6.5 swap into FJ-80 Toyota Landcruiser, got some questions

[weigellj]

Hi

I currently have a 1992 Toyota FJ-80 Landcruiser that has an Old Man Emu J spring lift and 35" BFG tires. The axles have 4.10 gears and the drivetrain is currently a chevy 305 (carb, no computer)/700r4 (non computer controled, B&M TQ lockup kit) using advanced adapters to a 1979 Toyota FJ-40 Transfer case (Soon to be upgraded to an Orion (Cast iron instead of aluminum with a 4.1 low range)).

Needless to say the 305 is not the most powerfull engine to move my rig. On top of that, the gas mileage is around 10-12 mpg ((this was before the lift and tires) I have no idea what it is now).

I currently have a 1989 chevy suburban 4x4 that has a 6.5 (original engine was a 6.2) with the banks turbo setup on it. The tranny is a 700r4 and is not computer controled and has the B&M lockup switch. The engine runs excellent and according to the PO has all of the upgrades needed to the 6.5. With my lead foot driving, I get about 17-20 mpg with it.

My plan is to swap this into my landcruiser with the hopes to achieve better than 10 mpg. Any idea on what I can expect for mileage? I am hoping for around 20 mpg since it would be going into a lighter vehicle that isn't shaped like a brick.

Also if I have to switch to 5.29 gears to help the mileage, I already have that factored in to the plan, but for now I was going to just stay with the 4.10's

Also planned on using a electric vaccum pump for my stock toyota brake setup.

Questions I have:

What exactly do I have to remove from the tranny in the suburban? I am planning on swapping the torque converter for sure. Is there anything else I need to take out? Anything internally?

Any idea on what I can expect for mileage? Is 20 realistic

If my stock toyota radiator cools the 305 without any issues, will it cool the 6.5?

What are the weight differences between a 305 and a 6.5?

[weigellj]

Thanks in advance.

[JeepSJ]

You should be able to easily get 20+ out of it. Sounds like a great swap. Nice to know that I'm not the only whacko that wants to drop a 6.5 into something different. The 6.5 weighs several hundred pounds more than a small block.

As for the trans, the governor will be set lower on the diesel trans. The 'Burb will probably have a K-case based trans - if it is a K-Case, you should look into swapping the trans also.

The diesel will generate more heat than the 305. Personally, if the radiator is in good shape I'd give it a shot first.

DO NOT go to the 5.29 gears! High-revs are death to diesels. With the tires you have, the 4.10's will probably be just about right. You want to cruise at about 1800 rpm for the best mileage.

Space might be your biggest problem. The 6.5 is wide. I had to move/change lots of things to get it to fit. Measure the width of the engine where the injector rails go over the valve covers, then see if you can get that into your engine compartment.

Good luck!

[trbankii]

Mark's Four Wheel Drive in Australia does a number of 6.2/6.5 swaps into various Toyotas.

Here is his page on the FZJ-80 swap:
http://www.marks4wd.com/lc-FZJ80CHEVV8diesel.html

Would at least be a starting point for information.

Good luck with the swap. Definitely keep us posted on your progress!

[weigellj]

Thanks for the info

Glad to see I am not totally nutz on my ideas.

My current 700r4 in the FJ is a k case and was just rebuilt about 2000 miles ago when I did the whole swap. According to my tranny guy, the way he built the 700r4 it should hold up to the 6.5 fine.

If I could just use the suburban 700r4, I would (to save time on the install), but I had to have a adapter shaft installed into my 700r4 to mate up to the advanced adapters and the toy tcase. Its either use my 700r4 or have to pay to have someone swap the shaft and that is a route I would rather not take.

I will plan to swap out the govener from the suburban.

I will hold off on the 5.29's and see what the results of the 4.10's are. I was thinking the 4.10s would work also.

Also in the mix is I plan on dumping the 305 into the suburban and hopefully selling it to recoup some of the money of the purchase price of the suburban.

Also under the hood, I should have no clearance issues. There is plenty of room. About the only problem I see currently is the routing of the exhaust from the turbo to the rear of the truck, but that I am sure can be over come.

JEEPSJ, what did you use for your vaccum for your power brakes? Also what are you getting for mileage? Thanks

[JeepSJ]

I removed all of the vacuum powered devices from the vehicle - brake booster, HVAC system and t-case shifter. For brakes, I converted to a hydroboost system.

Don't know what I'm getting for mileage yet. I'm in the final stages of the swap. I'm down to plumbing and getting the wiring harness installed. Radiator should be done this week.

See this thread for links to pics -
http://forum.thedieselpage.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=009058#000000

Mark

[trbankii]

Mark,

Any pictures of the engine in place with the hood up? With just the block in place in the one photo it looks like a fair amount of room, but looking from the front with the fenders back in place and the hood down shows somewhat how tight it is. Would be interested in seeing the engine bay with everything back together.

Tom

[JeepSJ]

I'll post some current pics later. Here are some pics that my exhaust guy has from when he built my exhaust. You can see that the engine compartment is getting a little tight. It is even tigher now that I have more stuff back in.

Wagoneer engine and exhaust pics (http://www.chaserace.com/exhaust/exhaustwagoneer.html)

[trbankii]

Wow! Both the nice work as well as the fact that is really stuffed in there!

[Herman_Bolger]

Hey do think a 6.5 would fit into an S 10. They can fit a 7.4 in there??

[trbankii]

Mark could probably give better particulars from actually working on a swap, but from what I have looked at it would seem that the main issues would be the turbo and the crossover pipe. Those seem to "stick out" from the basic volume of the block and would most likely be the problem areas. So a N/A version would likely be an easier swap. Other than that, the extra weight may be an issue with the front suspension.

[JeepSJ]

Originally posted by Herman Bolger:
Hey do think a 6.5 would fit into an S 10. They can fit a 7.4 in there?? 7.4's fit into Wagoneers a lot easier than the 6.5. A dressed 7.4 is actually narrower than a dressed 6.5. If you went with a turbo, you would have to remove the heater box fron under the hood (like I did).