4a head swap

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SirFoxx
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My tercel:: 1981 Toyota Tercel w/ 7age

4a head swap

Post by SirFoxx »

Hello--

I have two quick questions. First is, if I have a 4a head redone and swap it onto my 3a, will I lose any power?

Second question is about my rear wiper arm. I bought a new wiper blade for my rear wiper, and I noticed that my wiper arm doesnt press down hard enough to fully engage the blade. Did I buy the wrong blade, or is something wrong with the arm?
1988 DLX 4wd Tercel Wagon w/ weber (RIP)
1985 4wd Tercel SR5 (RIP)
1986 Base 2dr Hatch (RIP / PARTS)
1986 DLX 4wd Tercel Wagon with ???
1985 DLX 2dr Tercel Hatch w/manual swap
1981 2dr Toyota Tercel w/7age (RIP)
1981 3dr hatch Toyota Tercel w/Turbo 4AGE
1981 3dr hatch Toyota Tercel SR-5
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irowiki
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Re: 4a head swap

Post by irowiki »

Might have to take the arm off and bend it a bit.
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rer233
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Re: 4a head swap

Post by rer233 »

Is the spring-loaded pivot for the arm free? I've had a bunch of 'em rust up and become stiff over the years. Sprayed some PB Blaster on the pivot, worked it back and forth by hand 'till it freed up, and all's well. As for the 4a head, I think the combustion chamber volume might be a little greater than the 3a, so yeah, you might loose a little power. Why not stick with the 3a?
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83 SR5 Silver/Blue (Snowmobile/work beater)-totaled but drivable
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Petros
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My tercel:: '84 Tercel4wd w/extensive mods
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Re: 4a head swap

Post by Petros »

the 4a engine has more displacement, both the 4a and 3a engine have the same compression ratio. this means the combustion chamber on the 4a head has to be slightly larger or it would have a higher compression ratio.

It is not difficult to compare the cumulonimbus chamber size, easiest is to measure width, length and depth. More accurate would be block it up level and fill from an accurate measuring device like a graduated cylinder (used in chemistry class). you measure the volume of the combustion chamber directly this way. you can also determine how much surface to mill off the head to get the volume the same, or to even raise the compression ratio to a higher level (I do not recommend going over about 10.5:1, max. which will require premium pump gasoline).

it will still run ok, but with slightly less power with the lower CR. it should be more ping resistant on regular fuel however.
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
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