With everybody complaining (and for good reason) that the Toyota GT 86 / Scion FR-S / Subaru BRZ are underpowered, many American shops have found a way around the problem, thanks to the good old engine swap trick. Today we are here to talk about a FR-S that skips the ZJZ norm, going for the V8 from the Ford Mustang Boss 302.
Photo: Papadakis Racing
Don’t let the GT 86 front fascia confuse you, this is a Scion FR-S and its engine compartment is now populated by a five-liter vee eight. The project is close to completion and is being handled by Papadakis Racing.
While these guys also built tC drift car, they stressed the fact that the FR-S is a “street car with A/C and all luxuries working”. As you can imagine, this was a complex trip, with a ton of supporting mods.
Interestingly enough, while the crew specifically mentions this is a Boss 302 V8, which is indeed available as a crate engine, judging by the cylinder head it looks like a Ford Racing Aluminator XS. That would bring a bit of a financial difference, since the 444 hp Boss 302 unit is offered for around $12,000, while the 500 hp+ Aluminator XS will set you back around $16,500.
There are two types of answers to the question above, an objective one and a... not-so-objective one. We’ll quickly go over the latter by mentioning the Supra’s unit would’ve been the obvious choice.
Then there’s the reliability. Sure, you can easily push ZJZs to 700 hp, but they won’t be able to take the stress of track racing, so many of these are confined to drag racing. The Ford Racing V8, for instance, comes with forged internals straight out of the factory.
And perhaps the people who are putting this Scion Boss together simply have a thing for natural aspiration...
While these guys also built tC drift car, they stressed the fact that the FR-S is a “street car with A/C and all luxuries working”. As you can imagine, this was a complex trip, with a ton of supporting mods.
Interestingly enough, while the crew specifically mentions this is a Boss 302 V8, which is indeed available as a crate engine, judging by the cylinder head it looks like a Ford Racing Aluminator XS. That would bring a bit of a financial difference, since the 444 hp Boss 302 unit is offered for around $12,000, while the 500 hp+ Aluminator XS will set you back around $16,500.
Why was the 2JZ skipped?
There are two types of answers to the question above, an objective one and a... not-so-objective one. We’ll quickly go over the latter by mentioning the Supra’s unit would’ve been the obvious choice.
Then there’s the reliability. Sure, you can easily push ZJZs to 700 hp, but they won’t be able to take the stress of track racing, so many of these are confined to drag racing. The Ford Racing V8, for instance, comes with forged internals straight out of the factory.
And perhaps the people who are putting this Scion Boss together simply have a thing for natural aspiration...
Google News