mussy01

iTrader: (2)

Hi all,

I recently picked up a 93 SR5 4Runner with a MT. Thankfully the 3.0 was shot and I've decided to go forward with a 3.4 swap. The information you guys provide on this site is unreal and it has and will keep me busy preparing for quite a while.

I've recently found a 01 SR5 4Runner with 78K miles on a rollover. Body damage to the left front and rear but no damage to the engine bay. The rear axle is also bent. It's also an auto and I plan on keeping the 5speed in the 93. The airbags did not engage during the accident. The interior is a bit warn but not too bad.

So minus the wiring complexity of going from an auto to manual, would you guys continue to look at this vehicle for the price of $2k? The reality is that I'm going to need to push through the swap and rob the 01 of everything required for the engine swap, but I don't plan on keeping it around too long after the 93 is up and running in order to free up space in the garage for the wife's car. I'm sure I would get more from parting out the rest on my own but I'm leaning towards selling the rolling rig as is after I'm done.

What have you guys paid for your donor vehicles and how successful have you been in parting them out afterwards? If you're open to sharing dollar amounts that would be great.

Thanks again!
Eric

jd20phill

iTrader: (7)

The auto to manual part shouldn't be that hard. The hard part is going to be the throttle by wire system on that 01. Good price, but I wouldn't want to open up that can of worms.

dropzone

iTrader: (6)

if you are doing the swap having everything you need all at once would save some headaches/time/$$ looking for parts

waskillywabbit

iTrader: (-1)

After having done just a few swaps a donor vehicle as complete as you can find saves you time, money and headaches in the long run. I cannot tell you how many countless times we have gone back to the scrap vehicles I have outside for a connector or plug or wire etc. it sure beats driving to the local auto parts store every time. We tend to stick to 96-99 3.4 because they are easier.

I've found donor vehicles for $500-$1500 but anything more is overpriced IMO.
Recently got a stripped 04 Tacoma with additional 99 3.4 in the back for $500. You just gotta search every day as deals go fast.

:wabbit2:

dntsdad

Probably depends on where you live.

Around here that wouldnt be a bad deal. If fact, that is probably something that I would go for personally. I have found them as low a $500 (motor good....truck thrashed....not many parts to sell that were any good) and up and I paid $1800 for mine. I made money on the deal by selling of the unneeded parts so that should factor into your decision. How bad is is to be able to salvage and sell parts that you are not going to use.

Used Toyota parts, let alone complete vehicles for donors, are hard to score around here. Marlin has guys that hit the scrap yards on a constant rotation and there is a huge Hmong community in this area which do the same.

As always, I would try to offer a bit less but for your price I dont think that its a bad deal.

The throttle by wire might scare me off too though just cause I dont want to mess with that. I agree with Wabbit on the years for simplicity but it can be done.

NytWolf

The 2001 3.4 has drive by wire?

My bad. I didn't see the "4Runner" part.

I would imagine you could get an earlier year ECU and use it instead. If the ECU doesn't expect the DBW, then it just wouldn't use the DBW. From what I understand, the DBW motors are DBW with cable assist.

mussy01

iTrader: (2)

Thank you for everyone's feedback. So I've read a bunch of conflicting info about what years of the 4Runner did and did not have the "drive by wire" throttle system. I saw a site "ToyoLand" that states they started in 2001, but do you think a VIN search would provide definitive info?

It seems like the drive by wire impact on the wiring and electronics will complicate connections such as cruise control, emissions, and ABS. I wasn't planning on keeping the ABS controls but I had planned on swapping cruise control along with the rest of the engine wiring.

The other piece of info I found on the 2001 3.4 out of a 4Runner is that they had discontinued the manual transmission for that model year. I was going down the road of finding a MT ECU from a 2001 4Runner, but I haven't gotten far enough down my research to see what other model years I should consider using.

So let me through this configuration out to see if it would be a viable solution (realizing I need to do a lot more reading).

- 2001 3.4L out of an auto
- engine wiring harness from the same engine
- ECU from a manual tranny model 99-00 4Runner
- intake and throttle body from a 3.4L model 99-00 4Runner

I know there are a lot of complications to deal with on mating the wiring harness along with the other accessories, but is it reasonable to think that I could swap out the intake and TB from an earlier model cable style system and eliminate the wiring in the harness for the ABS and drive by wire ignition? ALso, I don't have a good feel for if I would need to swap out the emissions and sensors from an earlier model as well.

Maybe this all means I should wait on this donor, do more reading, and then make a decision

THanks again!
Eric

spinyard

drive by wire takes one more wire fused 15 amp... look for ects or etcs on the wiring diagram and don't be scared

QuickSilver74

no need to run a manual ECU unless you need to pass an OBD 2 inspection. my truck runs just fine on an auto ECU and manual trans

mussy01

iTrader: (2)

Spinyard.. thanks for the post. I went ahead and purchased the 01 Runner as it was the best deal I could find on a complete donor vehicle. That's very useful information you provided and I hope to be deep into the wiring as November begins. I've spent the past 3 weeks pulling the 3.4 from the donor and stripping everything I could possibly need or part out. Probably not the ideal was to go about it, but I've got to get the donor out of the garage and the 93 back in off the street

Quicksilver.... I'm in an area of Northern Colorado where emissions testing is required. Just to play it safe I called the emissions technical center and they let me know that the 01 engine would require the complete emissions equipment setup and would be tested to the 01 standards. I'm not willing to take the risk of not passing on a small item then the red flags coming up and being required to go back and spend more time and energy to get in compliance.

Still looking for a 99/00 4Runner ECU for a manual non-Fed in case anyone knows of one for sale. Still watching the classifieds, Craigslist, and car-parts.com.

Thanks!