By Antti Kautonen
I’ll cut to the chase: does anybody have a wiring loom for a Suzuki Swift GTi just hanging around, doing nothing?
Alright, maybe a little back story is required here. My friends, often of wrenching sort, acquired a Suzuki Swift cabriolet for last summer’s roadtripping around Europe. You know, the Geo Metro kind. The German-market Swift came with an eight-valve, 1300cc SOHC powerhouse that produced maybe 60 horsepower, and the gearing was ridiculously long. I mean, highway speeds had the engine turning over at 2000rpm, and Nürburgring laps were done in second and third for most of the time. I’m not kidding, the blue-wheeled, tribal-striped white droptop did a good number of Bridge to Gantry times on two glorious days.
Of course, later on it was deemed the Swift needed a burst of MORE POWER. For a not unreasonable sum, a powertrain for a Swift GTi was spotted in Berlin and then we sort of drove there across the country to pick it up. Back at the garage, it was noticed that despite the seller’s claims, the engine is not electrically a straight swap. The short-ratio GTi gearbox obviously bolted on the 8-valve engine and did its part to help, but the 16-valve, 100-horsepower engine needs the correct GTi wiring loom to make the transplant work.
Look at that sportiness. Also, 5-speed.
This all should come out.
This should go in. How hard can it be?
Or in the words of Mikko the wrenchman:
I would request help to find either wire loom for 89-91 Swift GTi (or Geo Metro/Pontiac Firefly/Suzuki Cultus etc), or I would assume any 100hp wire loom with the ECU. And if finding more complete cars, I could use the rear disc brakes and ARB as well.
So, I’m turning it over to you, LeMons, Chump Car, racing and engine transplant professionals. Does anybody just have a suitable wiring loom for this possibly unprecedented Swift GTi Cabrio build to happen? If you do, how would mailing it to Germany sound like?
The Swift in its garage near Frankfurt.
Hey, maybe you know this one.
Yeap, the sticker’s been earned. Proof:
[youtube width=”720″ height=”480″]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svEXodIUy8c[/youtube]
[Images: Copyright 2015 Hooniverse/Antti Kautonen]
Christian "Mental" Ward 
Jeff Glucker
Would y. 2000 Baleno 1.6 i 16V, 1590cm3, 72kw have similar engine loom? There’s 1 in junkyard nearby.
Row52 (a scrapyard search website shows one in Alberta Canada as of 15 March 2015…. I can’t be sure that it’s Swift Gti but it’s listed as a “Swift +”. Might be worth an email
http://row52.com/Search/?Year=&V1=&V2=&V3=&V4=&V5=&V6=&V7=&V8=&V9=&V10=&V11=&V12=&V13=&V14=&V15=&V16=&V17=&LocationId=0&ZipCode=&Distance=500&MakeId=227&ModelId=4303&Page=1&IsVin=false
And here is a listing in Arlington Washington that doesn’t say GTI but does list the 16 valve engine
http://row52.com/Vehicle/Index/JS2AA35S3K5103227
You can make arrangements through Row52 to have parts pulled for you.
Trim: GTi is mentioned and engine seems right one too (1.3L L4 DOHC 16V).
But black bumpers on a GTi? And it’s very far away from Frankfurt.
If it’s just the wiring loom, it can be shipped pretty easily I think.
Buy this for a 1000 euros, swap motors and sell on for a 700 eur. 🙂
http://suchen.mobile.de/auto-inserat/suzuki-swift-1-3-gti-meschede/208152554.html?lang=en
Sadly, that Alberta car is a rebadged Daewoo (also sold here as the Chevy Aveo), and shares approximately nothing with the good, proper Swift.
car-part.com has a couple of listings for a DOHC computer though they are either a 1989 Federal emissions with an automatic or a California emissions with the 5sp. If they have the computer they may have the wiring harness or they may not. Engine computers are one of those things that they will pull and stick on a shelf before crushing the car. Many of the wrecking yards on car-part.com will ship parts. I’ve done it a couple of times with good results but there are hundreds of wrecking yard on that system and just because I found a couple that were good to deal with doesn’t mean that the one with the parts you need will be.
The Row 52 thing is worth a try too.