instntset

Ok so heres the scenario. Im driving home on the freeway and i lose the bottom end of my engine(starts knocking real bad). I lost 3 quarts of oil in one week...I hoped it was because of the head gasket and have read about the luck some of you guys had on here getting Toyota to pick up some hefty bills. Took it to toyota and they told me the headgasket was fine and wanted $3900 to fix it

Its a 95 4runner with 143,000 miles and the 3.0 V6. What would you guys do if you were in my situation..... Rebuild????
3.4 swap??? (whatever I do it must be reliable because I still owe the bank some money on this baby.)

Am very curious about the 3.4 swap because then I could possibly join the rare community of 2nd gen supercharged runners. I know you guys have thought about what you would do if you had an excuse to. And now that the runner is sitting in the driveway I can finally do what I want without the girlfriend complaining! Thanks in advance yota gods!

Victor

Brandon,

The 3.4 is definately doable. I don't see whether you have an auto or 5 speed - I know for the 5 speed it is quite easy as the engine will bolt right in. That's what I have so I haven't really read up on the auto install. You will need:

1. A 3.4 that had the same type of tranny (ECUs are different)
2. Correct bellhouseing - someone mentioned using the 3.4 bellhousing with your old tranny
3. Move fuel lines to other side of engine
4. Move exhaust to other side.
5. At least a 2 inch body lift. The 3.4 is a lot taller. I was wondering if the motor mounts can be moved down an inch or so. That way you only need a 1" body lift.

As an alternative, there is a guy from Australia on 4x4wire that has imported the 3.0 tubo diesel (4 cyl) for a couple of guys. Supposed to be a direct bolt in and he sends everything necesary for the conversion in the crate. I'll see if I can find his info.

rimpainter.com

Remember if you go with the swap, you will be hard pressed to get that money back should you have to sell it. Always look ahead. What's best for you?

The swap would be cool, but...by the time you are done with it you most likely could have replaced the engine in your current truck, sold it, bought a 3rd gen, and come out even or ahead on a vehicle with less miles.

As much as I want to say "do the swap" - I am going to have to say replace the engine and sell it. At least that's what I would do.

Heck, I sold my 98 Tacoma because it was an Auto!

instntset

Victor-
The turbo diesel sounds very appealing if the price is right and the miles arent too high...

98-
If I hadnt carried so much over from the Dodge truck i got out from under to buy the 4runner then i would fix it and trade it in on a new one. But it looks like ill be in this rig for at least 3 more years

I see your point though and would love to buy a third gen but unfortunately im stuck!

channer

I would like to see someone put the 3.4 into a 2nd gen, and maybe I am a little biased. I have thought about it for my 95.

Good luck no matter what, and please let us know everything if you do a 3.4 swap!

Victor

Given the high cost of the 3.0 I doubt he'll recoup his investment. Most junk yards want an insane amount of money for the engine and there are rebuilders out there charging up to $3000 for one. Ironically - its cheaper to rebuild a 3.4 or buy one in a junkyard than it is to mess with the 3.0. My 2 cents. Here is the only article I could find for a 3.4 swap: http://<br /> <a href="http://www.4...m_4runner/</a>

A couple of swaps you may consider. If you like the diesel idea contact John Douglas (ozrunner@access.com.au) he's in Australia and is very familiar with our 2nd gen body style and the diesels that came in them stock. He'll pick through a junkyard and pull a good one. Turbo diesel would actually be the easiest swap IMHO. I found John's site, but its about his 5.0 swap into a second gen: http://members.ozemail.com.au/~jonhel5/ .The only info I can find on tubo diesels is this: http://www.brian894x4.com/Hiluxengines.html


Another swap: the 3.0 inline 6 7MGTE from a Supra. Turbo charged and more power than the gearbox or rearend can handle if you turn up the boost. This swap may still require the body lift and needs a lot of fabrication. Here is the 7MGTE in a second gen: http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/hottoy/jackson/ .

So my conclusion: Toyota already put turbo-diesels in the second gen body. They'll fit stock and should bolt to the driveline you already have. They have a lot of torque and get better fuel mileage. The 3.4 swap is very appealing because of the ridiculous cost of replacing a 3.0. It requres more mods but is doable. The Supra swap is the coolest but least practical. More than my 2 cents.

instntset

No matter which route I take if I end up doing the work myself and swapping engines there will be pictures and a write up!

Victor

Brandon, I wish you lived a lot closer. This would be a fun project to turn wrenches on.

instntset

thanks for the great reply victor! I like the prospect of having a turbo diesel and it being a direct bolt up...Im assuming the cpu would have to be changed for a diesel but i may be wrong. I will contact John Douglas and find out what kinds of costs would be associated with this swap.

instntset

That might not be so far fetched either Victor if a vacation in Reno sounds good! My girlfriend works for the airport *discount* and theres plenty of entertainment when the wrenches arent getting their workout. Not feasible im sure but still fun to think about anyway!

Victor

Let me know what John tells you. Although the 3.4 sounds very appealing I think I'd be happier with the 3.0 TD

Victor

Did you happen to get in touch with John?

instntset

just got around to emailing him this morning. Ill keep ya posted on what i hear back though!

Fahrenheit 451

3.4 would be the way to go, but I don't think it is exactly easy. The ECU and wiring harnesses need to be swapped (kits are available, about $450 for the wiring harness), I believe the oil pan has to be changed to a 3.0 (should be easy since you have one), the oil pickup from a 3.0 some minor cutting inside the oil pan required to get it to fit, Tundra dip stick....memory is fading already from stuff I have read about doing this swap...duh.....but I think it also requires modifications to the air conditioning and power steering.
Somebody tell me if this sounds right: the 3.4s are set up differently since the differential on the Tacos is on the driver's side and not the passenger side. I believe that is also the reason for needing to reroute the fuel lines. From surfing, if you have a standard, both motors hook up to a r150f transmission so that should be a straight swap.
The next issue would be the height of the engine. So far it seems the method of choice is going with a little body lift to get it all up over the motor and to get a little more room for those bigger tires you can turn over with the 3.4 LOL! A big hood scoop would work too. The emphasis is on big. I couldn't find it right off, but I saw a pic of a swap and it looked like the guy wound up taking out about 1/3 of the total hood to get the necessary clearance.
I don't even have a 2nd gen and I want to do this swap LOL!
Of course, after all the trouble I seem to be having with my 85 4Runner, I might just start by swapping out to a 2nd gen then dreaming about the motor

Victor

Here's a topic at 4x4wire that drives home the huge price differences of repairing a 3.0 or going to a 3.4
http://www.4x4wire.com/cgi-bin/ultim...=009999#000006

I did a quick search and found lots of engines with less than 55k on them for $1600 or less.

instntset

Ive gotten a couple of quotes so far and they are all around $3500 for a complete rebuild. There is one shop that will rebuild the bottom end of the engine for $2200. Looks like a 3.4 can be had for cheaper than that and with the manual transmission I wont have to worry about a lot of the problems they were describing over at 4x4 wire. This may be the way to go. Im still a little bit worried being able to do the swap myself because the only engine swap I have ever done was on my 68 VW. Can anyone chime in on how involved it is to take out the engine? Is it something a that can be tackled by an amateur mechanic. I am by no means illeriterate when it comes to vehicles. I havent done much in the way of 4x4's though, as the Toyota is my first four wheel drive vehicle and until now hasnt needed much work.

Victor

I highly recommend that you contact these guys. http://www.offroadsolutions.com/prod...ccessories.htm

The owner has already put a supercharged 3.4 into a truck - albeit it is a very modified rock crawler. After that you'll have to ring up Roger Brown for his body lifts since they are the best out there for our trucks. Let us know what OffRoadSolutions tells you - what their harness does and any mods they ran into during their install.