3.4. Look on craigslist find a wrecked 4runner or taco do the swap. If u go chevy route put 350 and swap to one ton axles like my friend Jason. Bad ass improvement

 

thanks for the responses.

keep them coming.

for a 3.4 swap i would need the entire vehicle to satisfy my d.m.v. so i can get all the emissions transfered over and have "proof as to the originality".

so many hoops to jump thru and the smog nazis are a demanding bunch.

 

Lots of 3.0 hate on here...the argument continues. None of us love the 3.0, but some of these swaps can take years if you've got a life outside of working on trucks. Just look at the start and end dates on the swap forums. Seems to me that fixing yours or finding a used one out of a wrecked truck would be the cheapest and fastest option while avoiding any smog problems. There are tons of runners on c-list in the tahoe/reno area. Then maybe when you have more time, money, and another reliable vehicle you can do the swap?? Just my .02...

 

exactly, i am leaning towards a 3.0L swap right now for simplicity and speed. getting a reman. 3.0L takes time to research on the web. limited suppliers and complaints to check with BBB and forums like this and pirate.

waiting for wildblue to respond about results from his 3.0L swap. he got his reman from CHS Machine in portland. it's rumored to have 190 HP.

 

Wow, that would be a lot. They put out close to 190 ft/lbs fresh out of the box, but I can't personally imagine what they would do to get that kind of hp. Hey, it's a truck though, torque is what really matters anyway IMO.

 

Holy crap man 70 bucks for a complete head gasket kit AND bolts??? is this quality products because I shopped around and found a HG kit for 130.oo. how confident are you with these products because that would help me out so much if this is worth it!

Gotta love this forum for info and finding cheaper and cheaper deals! makes me more confident about replacing my HG and then to start on the tranny! OH YEAH!

 

You think that would pass smog, then?

I put some very mild cams in mine; I'll let you know if it passes the upcoming California sniffer test. I rebuilt my 3.0 because I didn't feel like trying to find a donor 3.4L with accompanying auto trans. With a manual, it would have been a no-brainer.

Since you asked, here are some rough estimates of the costs I've incurred so far on my hopefully smog-legal(ish) 3.0: *not all prices may be entirely correct. It's been a long journey.

Uncoated Downey headers off e-bay (I may have gotten lucky--not sure how many sets are still in the wild): $400
Ceramic header coating from Embee: $200
1-inch body lift to accommodate passenger-side header: $80
Exhaust shop-installed y-pipe thing: $170
K&N FIPK (dubious results): $180
Weasy cam profile from Colt Cams, minus core charge: $400
Shipping for the cores: $30
Master engine rebuild kit from engnblr.com: $290-ish
Clevite bearings (machine shop insisted--engnbldr sent King, I believe): $40
Cylinder head studs (I think from engnbldr too): $40 (probably was included in the kit price, though)
Machine work from a reputable shop (block was a mess, but salvageable): $800
Chilton manual (to supplement free downloadable FSM): $20?

Estimated total before all the additional parts I've had to replace (holy crap, I've never added this up): $ 2650

Result: It almost gets on the freeway at speed now.

 

Don't buy cheap junk when working on the 3.0, you will kick yourself later.

The cheap rebuild kits are the ones that fail 15-20k later.

 

The truck was rebuilt with those parts at 154104 miles.
Currently, it has 185855.

I got these parts because of the budget I had to work with, considering rebuilding the truck from the frame up.

It still runs well, and I wheel it frequently.

I guess as the saying goes "your mileage may vary".

 

I picked up a 95 3.0 runner yesterday. I'm trying to pull the engine w/o the tranny, any tips on getting at the 2 top bolts mating the engine to the tranny?

I've got everything else done minus the motor mounts. What a pain in the ass motor to work on.

 

cant the 3.0 be "built? bore the damn thing out and throw a cam and some other goodies on it

 

Swivel socket/adapter and several long extensions.

 

yup ^^^. make sure no small children are around because between smashing your head and mashing your hands, there may be some "colorful" language. top 2 bolts are just as fun going in too. if this newbie(me) can do it, anyone can.

 

Alright thanks guys, How in the world are you seeing the passenger side top bolt? Did you guys remove the exhaust manifolds? Even if I do, I dont think there is enough room to move the cross over pipe.

 

mostly it's a incidental glace at that bolt rather than actually seeing it. more-so, it's by feel. get a 6 point socket with a universal adapter on there....once you "break" it free (I hate that term, because I've broken a few bolts in my builds) it's quite easy. one tip I would give you is to either support the tranny from the bottom NOW...or get the hoist on the hooks now (OR BOTH) so you are not working against the motor OR the tranny wanting to move.

driver's side motor mounts are a PITA and a slow process, but do-able.

 

Awesome tips 92toy. Thanks guys, I appreciate it. Yesterday I was tired kinda pissy and figured id have to start pulling the necessary stuff to yank out the tranny. Boy I don't wanna do that. I can't wait to get those 2 bolts out. Thinkin I might put the lower bolt or bolts back in to make it easier. Definitely not fun, especially after work.

 

if you have time to kill, check out my son's thread listed in my SIG. the 3.0 is indeed a PITA to work on, but being that my 22re was my 1st build and I did that one with the motor still in, doing the 3.0 by having it on a stand was a totally different endeavor. good luck. if you have time as a luxury like i did, you can walk away and reset yourself every now and then. even if you can't walk away, it is still quite do-able given my limited experience and knowledge.

 

Time I've definitely got. I've built a few 22r/re motors. Love that engine. So far the cheapest I've found to get the 3.0 remanned is 1250 w 6 month warantee. 1500 for a year warantee. Every machine shop otherwise is around 2800.

Thanks for the tips again 92toy. Ill check out your sons thread when I get home. Let the work day commence...

Bet ill be on here later ranting!

 

One more tip. Keep the engine bolted to the motor mounts, and drop the crossmember (not a literal drop) to get to those top bolts (the radiator should be out by now). Keep the tranny bolts in that are easy to get to. Once you have the top bolts out, bolt the crossmember back in, and get something to hold up the front of the tranny, for when you seperate the engine from it.

 

Anyone know of another place in california or more specifically in the sf by area other then attarco that deals with japanese motors?