Well, I've been kicking around the idea of a sick (as in sweet) upgrade for my truck. I've considered off-road mods such as lockers and lifts and all, but considering my truck sees paved roads about 95% of the time, thats kinda silly to waste money on those.

So, i got to thinking... Hmmmm, maybe i oughta put a manual tranny behind the 3vze, squeeze a little more power out of her and a little fuel economy. Hell, if i did that, id prolly rebuild the motor a little (or pay someone). You know, cams, some head work, maybe some exhaust. well now we are talking some bucks. And it seems that most people dont recommend piling a ton of money into the 3vWhezzy. I agree. Its alright, but not the best motor toyota ever built.

Swaps came into mind. Lots of swaps available. which one? 5vzfe seems nice. but power isnt what i want, i like it right around 150 h.p. reliability and fuel economy are what im after. Dang, an obvious motor came to mind. you guessed it, the 2.7L 3rz with a five speed. Same stock horsepower and 2 ft/lb of torque less than the 3vze, but four cylinder for fuel economy. Guys are getting mid twentys with this motor!

what i found out through much searching: It seems no one has done it. I could probably figure out the wiring, and i read on a forum that if you grab a bell housing and a clutch from a 2.7L you can use a 22re manual (which i can get for practically nothing). but what about motor mounts and final fitment? I read about exhaust and fuel routing issues, that can be overcome. anything else that would be an issue?

thanks for reading this incredibly long post!

 

I have trying to find the exact same information. I think a 2.7 four with a few mods like a header, cam, and head work would be a good replacement for my 3.0 when it gets a few more miles on her. At 125K it's still running well but when it goes I will be thinking a 2.7 swap also. I have been doing some research for mounts and wiring change overs for the harness.
Offroadsolutions.com has the 3RZ-FE Engine Swap Harness, but no motor mounts so far.
I will post as I find more info on this swap.

 

been kicking this around for awhile now. there are a few swaps over on marlins site.

 

4Runner Rick did this swap into a 1st. gen 4runner , after many problems with his 7mgte. Search his name , he has a huge write up on the swap.

 

It is in my opinion, silly to waste the money to swap over a 2.7 in place of a 3.0 when you can have a 3.4 swapped in with much less hassle, and is much more of a true "drop in" swap. A bone stock 3.4 will still blow the doors off of a 2.7 with the above mentioned mods any day of the week. The 3.0 has a lower torque peak than the 2.7 as well, and it lacks the displacement of the 3.0. Plus the 3.0 pulls around about 400-500 pounds more truck than a 2.7 equipped Tacoma so you can't compare the two favourably unless you had some even ground.

 

x2. It would seem that you're going backwards by doing this. If you're not concerned with playing the wire-matchup game, I would suggest stepping up to the 3.4. It would save you from kicking yourself in the head later.

 

I am just kicking around the idea...

Here is my reasoning:

I am satisfied with the power of my truck. It scoots along just fine, but the fuel economy isnt something desirable. Also, the more i read on the 3vze, the less faith i have in its reliability. So, if and when, it goes (holding my breath), i doubt i would want to rebuild. The 5vzfe swap is nice and well established, but it defeats the point for me. I dont need the extra power and i want fuel economy.

No extra power, but a lot better fuel economy.. hmmmm... what fits that discription... Ohhhhh, the stock 150HP 2.7l 3rz! Beyond that, what is reliable and has a ton of after market mods? Yes! 3rz! the numbers are intriguing. same horsepower and 2 ft/lb less of torque.

In my book, thats not stepping backwards at all. If it drives like a 3.0, then hell, sign me up. Its all around what i would want.

 

Any more ideas? thoughts? Comments?

Talk to me about the 3.4 people! Lol. what did everyone pay for their swaps? problems? do you like it? Fuel economy? Ease of tracking down a motor? Turbo and other upgrades?

If the 3.4 gets alright fuel economy, maybe id just stick with it. who knows.
Who builds the best kits for it?

 

I bought a rolled donor truck for my 3.4 conversion, and I'm hoping that the project will have a net cost of about $3,500, once I finish parting out the stuff I don't need. As a bonus, this will also result in an e-locker for my truck, too!

As far as milage, I am getting about 18-19 mpg (at high altitude), vs. the 14-15 I use to get from my 3.0. The power increase is very welcome in the thin air, as well. The truck is much more drivable with the 3.4.

Look over all of the info at http://www.offroadsolutions.com. Mike is a great guy to work with, and his harness and crossover pipe made my conversion MUCH easier!

 

oh trust me, the 3.0 gets tasked with pulling a LOT more than 500 more pounds than the 2.7L does! the smaller taco's are lucky to weigh 3300lbs, while a 4runner has a hard time being below 4300lbs.... Mine is 20lbs shy of 5k!

 

ok so im doing a little thread revival.

Well, i recently had my truck serviced, only to be told she is seeping oil around the HG's. Great. They should last another year or two from what i was told. Just keep doing oil changes and don't put any additives into your gas/oil to try and fix it. It holds compression just fine and the motor runs smooth and doesn't use oil (except what leaks).

What should i do? I am really at a cross roads here. I may be buying a first gen runner here pretty soon, but it def. needs some TLC. Should i just sell the truck? I already got a ton of money in it. Bought it for 3500, put a little over 1500 in it, and it needs shocks, and just a touch more body work to be perfect. So we are talking 150 for shocks, 250 or so for body work, and 600 to 700 up for HG's. The truck is worth 4200 in good condition, which it is very close to being. It kinda looks like im losing my ass either way.

What do you guys think? I think, since i can get this 4runner for like 400 bucks (and it runs and is inspected!), maybe i should sell the truck and use the money to fix up the 4runner. But who wants to buy a truck like mine? Its got an R title, but ill soon have proof that the frame and everything else is perfect. Its great looking, look up my bath thread. IDK. A lot of thoughts swirling around in my head...

 

sounds like you have more projects than money to do them all..

IMHO - do the 4Runner and dump the 3.slow

BTW - there was a Gen14Runner near philly for sale...(its in YotatTech...)

 

Well, i did some more thinking. I have another D.D., so if my baby breaks on me, i can just park it till i got money to fix it.

I think ill keep her. If the head gaskets last another 2 years, ill be out of school and making money. Maybe, i will just do a 3rz-fe or a 5vz-fe swap at that point. I think im still gonna buy the 4runner and park it in my aunts garage till i can restore it. I dont wanna just drive it and beat the s4!t out of it. They are too cool of a vehicle to do that to...

My truck, other than the Oil issues, is in great shape. The frame is clean, the body is clean, the interior is clean, the motor is solid, and the rest of the driveline too. I already did some big maintenance to it. Timing belt, tranny flush, heavy duty greasing, front main seal replaced. I think maybe i will just buy a FSM sometime this year, then buy a complete engine gasket kit, and do the whole motor. I may do a trannie swap at that point in time too.

Am i crazy to think like this?