Advice (aka HELP)

Migraine

WTF do you mean I can't post that?!
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Nov 19, 2019
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The Armpit of the PNW! Ego puto hoc mundo est
Hi, at the end of installing crap on the gen 2.5 Tundra (yay!) So the next project is started. We have a relatively low mile 2nd Gen 4Runner less than 125K on it. It has a 3.slow in death mode, it has an auto transmission. Parts I have so far a R150F with a top shift transfer case, all the pedals, brackets and the cross member. Where we are stuck is drop in a 1uz or a 3.4 they are both semi in the budget, the 1uz would preclude some additional wanted swaps, but I feel would be fun.
So we have been looking at engines, re-manufactured 3.4's are not cheap up in the PNW a basic one runs 2500+ then would need all the other parts, a JDM 1uz 20-50k miles runs 1100-2000 up here (would need the bell housing etc) a JDM 3.4 same miles runs 700-1300 and have the bell housing on the R150F already. What are the pros and cons of the swaps? Would a 1uz give me enough adrenaline rushes to make it worth the cost? Would a 3.4 and a boost of some sort be as much fun? I have a garage, winter is coming, we have both rebuilt motors at one point, have done two transfer case overhauls, and three transmission re-synchroings (is that a word?)
So I am asking those more in the know.
Budget I hope to keep it under 6K for the build to get most things done, lower is better, higher would not be great.
Thanks!
 

clntg

If you’ve got nothing nice to say... welcome home.
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Funny that... I just shared this the other day simply because we so rarely get to see our rigs “frame off”. Have a watch. But I have no personal experience the swap. Was doing some investigation for another topic when I found the video.

To save you some headache/viewing time (the video is an hour) the cost is likely around 12k to swap a 1UZ or similar (I don’t recall if he did the full aluminum or not at this point), watch the first minute and the last 5 for the meat of the cost conversion.

But of course if you just want it in there and running (not OEM’ish) you could drop that complexity (maybe cost) a lot. As they say in the video it takes about 5 wires to make the 1UZ run in the truck. If you got his spreadsheet that’s save you some time.

 
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4runner DOA

Hold my beer
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Hi, at the end of installing crap on the gen 2.5 Tundra (yay!) So the next project is started. We have a relatively low mile 2nd Gen 4Runner less than 125K on it. It has a 3.slow in death mode, it has an auto transmission. Parts I have so far a R150F with a top shift transfer case, all the pedals, brackets and the cross member. Where we are stuck is drop in a 1uz or a 3.4 they are both semi in the budget, the 1uz would preclude some additional wanted swaps, but I feel would be fun.
So we have been looking at engines, re-manufactured 3.4's are not cheap up in the PNW a basic one runs 2500+ then would need all the other parts, a JDM 1uz 20-50k miles runs 1100-2000 up here (would need the bell housing etc) a JDM 3.4 same miles runs 700-1300 and have the bell housing on the R150F already. What are the pros and cons of the swaps? Would a 1uz give me enough adrenaline rushes to make it worth the cost? Would a 3.4 and a boost of some sort be as much fun? I have a garage, winter is coming, we have both rebuilt motors at one point, have done two transfer case overhauls, and three transmission re-synchroings (is that a word?)
So I am asking those more in the know.
Budget I hope to keep it under 6K for the build to get most things done, lower is better, higher would not be great.
Thanks!

From what I've seen the 3.4 swap is relatively painless. The motor mounts line up so you don't even have to mess with those. More power, less headaches. Get an external transmission cooler to bypass the radiator cooler.
 
Joined
Jun 10, 2019
Messages
5,861
Hi, at the end of installing crap on the gen 2.5 Tundra (yay!) So the next project is started. We have a relatively low mile 2nd Gen 4Runner less than 125K on it. It has a 3.slow in death mode, it has an auto transmission. Parts I have so far a R150F with a top shift transfer case, all the pedals, brackets and the cross member. Where we are stuck is drop in a 1uz or a 3.4 they are both semi in the budget, the 1uz would preclude some additional wanted swaps, but I feel would be fun.
So we have been looking at engines, re-manufactured 3.4's are not cheap up in the PNW a basic one runs 2500+ then would need all the other parts, a JDM 1uz 20-50k miles runs 1100-2000 up here (would need the bell housing etc) a JDM 3.4 same miles runs 700-1300 and have the bell housing on the R150F already. What are the pros and cons of the swaps? Would a 1uz give me enough adrenaline rushes to make it worth the cost? Would a 3.4 and a boost of some sort be as much fun? I have a garage, winter is coming, we have both rebuilt motors at one point, have done two transfer case overhauls, and three transmission re-synchroings (is that a word?)
So I am asking those more in the know.
Budget I hope to keep it under 6K for the build to get most things done, lower is better, higher would not be great.
Thanks!

you can buy a LS400 for around $1k and pull everything needed off of it.
 

kasnerd

Danny's Red Headed Step Child
Joined
Aug 15, 2019
Messages
4,791
JDM 3.4 and put money into trail prep. If you want more VROOM VROOM and go go...4r isn't quite the platform for it unless you go full prerunner and LS swap but that's big money because going fast needs more safety like a cage and frame work. Keep it simple, nimble and save some $$ for the next thing that breaks you didn't even know was failing.
 

Migraine

WTF do you mean I can't post that?!
Joined
Nov 19, 2019
Messages
1,556
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The Armpit of the PNW! Ego puto hoc mundo est
From what I've seen the 3.4 swap is relatively painless. The motor mounts line up so you don't even have to mess with those. More power, less headaches. Get an external transmission cooler to bypass the radiator cooler.
Have a 3 pedal set up for it the R150F manual :) On the Tundra I need to add an external cooler tho :(
 
Joined
Oct 6, 2018
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42
The 5fevz with the manual. Jdm motors are usually great. Few swapped parts for USA conversion. More power than 3.slow. Ecu may be only imperial entanglement. Should work though. Best to ya
 
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