is a Toyota-sourced unit that can bolt up directly to a 2JZ using the 1JZ bellhousing. This makes the swap a great deal easier. The Solstice also weighs about 300 lbs less than a stock Supra TT so even in stock form it will be very quick.
Starting The Swap
Once the vehicle is sourced, the next step is the engine. The 2JZ-GTE VVTi engine is available from many importers for $1500-1800 coming out of an Aristo. The engines usually come with ECU and harness which helps us to save funds on the swap. The wiring harnesses can be merged between the two motors to run the engine. The transmission can be setup with the help of the following: 96-01 Chevy Blazer Clutch Plate ($300), 7MGTE Supra Pressure Plate ($200), and 1JZ Bellhousing ($300).
Making it Fit
Looking at both motors and crossmembers it seems the first obstacle is the oil pan as the Aristo motor has a front sump oil pan which would interfere with the Solstice crossmember. To solve this problem we can swap on an oil pan from a Lexus SC300 with the 2JZ-GE motor which is rear sump. Comparing the 2JZ and Solstice engine mounts we can see that they have similar proportions and with some modification we can reuse the 2JZ mounts in the Solstice.
Next Steps
The next steps would be researching how the signals get to the cluster and how all of the accessories can be integrated to retain power steering and AC. WE would also need to set up an intercooler and modify the exhaust to fit. Overall, this is a a swap that could be accomplished for less than $10,000 including the cost of the car if working on your own and it open up a world of possibilities for upgrades to the 2JZ. The only limiting factor in this setup is the rear differential which would be fine for this stock swap and even with upgrades going up to 400 ft-lbs but if that level is breached then we would need to consider something like a Ford 8.8 IRS.