3S-FE vs 3S-GE Is there a BIG difference between em' ?

[0TNIC]

my car still aint gutless like people say they are

:P:P:P

Ever driven a fast car?

yes i have actually.....

and i drive pies car

i have driven many cars but am yet to try mums airtrek (somehow her partner aint too keen on it) but with my old job i got to drive many many cars and some where very powerful n fast

[AJz]

I think NZ new models come with the 2.2l 5SFE

Yea they do, we used to have one, speedo goes to 240k. they are alot slower in comparison with a 3sge.

[Taurex]

Thank y'all for so interesting replies!
Frankly, I didn't even expect to get so many different opinions from you. What I will do is I'll try to find the best celica for the money I've got (10-12 grand) regardless it's version. SS2 and SS3 would be better of course 'cause they simply better equiped ones. I hope I can find a decent celica for myself.

[GT4 20]

Taurex
There are plenty of Celicas out there to choose from. The SS versions aren't 'better equipped' - they just have a body kit so only cosmetic changes.
Gary

[Caveman]

For reliability and economy i'd get a 3sfe. The fe motors are tuned for torque between 2000-4000rpm. This makes them a lot nicer to drive around town as the torque is where you want it. They aren't exactly the boy racer model either so chances are they've had a good life, unless the son has been borrowing mums car .

My 3sge has absolutly not guts untill 3000rpm then takes off at 4000rpm. Its fast and I like it pity about the 10k/L I get.

If you do buy the nana spec you'll be wanting a faster car, if you get the race spec you'll be wanting an economical car.

[Perky]

Yes. Consider what you actually want out of the car. And test drive them.

I have a 3S-GE Curren. I wanted the sportier engine so I didn't even drive an FE but I have seen a graph of the flatter torque curve of the FE engines and I suspect that they wouldn't feel that different around town. As 1998 says, the GEs are a bit gutless until 3-4000 revs. I've just taken my car for a road trip around the South Island and I really enjoyed the passing power at higher revs, but around town it does not really feel like a fast car.

Another consideration might be the transmission. I wanted a manual but if I was looking for an auto I'd be sure to test drive the FE. My feeling is that autos often don't mate well with peaky engines -- unless you drive with your foot to the floor, they tend to change up before the power arrives. Of course, the auto would take away some of the economy gains of the FE.

Both FEs and auto transmissions seem to be more common.

As for economy; I never quite emptied the tank but I think I'd have been lucky to see 600km. cf Speedsterchick.

[BlakJak]

Perky: Good post.
I hunted hard to get my 3SGE Auto Caldina, and my experience jibes with yours and other comments - lacks power untill higher in the rev range. The 'Power' option helps keep the revs high between changing, but so does planting foot But the big thing I miss is the ability to take off fast - get caught every now and then trying to get up momentum to get across fast moving streets for right turns, etc.

Still think that when I drove down to Wellington, the 3SFE would have been painful... so its not a bad compromise

[0TNIC]

i drove from welly to auck and back in my car and it was fine, i kept up to pies on the way back fine and used half as much petrol than him (and yes i know his is turbo etc) i got from welly to auck on just under a tank. and i was going pretty hard on some areas

[suberimakuri]

the problem is the chassis..... spin that motor around 90 deg.

[eddiewould]

If you're buying an SSII / SSIII Celica try and find out WITHOUT superstrut. It's just a right pain in the ass when something breaks.

I'm about to spend $2100 on replacing my cars front struts and a lot of mounting hardware. (Superstrut)

NO, there is not an aftermarket option available.
Superstrut doesn't make the car handle THAT much better than normal suspension, and its not worth it imho.

[NZcelica]

IMO i have a 3SGE ST162 and my mate a 3SFE ST162. He can take off from the lights and boot it at 2000rpm and light the wheels in the dry. I do the same, and it bogs.....until 4200rpm where it takes off. Around town his 3SFE will quite happily give me an honest attempt at a race, but on the open road the 3SFE is pretty useless passing wise, the 3SGE is a dream on the open road (cept for gas mileage....yikes!)
So....
you drive round town? 3SFE
you do alot of open road kms with alot of hills, 3SGE