taikowaza

finding the ideal 3.4 for a 2nd gen is the topic I'd like to read about in this thread
-what's the best way to find/shop for a 3.4 (ebay, craigslist, auto trader, govt auctions, etc)
-is it better to buy a whole rolled truck or just the engine? I really hope to read pros/cons about this
-for a 2nd gen manual, is it better to get an engine from a T-100, 4runner or Tacoma?
-re: supercharger, better to get one separately or look for one already installed on an engine?
-is there a sweet-spot of years that swap easiest/work best and deliver the optimum swap?

any other advice for what to look for when shopping for a 3.4 replacement, things to AVOID like the plague if you see them, ways to tell if the engine is really a lot older than you've been led to believe?

also, transport, is it always best to get something local, or better to buy a JDM or warrantied engine?
any posts very appreciated!

RobD

My advice, for what it's worth, is your best bet is to find a rolled Taco or 4Runner, or something similar, that's been written off. That way you have all the little bits and pieces that you might need. If not, find a good wrecking yard that will sell you the complete engine with uncut harness. Sometimes you'll find stuff on craigslist or eBay that someone started but dumped because of time constraints.

I got mine out of a 97 Taco, from a reputable yard. They offer a 100 day warranty on used parts. Even with that, they still forgot a couple things, like the OBD port and EVAP canister. If you're running a 5 speed, get one from a 5 speed. That means you're more likely looking at a Taco.

If you're thinking about supercharging later, my advice would be to get the supercharged engine right from the get-go, so that you're guaranteed the right computer and injector setup.

Sweet spots are usually your late 90's 3.4s. The newer you get, the fussier the emissions. Also, there were some rod problems with certain models of 3.4s.

If you can get a VIN, you can often check with a dealer and see what its service intervals have been. Or check CarFax and see when it was written off. The JDM engines will be a lot tougher to verify.

Hope this helps. Any other questions, feel free to ask.

904_runner

Hey thanks, haha, im looking to do this swap one day, so i am gathering as much information as i can now. Subscribed!

RobD

http://www.andrewzook.com/content/view/22/37

Andy has one of the best write-ups and was a source of invaluable info for me and I'm happy to return the favour.

breknraj

I second getting a complete wreck that still has the engine bay in good shape. Try to get one that has the rectangular vapor cannister on the driver's side - pre '01, I think. Mine was an '02, and I had to source VSVs and a vapor sensor from the earlier models to complete mine. If it is a roll over, be sure to take precautions to check that the engine hasn't been hydrolocked, or, worse yet, hydro lock it yourself!

You will have to do some SERIOUS pre-planning to make the conversion happen in one day, but I suppose that anything is possible! Good luck!

RobD

I did mine in about 12 days. Knowing what I know now, I could probably manage it in 5-6 days, but that would be a lot of wrenching in a short amount of time.

taikowaza

I received this letter from ORS in regards to this question.

"f you plan on supercharging it we recommend a 1999-2000 Tacoma, or 4runner. Otherwise, any year Tacoma, 4Runner or T-100 will work very well for you.

As far as donor engine VS donor vehicle, if you can get your hands on a donor vehicle it will help you out alot. You will need all the parts at minimum from our technical article online though......
http://www.offroadsolutions.com/tech...tm#donor_parts
(Engine, ECU and Throttle body are the MOST important to get all from one vehicle though).

If you have many of the parts in our full kit already, there is no need to purchase that kit definitely.

Let me know if you have any other questions regarding the parts or the swap!

~Una

---------------

So maybe I'm looking for a 1999 or 2000 manual 4runner or Tacoma, rolled entire vehicle. As RobD said, rolled 2000 Manual 4runners may be quite, if not extremely rare. For this reason a rolled 1999 or 2000 supercharged Tacoma might be the absolute best bet? When I'm trying to find something I like to set up some kind of RSS feed or web search, is there a site where written-off vehicles can be sourced from insurance companies or auctions? Is there an auto-trader for rolled vehicles?

RobD

http://www.autorecycling.com/

They're up in BC and will ship to you or you could make the drive to get it. Last I checked, they had 8 or 9 trucks with 3.4s in them. Supercharged might be harder to find.

If you contact them, ask for Phil and tell him exactly what you want to do and tell him I sent you.

mt_goat

I would say if you plan on supercharging get a 2000 or up (Tacoma) not sure about 4runner years, possibly 99 and up. That was the first year the ECU uses a A/F ratio sensor unstead of an O2 sensor. The A/F sensor (or wide band sensor) allows the ECU to make better fuel adjustments for the supercharger. All and all I'd say the best year for adding a SCer would be the 2001 Taco or the early 2002 Taco. The later 2002s and up, had a throttle by wire setup that has given some problems. And 2001 was the first year of the tube style exhaust manifolds. If you plan on headers anyway never mind the last part.

I'd prefer to get an engine without a SCer myself and then add it on because too many people added the SCer but didn't add the extra fuel and timing mods to safely run the extra boost.

breknraj

Look into auto salvage auctions in your area. I belive that Ridesafe.com has a yard in the Seattle area.

taikowaza

(based on this, and the other posts (thanks for the s/c tip mt_goat) I think I will search for a non s/c engine. I will need a manual donor truck so I'll be looking for a 2000 manual taco (more common) or manual 2000 4runner (much more rare). I'm wondering, can I get the engine from 1 vehicle, and the donor parts from another vehicle? Or, better to get everything from the same vehicle. ORS seems to like the 00-02 models best for swaps, but manuals were only made until 2000 right? Or, was that just for 4runners?
-----------------from ORS:------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We appreciate the interest, having people enjoy what we do is very important!

Yes, a supercharger will fit the engine and run as it would on the donor vehicle. We do quite a few here with the chargers. If you don't have a body lift you will have to trim the hood to fit. We normally install a cosmetic hood scoop to cover the hole.

If you are planning on supercharging the engine I would suggest a 98-04 model. The absolute best are probably the 00-02 models, they run a little better than the 98-99's and the emissions is easier to deal w/ than the 03-04's. However, any 98-04 will work just fine for what you are doing. From there you'll just want to search for a complete donor setup (manual trans) so you can get all your parts from the same vehicle.

If you haven't seen it already, here is a link to our 3.4L tech article, it contains a detailed list of all the donor parts you will need.
http://www.offroadsolutions.com/tech...ersion_kit.htm

Let us know if we can help!

Off Road Solutions
www.offroadsolutions.com
303-278-6267

taikowaza

thanks breknraj- I tried that website but couldn't find it, is that the right site?

RobD

My advice is to get everything out of the same vehicle, otherwise you're running around trying to find the little bits and pieces.

My engine came out of wrecked 97 Taco. The wiring harness was done by my brother's neighbour and it's been pretty much a year since I did the swap and haven't had one problem in over 46 000 kms of driving.

taikowaza

RobD: are you running Downey Headers? sounds like thanks to your brother's neighbor you didn't have to buy the ORS harness. If I don't have access to such a whiz is the harness plug+play? If I have all parts from a donor vehicle it seems like the ORS harness only (not full kit) might be the best option. I put an ad on craigslist for a rolled donor vehicle. RobD your swap sounds like it was a major success, no problems in all that time, awesome! I take it you are very happy with the power? any wishes for supercharger or not necessary in your opinion? I am thinking of definitely going with headers (filsrunner are your headers still for sale?)

I've done some 3vze mods and would like to keep my new starter, boyle alternator, new marlin clutch...will these still be able to be used on the 3.4? Also the exhaust...can any of it be salvaged or must it be fully trashed? after the 3vze is pulled should I part it out or sell it outright? It has ceramic thorley headers, LCE throttle body and weasey cams and runs very well.

M@

I called about 20 yards in the NE Kansas area and found one that said he went to the auctions enough he could get anything I wanted. He then quoted me a real fair price compared to some shady/cheap stuff on ebay.

I can't say yet how it will turn out since I'm waiting on funds.

I still have a lot to figure out on my own since its going in a 93T100.

It seems like a 3.4 from a T100 would be better since it wouldn't need a new dip-stick and oil pan. I'm not sure about the early 5VZ's I remember hearing something about head gaskets. I hadn't heard about rods having failures. Was that related to the SC somehow?

I'm thinking about getting a 95 T100 ECU to see if it has the same body plug as my 93... no I think I'll check the TIS First.

RobD

Nope, stock exhaust manifolds with a custom crossover, dumping to a high flow cat and muffler. Sounds good and makes great power.

The harness, once you understand what the goal is, is splicing about 30 wires or so.

I'll give you more info later. Lunch is over and I have to get back to work.

breknraj

My mistake - been a couple of years since I was looking, and this place didn't have a yard around here. You need http://www.ridesafely.com

mrdoug

Not to hi-jack, but I'm looking at a 3.4 swap as well, I found a site for Colorado (www.klode.com) that lists salvage vehicles for auction. Does anybody know what kind of $$'s the salvage vehicles go for? I'm just looking for rough ball park figures, trying to figure out if it makes more sense to go hunting thru salvage yards for the parts I need or to bid on a salvage myself, take what I want and try to sell the rest to a yard.

mt_goat

Hi Doug! If you go to that ridesafely website above and filter down the year/model you're wanting, they list the "current top offer" and how much time is left for bids. Of course the closer to auction ending the higher the bids get. That will give you a good idea of the prices, they aren't as cheap as you might expect.

Here's an example, 99 Taco XTR with 158,000 miles is $2100 current top offer: http://www.ridesafely.com/inventory....yearmax%3D2004

mt_goat

Here's a 03 Taco Pre, with 36,000 miles with a $5000 top offer and 2 days of bidding left:

http://www.ridesafely.com/inventory....yearmax%3D2004

I will warn you sometimes you can have the highest bid on those auctions and the insurance comp will not sell it to you. I bid on a number of those trucks at ridesafely and even though I had the highest bid I didn't get the truck.

I ended up buying this wreck on ebay. http://rides.webshots.com/album/383446112ZpbXpN It was a few years ago now and the truck had 27,000 miles on it. It was over $8000. I was able to sell the truck and parts I didn't use for about $4000, I used the auto tranny, engine, engine harness, ECU, evap stuff, airbox, and all bolt on engine parts.