SVX swaps you've seen???

smelt240

smelt240

Active member
Ok,I was just given a SVX. There is no drivetrain,but it comes with a junk stock motor that's been sitting outside.It had a standard tranny in it before,the guy swapped it in,then put the drivetrain in another SVX. The interior is in pretty bad shape,but the body is at least 95% rust/dent free. Im toying with the idea of a WRX setup,if I can find a wrecked donor car. I haven't seen any swaps done to the SVX,other than his manual swap that he did. Ideas??? This will be a LONG term project,I have about 6 other projects going now,but couldn't pass up a free car,esp one this unique...

 
You haven't seen any because the SVX makes a pretty aweful car. I guess you could make a highway cruiser, but it'll handle like a boat in the corners.

I love the looks of them though, and I'm sure many others do too, so it wouldn't make a terrible weekend car. See if you can fix the stock 6-cyl though. The engine was/is the saving grace of the car, and usually when I hear "SVX swap" its talking about putting the engine into lighter subarus.

 
The oem motor was pretty good for the time and is better suited to go into other cars as stated. However, the Porche motor it's based on is turbo and makes a bit more power. So that would be the only swap that might make any sense. Except for the price.

 
Stein said:
You haven't seen any because the SVX makes a pretty aweful car. I guess you could make a highway cruiser, but it'll handle like a boat in the corners.
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Wow, so harsh on the poor SVX!

Talk to gabe (SUBARUDE) He has an SVX at his yard with 85k miles on it, and doesn't want a whole lot for the motor.

Easiest thing (assuming the wiring is all intact) is just to throw another eg33 in it. It's never gonna be an awesome track car, but with some mods they handle pretty well on the street. And they're damn comfortable. I say make it work asap and drive around in luxury.

 
Only one vote for a V8...I have a 560hp 355 SBC sitting in my poor Nova,it came out of our prostock a few years ago...RWD with that might be interesting...anyway,Ill get in touch with Gabe,see whats going on with his motor. Id love to run it as a DD,Ive always liked the cars,just heard they had more troubles than the XT6s-which in my experience with 4 of those cars back in the day,were trouble.

 
I think most of the trouble is the automatic transmission. Other than that, I haven't heard much issues with them.

 
They're notorious for the electrical gremlins they have in the cabin,as well...great looking car,but in my humble opinion the motor and the Acylone(?) emblem on the hood are the only things worth using. This coming from a guy who has spent WAY too much time researching the pros and cons of that particular car.

 
Chris said:
I think most of the trouble is the automatic transmission. Other than that, I haven't heard much issues with them.
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The guy I got it from did the first 5spd swap Ive ever heard of in one,about 10 yrs ago. Used a turbo Legacy tranny,cable actuated clutch at first,then he got the hydraulic setup done,its a pretty clean swap,and pretty straightforward,now that he's done the R&D on it. And the electrical problems are what I had heard of. We had 4 XT6s around here,and nothing ever worked inside,and I always heard the SVX was worse. The PO of this one hasnt had much trouble with his SVXs though. Plus,the price was right!

 
I'd love to see a V8 SVX actually. And I agree, they do look freaken smexy and pretty dang unique as well.

Chris said:
Easiest thing (assuming the wiring is all intact) is just to throw another eg33 in it. It's never gonna be an awesome track car, but with some mods they handle pretty well on the street. And they're damn comfortable. I say make it work asap and drive around in luxury.
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Are they actually comfortable road cars though? What needs to be done to them?

 
Yes, from my experience, they're comfortable road cars. At the time I was DDing the GL. Riding a shopping card is comfortable compared to that.

The same thing that needs to be done to any car to make it handle well. Upgrade the suspension.

 
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The svx is a big fat comfy cruiser. Roll the windows down while driving in one...

My vote would be find a cheap EG33 and run it. Just go easy on the gearbox.

 
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