I drove mine hard for several years. The engine had almost the same specs as the Gen 1 Rabbit GTI. My Miata take off wheels and tires were great for summer and winter tires helped me make it thru the winter. No major problems, exhaust gasket on the tailpipe, oil/filter changes, set of plugs. It needed a clutch when I bought it, cheap and easy. Buffeting cross winds were a problem and cornering left a lot to be desired. Easy to get air under a rear tire and sometimes also a front tire at the same time.
People (OK, at least one guy) have rallied them...
The car was also called a Toyota Vitz in other markets. That might be useful if you go searching for performance parts or suggestions.
echos are awesome, people that hate them probably also have bad marriages lol
Plenty of aftermarket...just not stateside. I think canada had a spec type series for the hatches (we only got 2drs and 4drs, no hatchie)
the seating position is a bit minivan like, especially when compared to a Tercel. If you been in a Yaris, you sit in a very similar fashion.
The trans is obviously geared for what the car is meant for...commuting. Cannot really hate on it for that. Easy button is the scion upgrade and you get a beefier trans to boot.
The rule of thumb with the 1nz is it needs rods for anything north of 9-10psi with a reasonable turbo. Which equates to around 180hp. If you need more then that in a 2000-2200lbs car, your doing it wrong or doing half mile drags.
Didnt people swap 2ZZ's into these things and make them pocket rockets? I swear ive seen a few swapped ones around. Or maybe it was that funky motor in the Scion XB's they were swapping in? I just remember them getting 150hp or more with a somewhat basic engine swap and then 180+hp with a larger motor(pretty sure it was a 2zz out of a Celica or Corolla?).
In reply to BlueInGreen - Jon (Forum Supporter) :
Baller Rimz!
In reply to kevinatfms :
The 1-NZ comes in different compression ratios. My wife's xB is something like 10:1 and the version in a Prius is 13:1 with very different cams. I remember reading somewhere that you could take the xB style cams and the Prius compression ratio to make a little screamer of a motor, although it will still be a longish stroke for the bore. That long stroke should behave nicely with a supercharger or turbo, too. At the price of this car any performance gains would have to be Challenge priced stuff if it were mine. My experiences with light cars and 100ish HP have always been fun, so this thing might be a hoot as is with 108 HP and less than 2100 lb..
In reply to kevinatfms :
TBH I do not recall ever seeing one with a 2zz swap, but its definetly doable and I am sure people have done it. 2ZZs are just hard to find without 250k on them and beat within an inch of their life.
In the Yaris community the 2zr-fe is gaining traction as a viable swap. If you source it all from a xD its literally a bolt in swap and gain about 30hp and can still run 87octane. Mighty car mods did this on Yaris Hilton, but the swap has been a thing for many years prior to that.
Ive highly considered this for my Yaris instead of finishing the turbo build just cuz of the cheap gas aspect because ultimately its still sees daily use. My 1nz with light breathing mods puts down 106whp/110wtq which is really well considering most dyno stock in the low to mid 90s.
fanfoy
SuperDork
3/15/21 8:51 a.m.
malibuguy said:
Plenty of aftermarket...just not stateside. I think canada had a spec type series for the hatches (we only got 2drs and 4drs, no hatchie)
Yup:
There are still a few Echo Cup cars kicking around in Quebec. That rally car was one. That series was the precursor to the Micra challenge. They can definitely be fun on track and less likely to roll than a Micra.
Yeah, this thing needs deeper gearing or about 30 additional turbocharged horsies to be anything but old-dog slow in a straight line.
I’m actually pretty excited to dig into this one, clean it up and do a few mods with no cares given if I ruin it.
Build thread coming soon... probably.
In reply to BlueInGreen - Jon (Forum Supporter) :
FWIW my Yaris runs 16.3s in the quarter, its a heffer in comparison to a lighter echo, and thats with a 3.72 final drive and not murdering it off the line
