Tuning the Toyota 2ZR

"Comprehensive guide to tuning and performance parts on the Toyota 2ZR engine!"

In this article we outline options for your 2ZR tuning and report on the premier modifications. Toyota 2ZR really good project engines and with a few sensible motorsport parts like remapping, turbo improvements and camshafts you will greatly increase your driving enjoyment.

Just because particular upgrades are are common on 2ZR it doesn't mean its worth having, we shall greatest upgrades that will give your 2ZR the best power gain for you spend.

Altering your 2ZR cam will make a dramatic difference to the engine torque. Choosing a higher performance cam profile raises the torque accordingly.

NB: Fast road cams commonly raise the power through the rpm band, you could sacrifice a little bottom end bhp but the higher rpm power will be better.

Motorsport and race cams, raise the higher rpm power band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.

A Motorsport cam will just annoy you whilst driving in heavy traffic.

You should ideally match your bhp range to your usage of the car so for a daily driver stick with a fast road 2ZR cam

Some 2ZR engines respond better to different cam durations check your engine on a rolling road.

The engine timing and fuelling also will make differences on the power gains you'll hit.

Longer valve durations can alter the power band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.

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Guide to the best 2ZR tuning mods & Upgrades

  1. ECU Map Tuning & Remaps

    Some cars may require a piggyback ECU's or aftermarket ECU's to change the OEM map, but remapping is the most vital step of your tuning project to fully maximise your mods. Expect 10-20% on NASP engines and 30-40% on turbocharged units.

  2. Strengthen Your Engine

    Tuned cars will show up weaknesses, typically in the turbochargers, clutch and internal engine components. Whilst most engines can cope with mild tuning mods, TorqueCars recommend that you upgrade the internal components before these weak spots manifest themselves.

  3. Mods that Remove a Restriction

    A restricted intake or exhaust will have an impact on your performance, so use a better flowing air filter/induction kit and better flowing exhaust (sports cats where legal are a good option) whenever your tuning creates a flow restriction. Turbo engines also benefit from intercooler upgrades as these resist heat soak for longer periods of time.

  4. Mods that Improve Fuelling

    Every tuning project will aim to increase the air supply, but fuel supply is just as vital and will need to match the air the engine can utilise,  a fuel pump and injector upgrade are usual mods, but also in many cases the fuel regulator will need improvement.

  5. Mods to Provide better Airflow

    Increasing the air supply is just as essential as improving fuelling, we suggest you look at head mods (flowing and porting, 5 angle valve jobs), fit bigger valves, fast road cams and forced induction upgrades (adding a better flowing turbo) to improve air intake.

Stage 1 modifications: Remaps/piggy back ECU, Drilled & smoothed airbox, Panel air filters, Fast road camshaft, Sports exhaust manifold, Intake headers.

Stage 2 modifications: Ported and polished head, Fast road cam, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, induction kit, fuel pump upgrades, high flow fuel injectors.

Stage 3 modifications: Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Twin charging conversions, Competition cam, Engine balancing & blueprinting.

The 2ZR power trains respond well to upgrades and we note that there are quite a few choices of mods and performance parts about.

ECU mapping helps release the full potential of all the upgrades you've fitted to your 2ZR.

It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NASP engines, but your mileage often differs on the upgrades you've applied and the condition of your engine.

Forcing more air into your 2ZR is the whole point to any tuning job.

Air Intake manifolds take the air during the suck phase from the filter and allow it to be pulled into the engine cylinders with fuel for the squish phase.

Structure and rate of flow of the Intake headers can make a noticeable difference to to fuel atomisation and engine efficiency on the 2ZR.

It's not uncommon that intake manifold are improved through aftermarket parts, although a few car makers provide reasonably well designed intake manifold.

Increasing the 2ZR valve size, doing a bit of 3 or 5 angle valve jobs and porting and head flowing will also improve performance, & importantly will raise potential for a greater performance increase on other modifications.

Turbo upgrades

NASP engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your 2ZR

The more air you can get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes massive power gains.

If the engine is turbo charged upgrades are going to net you a larger power gain and we find turbo engines use stronger components.

There are weak spots for every engine, with some being incredibly solid and some just sufficiently able to handle stock power

We recommend you find these limits and fit higher quality components to cope with the power.

It's not unheard of mechanics spending a loads of money on turbo upgrades on the 2ZR only to have the motor throw a rod just after it's used on the roads.

Larger turbo chargers tend to experience a bottom end lag, and smaller turbo chargers spool up really quickly but won't have the high rpm power band gains.

Over the last 20 years the choice of turbo units is always evolving and we now see variable vane turbo units, permitting the vane angle is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end bhp and torque.

Twin scroll turbo units divert the exhaust gases into a couple of channels and feed these at differently designed vanes in the turbo. They also help the scavenging effect of the engine.

It is common that there is a restriction in the air flow sensor MAF/MAP on the 2ZR when loads more air is being fed into the engine.

We see 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor sapped torque at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large torque gains, although harder to install. We have this article on twincharging if you want to read more.

Fuelling upgrades and mods

Don't miss you'll need to increase the fuelling when you are increasing the performance - it makes the car more thirsty. It makes sense to be generous with your injector capacity.

As a rule of thumb add 20% to the flow rate when specifying an injector, this takes into account injector deterioration and gives a bit of spare capacity should the engine need more fuel.

We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.

Exhaust upgrades and mods

Only look to replace your exhaust if the existing exhaust is creating a restriction in flow.

On most factory exhausts you'll find your flow rate is still good even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Sports exhausts generally help improve air flow out of the engine but do not go too big or you could will reduce the flow rate. Stick to 1.5 to 2.5 inches as a rule of thumb.

Common exhaust restrictions are traced to the filters installed, so adding a freer flowing high performance alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Weak spots, Issues & common problem areas on the 2ZR

The 2ZR engines, if regularly serviced and maintained, are generally very reliable and have few issues.

The timing chain tensioner can rattle and knock which is a sign it needs replacing.

High oil consumption is an issue on higher mileage engines, always use the correct grade of oil or you will be asking for trouble.

Water pump leaks although uncommon do happen and high engine temps are generally down to a faulty or worn water pump, these typically last around 4 years and should be replaced.

The throttle body will get dirty and throttle position sensors are known to fail, these typically manifest themselves as a rough idle.

Regular oil changes are vital on the 2ZR, particularly when the engine has been modified and is putting down more power than the manufacturer intended.

History of the Engine

2ZR-FE

DOHC, 16-valve  Dual VVT-i.(128–138 hp) at 6000 rpm and 173Nm(127.5 lbft)

  • Toyota Allion (ZRT260/265) 2007-2009
  • Toyota Premio (ZRT260/265) 2007-2009
  • Toyota Corolla (ZRE142/152)
  • Toyota Corolla (ZRE172) (132 hp (98 kW) for all markets except 138 hp (103 kW) Corolla Altis for Asia-Pacific market)
  • Toyota Corolla Axio/Fielder (NZE141) (Japan only)
  • Toyota Corolla Axio/Fielder (NZE161) (Japan only)
  • Toyota Corolla Hatchback (ZRE182/ZRE182R)
  • Toyota Auris (ZRE152/154)
  • Toyota Yaris (ZSP90) (Europe only)
  • Toyota Matrix/Pontiac Vibe (ZRE142) (North America only)
  • Toyota Yaris GRMN with supercharger (205 hp (153 kW))
  • Scion xD (ZSP110)
  • Lotus Elise

2ZR-FAE

DOHC, 16-valve  Valvematic (139–148 bhp) and 171–175 Nm (126–129 lbf⋅ft) of torque

  • Toyota Auris (ZRE152) (Europe and Japan only)
  • Toyota Avensis (ZRT271)
  • Toyota Corolla LE Eco only (2014-2019); L, LE, and XLE trims (2019-current)
  • Toyota Corolla Rumion (ZRE152/154) (Japan only)
  • Toyota iSt (ZSP110) (Japan only)
  • Toyota Wish (ZGE20/25)
  • Toyota Verso (ZGR21)
  • Toyota Allion (ZRT260/265) 2010-current
  • Toyota Premio (ZRT260/265) 2010-current
  • Scion iM[6] 2016
  • Toyota Corolla iM 2017-2018

2ZR-FBE

Flex fuel DOHC, 16-valve  141 hp (105 kW) at 6000 rpm and 131 lbft (178 Nm) of torque at 4000 rpm

  • Toyota Corolla Altis (E140) 2012-2013 (Thailand only)
  • Toyota Corolla (ZRE170) (Brazil and Southeast Asia only)
  • Toyota C-HR (NGX10R) (Indonesia, Malaysia & Thailand only)
  • Toyota Corolla Altis (E210) 2019-current (Southeast Asia only)

2ZR-FXE

Atkinson cycle 98 hp and 142Nm(105 lbft) of torque, paired with hybrid electric motor/generators 134hp & 153 lbft

  • 2016-present Toyota Prius
  • 2016 Toyota C-HR hybrid
  • 2012 Toyota Prius v
  • 2011 Lexus CT200h
  • 2010 Toyota Auris/Toyota Corolla Hatchback Hybrid
  • 2010-2015 Toyota Prius
  • 2017 Toyota C-HR Hybrid (NGX10R)
  • 2014 Toyota Voxy Hybrid (ZWR80)
  • 2018 Toyota Corolla/Auris/Levin Hybrid

For more information on Tuning your 2ZR engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our 2ZR owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

We need your help improving this article, so please send us your feedback in the comments box below and pass on any tips, points or facts we have wrong or have not covered.

We really like hearing from our readers, and hearing about which upgrades were the most effective for them, it helps us improve our recommendations and articles to reflect current trends in modifications and ensures that our 2ZR guides and tips are kept up to date.

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