Engine  |  Smallport 4A-GZE Swap

The original 4A-GE engine in the Corolla GT-S was quite advanced and very powerful for it's size at the time of it's introduction. The 4A-GE was the world's first mass-produced 4-valve per cylinder engine. Production started in 1983, and the DOHC 16-valve 1.6L engine put out 112hp in it's North-American spec. This naturally-aspirated engine provided a very enjoyable driving experience in the AE86, and it was well suited to the car's weight and it's small size allowed for a very balanced car. The same basic design would continue for more than 20 years from it's introduction, and would be used in many racing series, most notably the Formula Altantic open-wheeled racing series in the USA. Over the years Toyota would further develop the 4A-GE from it's original specification ending it's production run with 4 naturally-aspirated versions and 2 supercharged versions. The 3rd generation of naturally-aspirated engines were the first-mass produced 5-valve per cylinder engines.

The 2nd generation supercharged 4A-GZE engine from the Japanese-only AE92 Corolla GT-Z was chosen for my AE86 GT-S. This engine was chosen due to it's power/torque ratings while keeping completely stock reliability and vehicle weight balance. The 2nd generation 4A-GZE is a 165hp 1.6L 4-cylinder engine with a Toyota SC12 supercharger pumping approximately 10psi of boost into the combustion chambers. While earlier 4A-GZE engines used in the MR2 were basically a lower-compression largeport 4A-GE with a supercharger added, the later 2nd generation engines were updated with a newer-design head with smaller intake ports to boost low-RPM torque. The newer engines also feature coated pistons with higher compression and piston squirters to help cool the pistons. Also added was a distributor-less ignition system and an extra oil-drain to keep oil out of the intake on hard left cornering.