5.7 Swap
- Thread starter hishaun84
- Start date
Register to hide this ad
BlackWorksInc
New member
The frame is the same as the 4th gen 4Runners and from the rough measurements and eyballing I did with various Tundras in the shop, its going to be a tough swap.
The 3UR-FE (5.7L V8) is physically larger than the 2UZ-FE (4.7L V8) that goes in my '04 4Runner and the 2UZ-FE is already a pretty tight fit in that engine bay.
That being said, the biggest obstacle in terms of just fitting the damn thing in the engine bay is going to be the fact that the exhaust manifolds will need to be custom fabbed and/or adjust the frame rails themselves to accomodate them. Not to mention you'd be better off using the Tundra transmission and transfercase for the 3UR-FE due to strength and the wiring/electronics that are required to make it operate, this of course would mean you'd probably need custom spindles and rear axle because the front CVs are a different size than the factory units and if you're going to go with the Land Cruiser/Tundra/Sequoia 5 Lug hubs up front, you may as well beef up the rear axle as well.
Its doable, but would require pretty much gutting everything powertrain related to make it function... but man would it be worth it, and with the TRD Supercharger?
Yeah, step 1 would be to get that monster to physically fit on the 5th gen chassis. I've done a couple SBC swaps on old toyota pickups that required mild fabbing (motor mounts, exhaust, cooling, drive shafts, etc...) but those were the good ol days when you could just tune a carb and call it a day!
I wouldn't even really know where to start with the ECU nightmare of doing a swap like this. There are so many systems that rely on the ECU now I doubt you could run just a stand alone trans/engine ECU for the power train and the 4R ECU for the rest of the systems...
But yes, you're right... Just the idea of having a s/c 5.7 in my 4R makes me want to believe it would be worth it.
I wouldn't even really know where to start with the ECU nightmare of doing a swap like this. There are so many systems that rely on the ECU now I doubt you could run just a stand alone trans/engine ECU for the power train and the 4R ECU for the rest of the systems...
But yes, you're right... Just the idea of having a s/c 5.7 in my 4R makes me want to believe it would be worth it.
mgrande
New member
Toyota put the tundra 5.7 with the TRD S/C into a tacoma few years ago for sema.
<iframe src="//www.youtube.com/embed/MJcfksuu-Z0" allowfullscreen="" width="560" frameborder="0" height="315"></iframe>
IIRC it was also the tundra transmission and rear end. So not exactly cheap.
Rubberdown
New member
How come? 271hp and 313 ft/lbs vs 381hp and 401 ft/lbs. Gotta hack the car up to fit it in no matter what. And I'm sure either way you'd have to run a standalone or do some something. I know the factory tundra ecu runs the gauges and crap... Is the 4runner the same way?
BlackWorksInc
New member
Actually the 1UR-FE is pretty close in dimensions to the 2UZ-FE, and fits fine with only minor modifications in terms of motor mounts and such. Not to mention the entire drivetrain, electronics, transfer case, ect. are all done for you by Lexus. Hell you theoretically could just take the cab off the GX460 and bolt the 5th gen (or 4th gen) body onto the frame and it would fit (the electronics would need some massaging to meld the two vehicles together, but its doable.) Its the same as the 4th Gen vs. GX470.
That Tacoma is nice, I am really curious what their Exhaust Manifold set-up is because that is the biggest issue I keep thinking of. The 3UR-FE with the factory manifolds is just too wide to fit in the engine bay from what I saw and you'd have to custom make some manifolds that fit properly and didn't restrict the exhaust (not impossible, just curious what their solution was.)
Last edited:
Jeremy556
New member
Thats just it, you shouldn't have to hack up anything, as the Prado 150 chassis is made for the 4.6 V8 in the GX460.
Rubberdown
New member
Good point. I didn't think about the lexus and prado. Well hell someone import a side impacted prado and do the swap!
Rubberdown
New member
I was thinking the prado under hood stuff and wiring might come in handy. Making all the little brackets and ac lines and stuff is a pita... How sweet would that be if it just bolted up?
wfo9
New member
If I was to do a v8 swap it sure the heck would not waste my time and money wth a toyota motor.
A Chevy LSX V8 swap would be the way to go. It would cost you 1/4 as much and make 5x the power. Lsx is pretty much the defacto v8 swap for any platform (yes even ford fox bodies now commonly run lsx motors). You just can't beat the price, reliability, or power to weight ratio (it probably weighs less than the stock 4.0 v6 motor we have now). I know there are other generation land cruisers and 4 runners with them right now. I'm sure someone will eventually make a swap kit, but there is no demand at the moment. The mechanical side of the motor swap is cake, the electronics integration in newer cars is the hard part. Then all the other parts failing under all that new found power would be the next issue.
Here is a few vids I ran across in 5 minutes of searching.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHzYXiSMuu4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbmgeDCYlcs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_0fiYB8rko
You can find lsx motors in just about everything. RX7s and miatas are common.
A Chevy LSX V8 swap would be the way to go. It would cost you 1/4 as much and make 5x the power. Lsx is pretty much the defacto v8 swap for any platform (yes even ford fox bodies now commonly run lsx motors). You just can't beat the price, reliability, or power to weight ratio (it probably weighs less than the stock 4.0 v6 motor we have now). I know there are other generation land cruisers and 4 runners with them right now. I'm sure someone will eventually make a swap kit, but there is no demand at the moment. The mechanical side of the motor swap is cake, the electronics integration in newer cars is the hard part. Then all the other parts failing under all that new found power would be the next issue.
Here is a few vids I ran across in 5 minutes of searching.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHzYXiSMuu4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbmgeDCYlcs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_0fiYB8rko
You can find lsx motors in just about everything. RX7s and miatas are common.
Last edited:
BlackWorksInc
New member
We talked about something similar on the T120 forums using an older Ford engine. The biggest issue is electronics, it all comes down to what you're willing to live with.
Partial HVAC, No VSC, No Traction Control, No Transfercase (some partial requirement of input from the Automatic Transmission & ECM), No Automatic Transmission (Very tied to the ECM), No OBDII (would be illegal in some states), No Immobilizer, No Airbags (I believe the newer systems take some inputs from the ECM/ABS modules for "preemptive safety measures"), No properly functioning Instrument cluster (it'd be partial at best since it is a module these days), ect.
Personally at that point you might as well just turn it into a buggy and strip it down.
At least when trying to use a Toyota Engine you can MAYBE make it work since most of the parts will speak "Toyota" on their respective networks (though getting them to recognize and play nice with each other is a different issue)
Last edited:
LandCruiser
New member
If I was going to mutilate my 4Runner and void the warranty, I'd gut the front and and install a solid axle and put Dana 44s at each end, disconnect the KDSS and throw it in the trash.
hrod79
New member
toyota Engineer's
Met a guy at Lonestar Jambo this past weekend that works for Toyota and is in Texas working at the toyota plant here is San Antoino. Anyway this guy has a pretty sick FJ and some engineers from toyota happened to notice a picture of it on his desktop computer. He said they got to talking and the engineers basically told him that a 5.7 would fit in FJ/ TACO/ 4Runner with modifications for motor mounts and some Frame reinforcement... Of course there is figuring the rest of electronics out...
Met a guy at Lonestar Jambo this past weekend that works for Toyota and is in Texas working at the toyota plant here is San Antoino. Anyway this guy has a pretty sick FJ and some engineers from toyota happened to notice a picture of it on his desktop computer. He said they got to talking and the engineers basically told him that a 5.7 would fit in FJ/ TACO/ 4Runner with modifications for motor mounts and some Frame reinforcement... Of course there is figuring the rest of electronics out...
BettysNephew
New member
Why not just buy a Sequoia? Probably cost far less in the long run. Someone here has to be just a little bit practical. LOL:biggrin2:
hrod79
New member
only problem I have with doing a imported diesel swap is lack of support in US.
