seabee 86

Hey guys, I posted a while ago concerning my 84 4Runner, I was curious whether or not I could swap bodies with an 82 pickup. The long and short of it is this: while fixing the brakes on my 4Runner, I was looking at the massive amount of rust on my truck and came to the conclusion that it is now a safety issue and should not be driven....for now.

My goal is to buy a pick up/4runner with a solid frame but do not know what years are compatible. I really want to keep the solid front axle and am prepared to do the swap if I find an 86 or newer.

I apologize if this a repeat thread, I tried searching here and google but didn't find much.

taylorf16

With your 84 runner frame, you can swap any body of 4runner that is 84-89.

You can keep your frame and engine in tact, but you will need to swap wiring harnesses, and some cab accessories. I just did this with my 85 frame to an 88 body and had to rip out the dash harness, both fender harnesses, and the side ones going to the tail lights and fuel pump. There are 8 bolts holding your body on. Disconnect the engine stuff from the body, the fuel lines from the body, and the filler hoses. Don't forget the brake lines, and you should be good to go..
PM me if you have any specific questions.. I literally just finished this body swap about 2 weeks ago.
Biggest pain was the plugs were different to a few things so I swapped the whole harness.

85TurboRunner

Best bet would be to just use a 4runner frame. 84 to I think early 89 or all 89 will work (not sure when they started the 2nd gen, if it was '90).

That way all the body mounts will be the same.

You could use an 84-88 standard cab short bed frame also but the body mounts would be different after the ones that are right by your feet.

Also I'm not positive but I think where the frame curves up in the rear is different between the trucks and 4runners due to one having a bed and the other having the rear seat area.

Anyway I'm sure with a little searching you can figure it out.

seabee 86

You're probably right, any pre 1989 4Runner frame would be my best bet. With that said, what's involved swapping out the front axle?

peow130

The only differences between the 1979-85 frames and the 86-89 frames, is the way the front horns curve up, and the way the body mounts..

seabee 86

So what about the engine and transmission mounts? Could I swap the 22R engine and 5speed in my 4Runner into an 81 pickup?

peow130

A later year transmission is significantly longer than an earlier trans..

The engine mounts are the same if it's 22r/re, but the transmission crossmember is in a different location.
You can fab up a new one, or you can measure and find out..

seabee 86

Because of the added gear I'd imagine?