3VZ-FE cams in the 5VZ-FE

[Swimmerboy2112]

In the never ending search to find ways to modify my trucks, I stumbled across the 3VZ-FE cam swap.

Supposedly the 3V-FE cams swap right into the 5VZ-FE. Based on the way these cams are ground, I should gain a good deal of mid range to top end power without losing much if any low end power.

Supposedly these cams make that much more if you're supercharged which I am.

There are a few threads of people talking about this but so far I cannot confirm anyone has actually done this. It seems as I will be heading into uncharted waters.

About shimming the cams, it makes most sense to me to shim these for the 3VZ-FE not the 5VZ-FE.

Just looking to bounce ideas off someone who knows their stuff.

Aftermarket cams for the 5VZ-FE are around $1000. Hopefully this will be a cost-effective alternative.

Off to the junkyard this weekend in search of a 92-93 Camry/ES300.

-Brian

 

[Swimmerboy2112]

No one?

 

[Swimmerboy2112]

Bump!

 

[Robb235]

In the never ending search to find ways to modify my trucks, I stumbled across the 3VZ-FE cam swap.

Supposedly the 3V-FE cams swap right into the 5VZ-FE. Based on the way these cams are ground, I should gain a good deal of mid range to top end power without losing much if any low end power.

Supposedly these cams make that much more if you're supercharged which I am.

There are a few threads of people talking about this but so far I cannot confirm anyone has actually done this. It seems as I will be heading into uncharted waters.

About shimming the cams, it makes most sense to me to shim these for the 3VZ-FE not the 5VZ-FE.

Just looking to bounce ideas off someone who knows their stuff.

Aftermarket cams for the 5VZ-FE are around $1000. Hopefully this will be a cost-effective alternative.

Off to the junkyard this weekend in search of a 92-93 Camry/ES300.

-Brian

Did you ever try this?

 

[Swimmerboy2112]

Did you ever try this?

Never got a chance to, kinda don't want to be the ginuea pig either...

 

[T4R2014]

I have seen this posted a bunch of times over the years, yet no one has actually attempted it. You may end up being the guinea pig on this one. I would look forward to seeing the results if you do attempt this.

 

[xcmountain80]

I'm interested but just N/A.

 

[TRDHybrid]

Well i did

Three days ago i finally found cams out of a 93 camry, tackled the project in my back yard in one day, shimmed to 5vzfe specs, and only needed to change 3 of the exhaust shims all others we're in spec. As i am sc'ed loss of low end torque is not noticeable but mid and high is deff. Noticeable increase. I have a 98 limited 178k on clock and runs just as smooth as my rx450h. I did notice im running 190 deg f now as before was 183 with a 180 stat. I prob iv had since i purchased is from 50% throttle to 90% its lime the timing is hunting but full throttle its fine, any thoughts? During the cam install i replaced the knock sensor harness. It did this hunting thing before the cams swap and before the sc was installed by me. Thoughts?

 

[Robb235]

Three days ago i finally found cams out of a 93 camry, tackled the project in my back yard in one day, shimmed to 5vzfe specs, and only needed to change 3 of the exhaust shims all others we're in spec. As i am sc'ed loss of low end torque is not noticeable but mid and high is deff. Noticeable increase. I have a 98 limited 178k on clock and runs just as smooth as my rx450h. I did notice im running 190 deg f now as before was 183 with a 180 stat. I prob iv had since i purchased is from 50% throttle to 90% its lime the timing is hunting but full throttle its fine, any thoughts? During the cam install i replaced the knock sensor harness. It did this hunting thing before the cams swap and before the sc was installed by me. Thoughts?

That's awesome that you did the swap. I think you're the first person to actually go through with it.


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[RAHagen]

Awesome! Obviously new to the forum as you can see by my post count(1), but those are some neat results! Out of curiosity, how is your fuel economy after the swap?

 

[jerrydub10]

Three days ago i finally found cams out of a 93 camry, tackled the project in my back yard in one day, shimmed to 5vzfe specs, and only needed to change 3 of the exhaust shims all others we're in spec. As i am sc'ed loss of low end torque is not noticeable but mid and high is deff. Noticeable increase. I have a 98 limited 178k on clock and runs just as smooth as my rx450h. I did notice im running 190 deg f now as before was 183 with a 180 stat. I prob iv had since i purchased is from 50% throttle to 90% its lime the timing is hunting but full throttle its fine, any thoughts? During the cam install i replaced the knock sensor harness. It did this hunting thing before the cams swap and before the sc was installed by me. Thoughts?

Sorry, I know this post is old, but im about to rebuild my engine after cracking a cylinder due to my inexperience and lack of tuning knowledge after a turbo install. are you still running the 3vz-fe cams? and if so how are they holding up?

 

[Lefty JD]

Sorry, I know this post is old, but .....are you still running the 3vz-fe cams? and if so how are they holding up?

THIS. We all need to know!


Sent from my iPhone, so probably some stupid typos and autocorrects

 

[DrewZ28]

Old thread, but did you swap all 4 cams from a 3vz-fe or just the exhaust cams? I'm researching this swap now.

 

[gamefreakgc]

Old thread, but did you swap all 4 cams from a 3vz-fe or just the exhaust cams? I'm researching this swap now.

You swap all 4. If you did only exhaust, the valve timing would be thrown off and you might have too much overlap (exhaust open before ignition completes) which will result in a loss of power, not a gain.

This swap is about taking cams from a higher revving engine that makes power on the top end and trading it for power on the bottom end. This is just the stock stats for the engines and how they are tuned:

3VZ-FE: 188 HP at 5200 rpm and 203 lb⋅ft at 4400 rpm
5VZ-FE: 183 HP at 4800 rpm and 217 lb⋅ft at 3600 rpm

Looking at the two engines, you might say the are almost identical in power output. But let me ask you this, how much time do you drive your 4Runner over 5000 RPM's, let alone 4000 RPM's? A torque curve that comes in faster, in the 3000's is better than one that comes in the 4000's. Torque is what you feel on the road, HP is just a multiplier of torque, (RPM * TQ) / 5252. Even I don't spend that much time over 3600 RPM's.

This is why the 3VZ-FE camshaft swap has little to gain but much to lose. You'll gain a bit of HP up high but you're losing TQ where you use it the most everyday. I'm one of the few that has swapped out cams, and it cost me and engine but hey, learned something new.

 

[Daluvian]

I heard of something like this but I thought it was the complete heAd?

 

[derekwilliams345]

Three days ago i finally found cams out of a 93 camry, tackled the project in my back yard in one day, shimmed to 5vzfe specs, and only needed to change 3 of the exhaust shims all others we're in spec. As i am sc'ed loss of low end torque is not noticeable but mid and high is deff. Noticeable increase. I have a 98 limited 178k on clock and runs just as smooth as my rx450h. I did notice im running 190 deg f now as before was 183 with a 180 stat. I prob iv had since i purchased is from 50% throttle to 90% its lime the timing is hunting but full throttle its fine, any thoughts? During the cam install i replaced the knock sensor harness. It did this hunting thing before the cams swap and before the sc was installed by me. Thoughts?

Kinda hard to inderstand what you are asking but...
I just rebuilt top end. New head gaskets and 3vz cams. While i was in there i heard one of my coil packs arcing through the back of the pack down to the valve cover. Ive been driving the truck for 3-4 years with a slight miss under heavy load or acceleration and it was this bad coil pack the entire time. Truck runs better than it ever has now.
I prefer the 3vz cams. When i merge into traffic i can really run 1st and second gear all the way to redline. Truck pulls all the way through the gear now. If im worried about torque i can just switch into low gear* My 2¢

 

[19963.4lsr5]

This is why the 3VZ-FE camshaft swap has little to gain but much to lose. You'll gain a bit of HP up high but you're losing TQ where you use it the most everyday. I'm one of the few that has swapped out cams, and it cost me and engine but hey, learned something new.

So this is where you got your cams from. I was wondering about aftermarket cams or regrinds.


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