Hey everyone, i recently discovered this site and was very pleased with how detailed and kind everyone was when giving suggestions on upgrading "one's" celica, and well i have a simple question..

i have a 95 celica ST, 5 spd manual, and i want to put performance headers on it and well pretty much maximize my power output untill i can either do an engine swap or turbo charge my 7A-fe motor.. so which brand or what headers would you put on your 95 st??

thanks again, and its a pleasure to be around other celica enthusiasts.

For the ST, there's not many (if any) name brand headers available for the engine. Your best bet is to purchase one of the 4-2-1 headers from eBay - quite a few members here have them and think they're nice.

Personally, I'd just save the money, put it towards maintenance, and/or a swap fund. Getting power out of the 7A is tough and, in my opinion, not worth the money spent.

Brian

PS: Welcome to 6gc!

oh yeah?? i was looking at the 4-2-1 headers, thinking about snagging one, i also noticed a 1MZFE engine on ebay for 600 bucks, would that be a reasonable swap in the ST?? i hear there are motor mount problems with other motors if you dont have a GT... either way im very satisfied with the St model, granted its not the fastest out the gate but it is fun none the less.

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The 1MZ is gaining in popularity as the best OBDII swap in the US; at least 3 or 4 members have/or are swapping them in. You would have to have the mounts fabricated to get it in the ST but you'd have to do that with a GT as well.

Traditionally, most ST owners concentrate on enhancing the natural handling ability of the car by adding sway bars, coilovers, and other suspension bits which are effective rather than spending money on performance upgrades.

I don't really know much about them as I have a lowly GT, myself, and mostly just spend money on keeping it running well and looking pretty.

Some of the other ST members will be along shortly with better advice, I'm sure.

you cant ever go wrong with handling upgrades thats for sure, i notice mine getting a little sluggish on turns at about 70 *interstate speeds* so thats not a bad idea at at all, i appreciate all your input though, im glad i joined the site now! haha as for performance, i just cant let myself sit idly by and let my lil sports car not be all she can be.. the modifications i am most definitely gonna do is the air intake (ie, cold or short ram) and prob the headers and exhaust.. i know thats prob all i can really do, cost efficiently, i did however see a "how to turbo your 7A-fe" section but that just seems a bit much for such a low output motor..

Lower it with proper springs and struts, and have one of the best handling economy cars around. I average 35 mpg out of mine with it being stock, aside from being lowered and a K&N panel filter. Really a header is pointless on this car, and if you have any kind of visual inspection for emissions you won't pass. A true cold air might help some but it's really indifferent, you get the sound and that's really about it. The cam duration is so short, really hard to get anything out of the motor aside from turbocharging it. Pair that with a MAP sensor vs MAF, and that makes it harder when it comes to "bolt on power". You could remove the secondary cat as it's not monitored, as long as you don't have emissions anyway. The stock muffler is quite restrictive so you could replace it, again it'll be more for sound than power though. Really swapping is your only choice for worthwhile power gains. The 1MZ-FE is a good choice and it can be found locally and cheaply, versus other options that need imported. There are at least three members here that have swapped in the 1MZ-FE, I think one of them may have done it with the ST. Either way the best way to go about it would be to find a Camry/Solara donor, so that way you have just about everything you need at hand. Anyhow welcome to the forum, hope you enjoy your stay.

This post has been edited by Box: Aug 9, 2013 - 7:40 PM

get the header, it's fun! I LOVE NOISE! hahahah. that's about all you can do with an ST is create some nice sounds.

i appreciate the input box! you seem to really know your stuff, i think i'll go with sound and handling then, save up for a swap when i have time and expendable cash to do so.. and yeah im with you cheela, sound is good, really makes heads turn!! i have a nice muffler on mine, put it on a few days after i got the car since the stock one was blown out and i was getting a back pressure leak *sounded like a pissed off cats hiss* so it sounds throaty now and not like a pissed off hornet which im thankful for haha! Also, in the honest opinions of you guys would it be worth the cash dropped on a turbo kit or supercharger kit for the 7a?? i've been doing some reading and some say is a great investment and others are on the fence... also, how difficult would it be to lower my ride?? i've done engine work before but never messed with anything regarding the suspension or ride height on a car.


in my insomnia state tonight i discovered this website with this header for a 94-99 celica 1.8L, what is your thoughts??

http://www.celicaupgrades.com/1994-1999-to...r-p-132958.html

sorry for all the questions just like the input from people who are like minded about their vehicles!

This post has been edited by Radiclebradicle: Aug 10, 2013 - 1:15 AM

My car was purchased with off brand JVT headers and it gives a smooth sound to the car. Right around 3k I hear a satisfying flowing sound. I've never had issues with the headers. Also, it looks much better than the stock manifold. If it gets raspy just throw up a longer resonator, there's room.

thanks for the info Ifwechoose, im gonna price out and purchase a 4-2-1 and see what kind of sounds i can get out of my ST

For the cost of turbocharging or supercharging you'll easily match or surpass the cost of a V6 swap. For the most part the 7A is a stout and resilient motor, but it was never meant for performance. Just in case you're new to Toyota nomenclature, FE designates and economy head where as GE designates a performance head. You may say, but the 1MZ-FE ends with FE so it's an economy engine too! Why would I want another economy engine? Simple, that economy engine pushes out 200 hp and 214 ft lbs of torque naturally. Which is more than enough for a 2,400 pound FWD car on the street. All the while you still get 30 mpg or more. Sounds like a win win scenario to me.

As far as lowering your car goes, it depends if you go with springs and struts or coil-overs. How low do you want to go? If you only want to drop 1.5" or so then springs are a good way of going about it. If you want to drop more than that by a substantial amount then you'll need coil-overs.

If you do get a header, remember to get some heat-wrap for it as well. Another thing, the header and down-pipe marketed for our car is really for a Corolla. You'll have a gap between the new down-pipe and the second cat of the stock exhaust. Good time to remove the cat and join everything together with a glass-pack.

This post has been edited by Box: Aug 10, 2013 - 1:35 PM

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Beautiful, thank you box, that was extremely informative. and yeah, where i live the roads aren't kept up very well so i'll only lower it about 1-1.5" so i wont bottom out very often. and i am relatively new to toyota's, i have always been a fan though knowing they are great engines if you keep em up well.

This post has been edited by Radiclebradicle: Aug 10, 2013 - 3:59 PM

You have a few choices when it comes to springs. A lot of people like Megan Racing springs. I personally like the Tein springs, though you have to be careful with counterfeits when buying online. Eibach also makes springs, and I think Tanabe does as well. TRD made springs but rather they still do or not I don't know, the people that have them like them though. Pair any of them with a set of KYB GR-2 struts and you'll be good to go.

This post has been edited by Box: Aug 10, 2013 - 4:23 PM

Regarding Header and CAT converter:

Appreciate anyone's experience...

Instead of Header replacement, has anyone just punched out the in-line CAT converter? Or install a header and punch out the CAT?

On my prior Gen 5 Celica at 150K miles, I developed a manifold exhaust leak. When removing discovered the CAT attached to the exhaust manifold was plugged up which probably caused the manifold exhaust leak.

I simply punched out with a steel rod all the CAT (quite dense construction) material leaving completely flow through open chamber. Definitely noticed a difference in smoothness and slightly more responsive.

On my Gen 6 Celica, I am deciding (100k miles) whether to just punch out the converter or install a header and remove the CAT. Or maybe install header and punch out.

Thx for the help and guidance...

On my GT, there are two cats - one attached at the header and one further down in the exhaust stream nearer the muffler; the Surewin header I installed completely removed the first catalytic converter and freeing up a little power and providing a nicer exhaust note.

Hollowed cats hurt more than they help, unless it was completely clogged. Instead of the exhaust stream being smooth as such ======= it now has a bulge in the steam =====( )==== Well you get the idea anyway.

To be more thorough...I have the headers, zero cats, one resonator and an OEM type muffler. There was a very small glass pack on when I first got her. Ripped that sh*t right off and replaced the muffler with the OEM type.

The small glass pack with my set up sounded terrible, it was far too raspy for my taste. Now I have the smooth flowing sound I spoke of. Very subtle and little to no sound from 0-3k RPM. >3k and the sound start to come in!

I have a 7A-FE header for sale, The car was smashed up in the rear end so im parting out the front. The engine has only about 5000 miles on it, if that. PM me if you are interested. ill get photos up soon