3.4 Swapped 93 Build Thread

[russman]

Its been a long time coming, but here's my project...

Purchased this gorgeous Black Widow back in January 16:

1993 2nd gen with 179K miles, automatic, basically kept in the garage, or driven on the freeway for 23 years.




I definitely paid too much for this truck knowing that I was going to tear out the engine and tranny right away, but, I KNEW I wanted a mega clean one that was black. To find one in this condition, in black, was going to happen now or never.

On to the build...

This is how she sits as of August 2016:








Custom made by me rear control arm skids


When it comes to 5VZ-FE engine conversions, I am one of the very few guys who wanted to keep it automatic. The basic rundown of what went into the conversion, and other components to get it to this point:

-JDM 3.4L engine imported from Japan with ~40,000 miles
-TRD Supercharger
-URD 7th Injector Kit (with bigger fuel pump, high performance spark plugs etc...)
-A340f Automatic transmission with ~90,000 miles
-Custom front and rear drive lines
-Toyota T-100 transmission oil pan conversion
-Toyota gear-drive Transfer case from a 1986 22RE
-Marlin Crawler 23 Spline input shaft (to handle the extra power / torque of the 3.4)
-Trail Gear top shift conversion for T-case with dual sticks (that's right, I have mechanical 4hi, 4lo, 2hi, and 2lo!! Two wheel drive low range is THE TITS...)
-Floor board modifications with twin Land Cruiser FJ40 shifters
-Fiberglass 1968 Ford Mustang Hood Scoop
-Offroad Solutions Conversion Wire Harness built by STEVEN THE STUDD MUFFIN ***He has HUUUGE balls and builds incredible trucks (Steve and Mike at ORS are great friends of mine, and they do awesome work!!)
-Offroad Solutions exhaust crossover pipe
-Offroad Solutions battery relocation tray
-Offorad Solutions battery cable harness
-Arctic Start Remote Start + Drone Mobile GPS global tracking. That's right, it's damn near impossible to steal this truck. Plus, I always know where it is, and I can lock, unlock, start and stop the truck from anywhere in the world with Internet.
-Marlin Crawler CNC machined adapter plate to bolt tranny to T-case
-BudBuilt V6 crossmember, with 4cyl mounting holes (still had to modify)
-BudBuilt front IFS skid
-Custom 3" exhaust with Magnaflow converter that sounds BAD ASS!!!
-New pre and post catalytic converter O2 sensors
-Injen 3.4L Cold Air Intake
-All metal brand new radiator
-OEM Toyota donor parts for rest of conversion, such as ECU from 2000 4Runner, throttle body, EVAP system, mass air flow meter, injector wire harness, starter, alternator, and a shit load of other stuff...
-ARB 901 rear coils (these are ****ing SIIICK... If you have a 2nd gen Runner, these are the best option out there to level things out. The land cruiser coils push the rear up too high, IMO...)
-ARB 23mm (or 24mm.. I forget) torsion bars
-Old Man EMU shock absorbers, front and rear
-Old Man EMU steering stabilizer
-ARB Air Locker in rear diff
-ARB high output air compressor
-BF Goodrich 33" X 10.5" tires

I have to give a huge thanks to the guys at TorFab in Everett, WA. I had built this entire conversion kit, started it, ran into a bunch of challenges, and they bailed me out and helped me get this thing looking REALLY clean under the hood. I mentioned this in an earlier post, but the FIRST time doing this build, I got her finished on January 6th, then was in a near fatal rollover crash on January 9th. I walked away with a bunch of broken bones, after this crazy lady rear-ended me at 50mph. Here's THAT truck (1995 model year):

Before near death experience


After near death experience




To say that was a depressing and emotionally draining day, would be an understatement. I had just spent ALL this effing energy and time building this badass truck, get it running for the first time in 2 years, and it gets killed 3 days later by some stupid lady going too fast...

The good news was that the conversion parts were basically, all re-usable. So, that takes me back to the buying of the cleanest "All Black" 2nd gen I could find.

Home Made Roof mount for HiLift. Yes, I wish it was a machine gun.... Maybe I need 2 roof mounted machine guns??? **** yes! :AK47:


Modifications coming:

-AllPro rock sliders (already have them, just haven't welded them on yet
-Front ARB Air Locker
-Addicted Offroad front plate bumper (probably... I may just build one...)
-Trail Gear Rear bumper (probably...Not sure yet)
-Some kind of 8000lb winch
-Internal roll bar? Maybe...
-Total Chaos Long Travel front with double bypass shocks (when I finally feel like pumping out way more money!!)
-Long travel rear leaf conversion with bypass shocks
-A sound system that actually works, and that I can actually listen to music on...
-Roof rack for my mountain bike...
-2 way communication radio system??

In short, here is THE GOAL!!!

This photo is courtesy of the Total Chaos page...

Functionally speaking, I'm building this truck to be an extremely versatile long distance traveler, that can also travel some relatively rad trails. It also needs to excel in very deep snow in the Cascades, as I spend most of the year chasing powder and mountaineering.

Currently, with the Supercharged 3.4, this thing HAULS ASS. Its SOOO fun to drive! And it just has this "feel" that I can't describe. I'm so in love with this damn truck, its embarrassing. Maybe somebody else on here understands that feeling... LOOOL

You also really can't compare the performance of a supercharged 3.4 to the old, 3.shitL. Its just not even funny how much BETTER this configuration is.

Happy 4Runnering everybody!!! :guitar3:

 

[calirider]

Wow, that is quite the build. Looks like you spared no expense. That is a great looking rig!

 

[Dropzone]

freaking awesome build

what hood scoop did you use?

guessimate on how much rear lift you got with the ARB coils?

 

[Hepar]

I like this VERY much.

 

[HanginInUtah]

Awesome build!
In your list above, you mentioned your springs and torsion bars... I think i found the springs, listed by ARB as a heavy load with 1.5" lift, p/n 2901. But the torsion bars for the front? They only list one option for 2nd gens... were those the ones you used? I have a '95 I'm starting as my project. Haven't quite got so far as to think of a motor swap, but I really like the way your rig looks with the suspension!

 

[bentos1]

Very clean truck and clean swap. Looks great :becky:
I prefer 5speed but everyone has their own preference.

 

[CentCalKid]

Awesome Truck

Sorry you got hit; I hope you get everything back together again...an enviable 4Runner for sure!
I did have some questions though.
Did you replace the cams? Were you trying to give your engine more low end power? My stock '94 3.0 is a horrible high-speed road car; almost useless on the hiway with a full pack of expedition gear above 8K feet ASL; but the engine really shines between 1K rpm and 2.5K rpm in an off road environment. I'm guessing the stock camming was intended to be more like a tractor engine than a motor cross bike engine.
So did you see much benefit with the blower, air-intake etc in the low speed, crawling range? Or was the benefit mostly mid to high end rpm power?
Also, did you ever get a dyno test on the engine or a calculated torque and horsepower output with your mods?
Again; great 4Runner
Thanks!

 

[russman]

Sorry you got hit; I hope you get everything back together again...an enviable 4Runner for sure!
I did have some questions though.
Did you replace the cams? Were you trying to give your engine more low end power? My stock '94 3.0 is a horrible high-speed road car; almost useless on the hiway with a full pack of expedition gear above 8K feet ASL; but the engine really shines between 1K rpm and 2.5K rpm in an off road environment. I'm guessing the stock camming was intended to be more like a tractor engine than a motor cross bike engine.
So did you see much benefit with the blower, air-intake etc in the low speed, crawling range? Or was the benefit mostly mid to high end rpm power?
Also, did you ever get a dyno test on the engine or a calculated torque and horsepower output with your mods?
Again; great 4Runner
Thanks!

I did not replace any of the engine internals. My mechanic friends and I took a hard look at all of the engine components, and it looked super clean inside. Part of that is that the engine only has about 40-50K miles on it, as it was imported from Japan.

In terms of horsepower and torque, there really is no comparing the 3.0L to the 3.4L, PARTICULARLY with the Supercharger. Not only is it more horsepower, that power comes on faster and at lower RPMS. This translates into a far better torque band early on, and at higher RPMS she still has more to give. The only situation where I have maxed out the engine's capability to keep accelerating, was at the very top of the I-90 mountain Pass going 85 mph, and then slammed the accelerator. I got it up to 5,500rpm's, and it was basically telling me that "this is enough". I do have 33" tires though, and a re-gear may help that. With this engine configuration, I'd say that it performs extremely well across the entire RPM range, however, you really see the best torque and acceleration between 2,000 and 3,000 RPMS. So around town, particularly up steep hills, it just LOVES to scream off the line. That being said, there is this zone between 4,000 and 5,000 RPMS that is almost scary; The highway passing abilities of this truck are PHENOMENAL. I really have to be careful actually, because it's a light truck to have that much power, and it gets to higher speeds than you may be comfortable with before you even realize that you're going 80+ mph.

I have not done a dyno yet, but I plan on doing one. Other friends of mine who have the same swap have seen around 220-240 rear wheel HP, and perhaps as much as 260-270 at the crank (keep in mind this is with a the TRD Supercharger and a tuned 7th injector).

My advise for other guys with the 3.0L, is that if it runs well and power / acceleration aren't a concern, just keep it. If you're like me however, and love to hear roaring exhaust and like to accelerate past anything in front of you, do an engine swap, or buy a 3rd gen with the 3.4. Or hell, do the 1UZ swap, and then REALLY scare the living piss out of yourself ;-)

Awesome build!
In your list above, you mentioned your springs and torsion bars... I think i found the springs, listed by ARB as a heavy load with 1.5" lift, p/n 2901. But the torsion bars for the front? They only list one option for 2nd gens... were those the ones you used? I have a '95 I'm starting as my project. Haven't quite got so far as to think of a motor swap, but I really like the way your rig looks with the suspension!

Oh, yes, ARB 901 rear coils, and I forget which shocks, but they're pretty easy to find. The Torsion Bars I ordered through an ARB dealer, so I'm not sure what they're called. I believe they are 24mm (stock are 22mm). If you can, get the Sway Away bars; they're a little burlier and stronger than the ARB's.

Here's a little update... My friend John welded on my new sliders for me last weekend! My welding skills are disgusting, so I appreciate all the help!