Got to love all the ignorance floating around in these forums, it was proving all you naysayers wrong that motivated me most. I did my swap for as much as it cost for a turbo kit. That included engine and transmission with less then 14k on them, suspension, wheels, interior, and all the items needed for a swap. I was able to sell the extra parts I had to pay for the FMIC, Cobb Sways, Springs, CAI, and HKS SSQV.
Good luck boosting a car, building the engine, upgrading the suspension, and upgrading to a 6 speed with a LSD for $5000.
Still say there is no reason to do a swap?
Now I have a Mazda5 for a winter car and have all the spare parts that came off my original 3 that I will eventually use on either that or my half-breed.
If this isn't reason enough for you, I assume your ability to reason is severely lacking.
No doubt you can currently get more power out of the N/A head then out of the DISI head, but I question the thinking of people wanting more the 350hp in a FWD car. Traction is tough enough at 300whp. That much power is only really useful in RWD or AWD platforms.
To Jnash: It's up to you the route you want to go. I have a feeling there a few totaled MS3s out there that would make good donor cars. And you need to be willing to put in a bit of time to do a swap, took me about 3 months working with it over the weekends. Don't bother boosting an auto, it won't last. You could always swap in a 5 speed and boost, but I can't see that being any cheaper. Best way to do a swap is to have cash in hand and find someone who just totaled with a intact drive train.