As far as the tranny cooler, not that hard to move it or upgrade to a bigger cooler in front of the radiator.
This is what I did with mine (using an Auto cooler for my Power Steering):
Believe me, I hear you loud and clear on that. If you didn't see my intro thread, my other car beside my 4Runner is an '84 RA65 Celica GT-S. Next year when the 4Runner's buttoned up I'd like to do coilovers and an ITB build on the Celica's 22RE. It's not fast, but even in stock form, it feels amazing when I get the chance to throw it around the twisties. I really feel the Mk.III Celica is a lost gem.
I just checked out your
Celica! Man that is a nice, clean find! I like the wheels you later installed, nice touch.
It has the weight and balance of an AE86 but with more grip from the Supra IRS, and the bulletproof reliabilty of the 22RE (which feels quicker in a car that small) mated to a Supra-spec drivetrain.
I can understand the balance, but the weight? An AE86 (in coupe form) is even lighter than my MR2 at around 2200 lbs. I see on Wikipedia the MK3 Celica is listed as 2,300, but another site
http://www.celica-gts.com/mycar/technical_specs.html lists it as 2700 lbs. I found
this thread listing 1983 Brochure specs in the 2500-2700 range. Have you weighed your car yet?
Also I do agree the IRS is better for handling and that's sweet the Celica has it :-)
2ZZ is a transverse engine IIRC; is it that easy to bolt it up inline?
Nothing easy that I know of. I would just tig weld two bell housings together. It would be so cool--
BigMike
