Bigtrucknwheels' 90 Pickup 7M-GE Swap
 

After many years of thinking, planning, and talking about this swap, the time has finally arrived for my truck to get a new heart. Welcome to my build thread, I hope you are as excited as I am to be here :hillbill:

The victim: 1990 Toyota Pickup Std Cab DLX with 22RE, 4WD 5 speed

The motor: 1987 7M-GE from a Toyota Supra N/A

The objective: To have some scoot in the passing lane and the ability to tow a trailer without catering to the budget needs or custom fab work of a 5VZ swap.

What I have bought so far:

*7M-GE
*Bellhousing and clutch setup from same Supra
*Wiring harness and ECU
*Complete exhaust including OBX header
*Complete intake and ignition systems
*All belt driven accessories + radiator and cruise control unit (for a later project)
^^All the above came as a package deal from a parts car^^
Price: $480

5M-GE motor mounts - $25 shipped (random forum find)
New 22RE rubber motor mounts - ~$45 shipped (RockAuto)

What I still need:
Undetermined rubber hoses and steel lines + clamps and fittings
7M-GE front sump oil pan off a Cressida to clear the IFS front diff.

Where I stand:
Still a long ways to go, I just got the engine on the stand. But hey, thats why its a build thread, so you guys can follow along.

Pics to follow tonight! I'm at work right now and can't put them up.

i will watch this go down! good luck

Why the 7M?

Don't those have more HG issues than the 3.0? Though I'm pretty sure I've seen a lot of aftermarket solutions to solve the problem. There's a TRD metal head gasket that I think solves the problem.

Subscribed. Also considering a 7M rather than a 5VZ when the time comes.

Glad to see you finally doing something lol!

So, you're gonna take that body off and make it easier to mount the engine on the frame right?

To answer you, Mr. McFly, I broke it down like this:

Advantages:
-Ease of installation: The 7M with 5M motor mounts is almost a direct bolt in swap for a 22RE truck, with no motor mount or transmission mount changes (fits in the stock location), much like the 5VZ is to a 3VZ

-Cost! As you can see, I have very little invested thus far, and pending any doom (knocks feverishly on wood), I should be driving the new swap for less than $1000. No 5VZ swap will touch that price neighborhood

-Power similar to the 5VZ. I went the NA route, which should give me around 200 lb-ft and 190 HP. While its 20 less pound-foot of torque, the high revving nature, slightly more horsepower, and completely flat (google a dyno from one :hillbill:) torque curve of the 7M should compensate nicely

-Badass factor of the inline 6, not many guys running one


Disadvantages:
-Namely head gaskets. The issue with the 7M is mostly due to improper torque specs on the head. I will be retorqueing mine before the engine goes in the bay. A new metal headgasket and proper torque specs on the NA engine will all but cure the headgasket woes. I went NA for exactly that reason, as the turbo, even with lots of work, is besieged by the nasty headgasket gremlins.

-Weight: the 7M is HEAVY, ask me how I know :D

-Custom cooling situation. I will have to hack the rad support and do a little fab work for the cooling system, as well as some custom power steering lines. In the grand scope of things, however, I feel this is a negligible detail, even a 5VZ swap requires some workarounds.

And in case you were wondering, NA > turbo for me because of headgaskets, cost, and offroading. The last thing I want is that turbo spooling while I am trying to craw over some sharp rocks or something haha.

That sounds reasonable enough. I just wanted to make sure you knew about the HG thing.

To solve your concern about a turbo spooling when you're off-road...just run a monster turbo...by the time it spools you'll be home :D

and now, as promised, some pictures :hillbill:

please forgive the quality, they are cell phone pics for now, but I will be using a real camera from here on out.

The truck:
Attachment 200756

not bad for $250, eh?
Attachment 200757

tired 22RE with undisclosed "rattle" I never did put it all back together to find out what it was, but given the mileage and the description of the sound, I would place a lot of money on timing chain :D
Attachment 200758

The motor:
When I went to get it
Attachment 200759

sweeet 7M goodness
Attachment 200760

random crap that came with it, I promise I won't be using those FRAM filters :D
Attachment 200761

W58 bellhousing off the NA Supra. This is a direct bolt on to the W56 found in my truck
Attachment 200762

ECU end of the engine wiring harness
Attachment 200763

Finally got it off the truck and onto the engine stand
Attachment 200764

the truck and engine shall soon be one
Attachment 200765

I pulled the clutch off before I put it on the engine stand
Attachment 200766

Looks like it has enough life left in it for me! I would like to drive it about 20k miles (a year) and do the clutch job then.
Attachment 200767

oh yeah, she's golden :hillbill:
Attachment 200768

and that will be all of the pictures until the shop is cleaned up... Its so full of crap you can't even move in there haha. Next up is tracking down a 7M Cressida to get the oil pan and pickup tube off of. Then cleaning and painting of the engine/removal of the 22RE. Stand by for more updates :D

that sounds 'spensive, but mad fun :D I have decided though, that if I do a turbo swap, it will be a 2JZ in a 2WD truck so I can really enjoy it :hillbill:

Very nice work man. I also will be watching this.....

Yes this is very interesting I am also close enough to take a peek in person of that would be permitted .

Why not buy a new oil pan and pick up tube as I am in the process of getting ready to do the swap with turbo. I have a new oil pan and it was not all that expensive .

Funny my truck is red Also:camp:

sweet! do you have a build thread? I will check out new prices for the oil pan and pickup tube. where'd you source yours? I'd love to give this truck a new paint job this summer. No offense to red, but I want a shiny black truck :D

where did you find this? I just checked autozone, advance, 1sttoyotaparts, napa, and rockauto with no luck. And what kind of money did it cost you? I'd like to make my purchase a.s.a.p. so I can keep moving forward on this project haha

I bought mine from my dealer Krause Toyota

To be honest I don`t remember how much it was but I do know I thought it was reasonable.

Then I do have a very good relationship with them I have had bills over a $1000.00 in a month .

I will see if I can find the part #

I am going down there in a few hours I will check on a price.:camp:

Really looking forward to this. I'll be keeping a close eye I'd like to do a 7MGTE swap.

While the motor is out, the OP should pull the head, replace the headgasket, and torque the head bolts to 72ft lbs. The 7M headgasket problem stems from the switch from and asbestos gasket to a composite gasket and never changing the torque value. Original torque value is 52ft lbs. Torque the head to 72 and there will be no issues at all.

I've got a low mileage 7MGE bottom end that I'm slapping a turbo, MaftPro, and all sorts of fun stuff from my MKIII Supra onto. 9.2:1 CR 7MGTE, here I come! (stock 7MGTE is 8.4:1)

Being an NA 7M, I am gonna take my chances if it passes the compression test or leakdown, haven't decided which one to do haha.

But as I said in one of my earlier posts, I am gonna crack the bolts and retorque to recommended torque spec for now. Maybe when I replace that clutch, while its down, I'll do that, but for now this needs to remain a budget build, and as such, I specifically bought a good, running engine. This truck is not a d.d., and I will be struck by parania, watching like a hawk for any signs of trouble :hillbill:

For what it's worth, you'll probably be fine. The NAs didn't pop headgaskets nearly as much as the turbo cars did.

Do exactly that, crack them loose, and crank them down to 72ft lbs. You'll be fine. Just make sure you torque them in sequence.

Oh yeah, and here are a few links to help you out:

TSRM: http://www.cygnusx1.net/Supra/Librar...3/default.aspx

Good wiring info: www.supracharged.com

nice.....when we get the 4runner running, may have ourselves a little destination to come and bother you.
hopefully you get going a weeee bit faster that we have.

good to see.

Thanks for the info! I knew about supracharged, but its nice to have an FSM. and yeah, if it were turbo, it wouldn't even be a question, the motor would get a headgasket haha. by the way, do you have a build thread?

92, you're welcome any time! Bring along whoever you please, we'll fire up the grill and have a few beers, talk yota, all that good jazz :hillbill: