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I've been thinking about changing my plan a little bit on this '93 Toyota truck.
I had been thinking that I would clean up some of the more obvious
defects, do a thorough rebuild on the 3.0 3vze engine
and then sell the truck.
A lot of folks said that I shouldn't bother with the 3.0,
that I should just go right ahead and swap in a 3.4 L 5vzfe.
I've had kind of a mental block about that
because when the swap was first becoming popular,
roughly 15 years ago, it was a fairly expensive proposition.
It seems like people were paying as much as $3000 for a donor vehicle.
And then there were all the other associated costs to swap an engine.
Of course, with time, that was bound to change. And it has.
I've been looking at craigslist
and I have seen that now you can find 4runners and T100 pickups
with body damage or rusted frames for $1000 or less or less pretty easily.
I have a 3.0, that needs a head gasket. I might just fix that
and put in the truck temporarily while I search for a 3.4 donor.
As I have said a few other times in this thread, this truck
only has 113,000 miles on the odometer. It has some rust
on the cab corners, on the bottoms of the door edges and
on the leading edge of the hood. The frame looks pretty good
but, I have learned that where frames are concerned,
if the truck has been exposed to salt,
and if you can see any rust on the outside, there is almost always
much more rust on the inside. And with the age of this truck,
It is bound to be a hell of a lot of rust.
Yet, in some critical areas, like the pinch welds in the firewall
behind the inner fender splash guard, the truck is sound.
I am feeling like I ought to take my time and try to bring this truck back.
I can get a rust free frame for it and I'm not afraid to do the work.
And doors and the hood are nothing.
Inner rocker panels would be the hardest thing but like fighting cancer
that little bit of rust in the pinch weld would have to be dealt with
before the patient could be declared free of the disease.
Although these trucks have stopped depreciating
and are actually seeing their value go up, especially on clean
examples, you probably cannot make a good economic case for doing
the work that I am describing, but thankfully there is more to life than
economic calculation is able to account for.
SaveSaveSaveSave
Last edited by wrenchtech; 12-29-2017 at 09:52 PM.
The truck must have sat inside or something for a long time. I have one that's sat 15y + with 104k miles, frame is rotted out (front frame home where the power steering bolts on as well as mid section about to go). Box is ok with a little rust, cab is shot. I'm just over the pond in Michigan.
On the 3.4 vs 3.0 debate, both are great engines, both have had a little bit of head gasket problems but besides that they are nearly the same engine, just the 3.4L has a bit more git to it and probably a bit better mpg too. However, the 3.4L is pretty picky and minor issues can really effect mpg/power. I've owned 5 or so machines with the 3.4L, and only 2 have ran "right". My dad's T100 took a couple years to get running right after O2 sensor, intake cleaning, mass air flow cleaning, and new spark plugs (old ones were worn but not super bad). When he first got it, it was hard to take off in 1st w\o stalling it, big time when it has a load on. Now you can take off just about with just the clutch and loads are not nearlly a problem as they once were. His mpg has gone from about 14mpg at best taking a easy, to 18-20mpg driving more or less "normal".
I have a few of these trucks sitting around for parts if you run into something you need.
Good luck on the project!
Also food for thought..... a 1UZ v8 swap is fairly common for T100's with the 3.4L, more power, similar mpg. Generally they come from 90-94 LS400 Lexus cars. Similar power can be had from the 3.4L if you add the super charger. The LS400 cars you can get for parts for $500 or so, just have to wait for one to come up (they rarely break down). Actually the 2 I have for parts both run/drive fine, one was rear ended so kind of hard to make legal, and the other sat on a lot for 15+ years and they had no title for it. Both are basically rust free lol.
Yes, I've been thinking a lot about the 1UZFE, but mostly as a possible swap for my first generation 4runner. I think that a 5VZFE swap into one of these trucks will actually improve the resale value. I'm not sure that the same would be true with the V8. The 5VZFE is such a natural fit, using all Toyota factory parts (besides the exhaust crossover and the wiring), that it's hard for anyone to argue about it. My truck is also a manual transmission model and I think that makes it a better match for the 5VZ as well. I have only driven one vehicle with the 5VZ, a 1997 4runner automatic. I was very impressed with the power that put out.
In the mean time,I found a couple of interesting build threads featuring these trucks that get me fired up to do the work, like this:
I've had weird experience with the 3.4L 5vz engine, might sound odd but all the automatics i've had/drove ran great, really good power delivery and everything. Every single manual 3.4L I've drove felt to have a lot less power, weak bottom end aka easy to stall on take off in first etc. I bought a manual T100 with a bad ECU and wired in an automatic ECU, and it runs just like all the automatic trucks I've drove. I really don't understand why my experience matches up like that, but it's across about 8 T100's/4runners/Tacoma's. The manual trucks still ran good and everything, it was mainly the lower rpm power around 1500rpm and lower where it was noticeable. My 96 Tacoma 4x4 3.4L manual I stalled so much it was annoying, after the frame went I bought the 98 T100 I mentioned and I rarely stall it. I've also accidentally burned off the tires taking off with the T100, not so much with the Tacoma lol. My dad's T100 was similar to the Tacoma, but he had old plugs in it and he said that made a world of difference, but I haven't drove it since then. My Tacoma had a full tune up with proper plugs and all.
Don't think I'm trying to knock down the 5vz engine, it's just a weird experience, still a great reliable engine. I never drove a 3.0L 3vz so I can't really say how the power compared except to a truck with 512k miles and I could defo tell it was low on power/compression.
I've drove a couple 3rz 2.7L Tacoma's too and it seems all of them run the same, and I really enjoy their power too, seems to have a nice bottom end grunt like the good running 3.4L's and rev's out quite well too. For the "older" pickups 84-95 I'd probably personally want a 2.7L in it for the power + mpg benefits. 3.4L wouldn't be bad either but the mpg isn't the most amazing. 1uz gets about the same mpg as the 3.4L when in a pickup from what I read.
Talking about the 1UZ, you can install a manual trans behind it, but you need a kit that's like $500 or so. I'd personally just say use the Tundra 4x4 automatic transmission for a 2UZ. Not 100% sure if the trans electronics interchange to the 1UZ engine, but if not It's probably possible to use a 2UZ ECU with 2UZ sensors as a worst case.
Anyway, picking an engine should match more what you expect out of it. My dad's planning to swap his 3.4L in his T100 for the 4.0L 1UZ, we got a rear ended LS400 for $200 that runs great, so can't really go wrong. His logic is he needs more power because he uses the truck like a tractor, and he hauls a lot of wood. He also has a 2000 Tundra with a bad engine that he was going to throw a 455 Oldsmobile V8 into since he has a few from the late 60s/ early 70s, but he came across a 2UZ for cheap. Quick back story, he has thrown olds v8 engines in trucks for years, in his experience for that era of engine, the olds has the best torque and holds up the best when hauling. They are like a 22re engine in a large v8 format, low rpm high torque.
Another fun engine to mention if you want speed and plenty of options to get more power is the 2JZ engine. I guess they fit in the pickups pretty well and you can get a lot of hp out of the 3.0L with a few parts. Not sure how good it would be for a truck application, aka hauling weight around.
Anyway, good luck with the build, which ever route you choose should result in an interesting truck =).
Although I slowed down for the winter (I don't have a garage or any heated workspace), I have not been idle.
I drew up some plans for a bumper for the 4runner and made a prototype out of wood. It is in the early stages and I am still working out some different ideas. I am thinking that it will have two swingarms, one carrying a spare tire and another caring a couple fuel cans and some tools or maybe a high lift jack.
I made a stand and some holders to grip the rear axle while I sandblast it. Rubber test caps for plumbing on the ends and a custom-made steel cover over the differential opening to keep the abrasive media out.. Muffler clamps hold pipe extensions, which are bolted to the ends of the axle housing. By loosening or tightening the clamps I can rotate the housing and then lock it down so that I can attack it with the grinder or blast with abrasives. I'll be building a sandblasting pot in the next couple weeks. A friend has an air compressor with a 13 hp gas engine that should be able to supply more than enough air for the operation.
After tearing apart three different axles and finding that I still didn't have enough decent parts to make a good pair of drum brakes, I have decided to scrap the idea and go with disc brakes instead. I never liked the kits that use ancient GM calipers and big, thick ventilated rotors that need special machining. Instead I may have found a DIY plan that uses a more modern caliper, with a parking brake, that was meant for the rear axle of a car or truck in this weight range, and rotors that don't require any modifications. All that has to be fabricated is a bracket that is simpler than others that I have seen. I will document that once I get started. The picture below is a working example on a third-generation 4runner (not my vehicle).
Last edited by wrenchtech; 04-21-2018 at 03:49 PM.
Brake bracket. My rendering using Sketchup. I think i've got the bolt hole dimensions right, but I haven't tested anything yet. The thickness is the part that will almost certainly need work due to the fact that I don't have any hard numbers. I just kind of estimated it by eyeball for the sake of getting the model started. Too many lines on this drawing as well. They represent different layers of my drawing that shouldn't all be visible. But hey, I'm just starting to learn the software.
I was briefly considering that conversion for my 2WD but found the same problems you had: ancient GM calipers, lack of parking brake or unreliable parking brake, and modifications to the caliper, and need to purchase larger wheels, etc.
Your setup looks much cleaner than many I have seen researching this conversion.
I was briefly considering that conversion for my 2WD but found the same problems you had: ancient GM calipers, lack of parking brake or unreliable parking brake, and modifications to the caliper, and need to purchase larger wheels, etc.
Your setup looks much cleaner than many I have seen researching this conversion.
To be clear, that is not my picture, not my truck, and not my idea. I discovered it on another forum. Only the drawing of the bracket is mine. I hope to improve on the original design by making the bracket better and by getting the p-brake to work. It seems that the original poster never got around to hooking up the p-brake cables to the calipers. You can see the original post here.
I have to agree with you though. That setup looks pretty slick.
Last edited by wrenchtech; 04-21-2018 at 06:35 PM.
To be clear, that is not my picture, not my truck, and not my idea. I discovered it on another forum. Only the drawing of the bracket is mine. I hope to improve on the original design by making the bracket better and by getting the p-brake to work. It seems that the original poster never got around to hooking up the p-brake cables to the calipers. You can see the original post here.
I have to agree with you though. That setup looks pretty slick.
I’d be interested in buying the brackets if you find a way to make this all work.
Ordered some parts today. I have a wrecking yard pulling the caliper, I have ordered a rotor from Rock Auto. And now I just have to scrounge up some steel for the bracket, preferring, of course, to "find" the steel at a local recycling business, for pennies on the dollar.
Last edited by wrenchtech; 04-25-2018 at 06:12 PM.
12-29-2017, 09:39 PM
