OM606.692 Turbodiesel into FJ40 (SBC Swap) (3 Viewers)

[47coeman]

Go to your inbox at the top rt corner pull up then at the bottom says conversation type in my name and you should be good to go.

 

[zeeman]

Wow, beautiful work, Ron! Wish my handycraft looked so polished.

I think i understand what you're describing. I DO have the same issue. I had assumed it was just how the 606 is, and not related to the adapter/bellhousing arrangment. But not that i think about it, it would indeed be the fault of the adapter or bellhousing.

My Nv4500 is definity twisted or clocked about 15 degrees towards the passenger side. I chose to just level the engine and let the trans sit twisted since it puts the shift tower in a better pisition relative to the driver's seat.

Is that a mistake or likely to caus issues with the trans over time?

Cheers,

*gn

The transmission is designed to run level so not to give a phoney oil level. There are a few transmissions that do run slanted I think the GM Getrag is one. But that is the only one I know of, the adapter is not made correctly and they need to know about it. I am going to call them today and see were I get.

Thanks Ron

 

[Michael B]

Later LC transmissions are locked to lessen the u joint angle to the diff's. If that helps the conversation any.

 

[Michael B]

That should read clocked. Dang auto correct.

 

[zeeman]

It's so cool to hear about all the mudders working with these engines in our little trucks. VERY encouraging since i don't feel like i'm in uncharted territory.

Ron, do you run intercoolers in your 606 swaps? If so, where do you find space? Lastly, do you upgrade the pumps and turbos or run stock equipment?

*gn

I do run intercoolers, on the Jeeps I can usually run them behind the bumper or in front of the radiator. On the FJ's there is very little room.

I have been using stock 603 mechanical pumps with the 606 elements installed. If you start getting crazy the fuel economy suffers, it is just a matter of what you want. You can probably get away with a bigger turbo, the stock one is a little small. With a 3" exhaust and some tuning they run pretty well stock.

 

[zeeman]

The transmission is designed to run level so not to give a phoney oil level. There are a few transmissions that do run slanted I think the GM Getrag is one. But that is the only one I know of, the adapter is not made correctly and they need to know about it. I am going to call them today and see were I get.

Thanks Ron

Talked to Bob at Bendtsens today, he was fairly civil. He was aware of the clocking problem and stated that the adapter was made for a industrial engine that sat straight up instead of on an angle. I stated I had never seen a 60x engine that was not slanted with this bolt pattern. He was unable to give me the engine that was straight.

I don't know were this guy is coming from but he has little knowledge of Mercedes engines. The long and short of it is take it or leave it. He has no intention of fixing the problem in the near future or I can send it back for a refund, that was big of him. Now I have a customers car torn apart and have a adapter that is made wrong.

He also stated that all the oil pickup needed was to be in the oil in the sump, really I guess he knows more then the Mercedes engineers. I would boycott this guy as much as possible and get the word around to not buy his adapters.

 

[ravenholm]

Talked to Bob at Bendtsens today, he was fairly civil. He was aware of the clocking problem and stated that the adapter was made for a industrial engine that sat straight up instead of on an angle. I stated I had never seen a 60x engine that was not slanted with this bolt pattern. He was unable to give me the engine that was straight.

I don't know were this guy is coming from but he has little knowledge of Mercedes engines. The long and short of it is take it or leave it. He has no intention of fixing the problem in the near future or I can send it back for a refund, that was big of him. Now I have a customers car torn apart and have a adapter that is made wrong.

He also stated that all the oil pickup needed was to be in the oil in the sump, really I guess he knows more then the Mercedes engineers. I would boycott this guy as much as possible and get the word around to not buy his adapters.

Interesting. Further than I thought you'd get. Can the adapter plate be drilled in the proper locations? It seems like the flywheel adapter is the trick bit. What a bummer though in a client's truck.

I think I'll run mine, since I can compensate for a bogus oil level reading and I like the way the clocking positions the shift tower and straightens the drive lines. Time will tell.

Boycotting the only game in town kinda is a pain, since 4x4 labs is sometimes slow to ship. Is there a 3rd source out there for these conversions? Bendsten's is clearly not fun to work with.

Thanks for the info re. Intercoolers. I'll plan on running it up top of the engine, and I'll hope I don't have to mount a hood scoop .

 

[ravenholm]

Could you elaborate on the oil pickup thing a bit?

Now I'm scurred I'm missing something in my oiling system....

 

[47coeman]

Interesting. Further than I thought you'd get. Can the adapter plate be drilled in the proper locations? It seems like the flywheel adapter is the trick bit. What a bummer though in a client's truck.

I think I'll run mine, since I can compensate for a bogus oil level reading and I like the way the clocking positions the shift tower and straightens the drive lines. Time will tell.

Boycotting the only game in town kinda is a pain, since 4x4 labs is sometimes slow to ship. Is there a 3rd source out there for these conversions? Bendsten's is clearly not fun to work with.

Thanks for the info re. Intercoolers. I'll plan on running it up top of the engine, and I'll hope I don't have to mount a hood scoop .

My friend has a 40 and it works out fine has again and keeps the EGTs low, no hood scoop.

 

[47coeman]

I concur with Zee man it would be hard to do it with a auto trans less of a problem with a stick. However something to consider the oil gallies were designed to drain with the engine tilted. Not sure I could guarantee 100% that you wouldn't have issues. Another thought there are people/ machinists out there that can do this right we just need to do a little research. And to answer your question it may be possible to redrill the bell housing holes with a nc machine, time and $

 

[zeeman]

Interesting. Further than I thought you'd get. Can the adapter plate be drilled in the proper locations? It seems like the flywheel adapter is the trick bit. What a bummer though in a client's truck.

I think I'll run mine, since I can compensate for a bogus oil level reading and I like the way the clocking positions the shift tower and straightens the drive lines. Time will tell.

Boycotting the only game in town kinda is a pain, since 4x4 labs is sometimes slow to ship. Is there a 3rd source out there for these conversions? Bendsten's is clearly not fun to work with.

Thanks for the info re. Intercoolers. I'll plan on running it up top of the engine, and I'll hope I don't have to mount a hood scoop .

The flywheel adapter is the key piece, especially with the automatic. There is not enough meat to rotate and redrill the adapter. Iam going to see what it would cost to make another plate.

I talked to Luke at 4x4 labs today, a good friend and great guy. He is still a ways away from production of his 606 to Gm adapter.

Nathan at Koch adapters is working on one to and I have a call into him to see were he is at.

This is the kind of stuff that makes doing this for a living trying at times.

 

[zeeman]

Interesting. Further than I thought you'd get. Can the adapter plate be drilled in the proper locations? It seems like the flywheel adapter is the trick bit. What a bummer though in a client's truck.

I think I'll run mine, since I can compensate for a bogus oil level reading and I like the way the clocking positions the shift tower and straightens the drive lines. Time will tell.

Boycotting the only game in town kinda is a pain, since 4x4 labs is sometimes slow to ship. Is there a 3rd source out there for these conversions? Bendsten's is clearly not fun to work with.

Thanks for the info re. Intercoolers. I'll plan on running it up top of the engine, and I'll hope I don't have to mount a hood scoop .

The only problem running it on a angle is that half the trans case will be over full and half will be under filled. If you over fill the case with oil then the oil seals will be a problem. The seals are designed to catch the oil splash not contain oil. Hence the oil fill plug being below the seals. The bearings are placed to run partially in oil and the rest of the componets get the oil splash. Also if your running off road on an angle the under filled side will be out of the oil, starving the bearings. Just some food for thought.

Does the offset angle affect your clutch linkage?

 

[ravenholm]

The only problem running it on a angle is that half the trans case will be over full and half will be under filled. If you over fill the case with oil then the oil seals will be a problem. The seals are designed to catch the oil splash not contain oil. Hence the oil fill plug being below the seals. The bearings are placed to run partially in oil and the rest of the componets get the oil splash. Also if your running off road on an angle the under filled side will be out of the oil, starving the bearings. Just some food for thought.

Does the offset angle affect your clutch linkage?

Thanks for the explaination. I'll give it some thinking - i may pop the shift tower, fill with 4 quarts of the special juice, and see how off the fill level is vs the bearings, etc. to make a better determination as to starvation likelyhood.

Doesn't seem to effect the clutch linkage.

*gn

 

[zeeman]

Thanks for the explaination. I'll give it some thinking - i may pop the shift tower, fill with 4 quarts of the special juice, and see how off the fill level is vs the bearings, etc. to make a better determination as to starvation likelyhood.

Doesn't seem to effect the clutch linkage.

*gn

I talked to Bob at Bendtsens, he is addressing the problem. There was another customer on another forum that had the same problem. We have been talking to Bob and working with him to address the problem. If you E-mail him and explain your problem he will have you send it back.

 

[ravenholm]

Thanks for the head up! Awesome. Except for the pulling the engine, trans, and transfer case part... :/

 

[daniel.watters]

I've looked into the Cummins 2.8 ISF lately. Seem to get lost finding a source to potentially find one. Thought about the 1.9 TDI from VW. Haven't research Mercedes that much. I would like an available, efficient yet powerful enough engine as a potential swap.

 

[47coeman]

GN
Was thinking had some questions here is my cell 916-531-3612. Skip Landon

 

[franklin40]

I had a run in with bendtsens trying to buy an adapter a year ago but you got me thinkin maybe I should try again. I called and the girl working there was nice and helpful but told me I needed to speak to bob. he never called me back but thankfully I read more about the issues you guys have been having with his adapter. im ruling him out again. I actually just ordered one from Koch (again I have an OM617 though) as I found out my bell housing will mate their adapter. they were very helpful and friendly to work with. prompt replies too. too bad they don't make an adapter for your engine ...yet!

 

[MyCruiserisaHogBeast]

I'm totally into everything you're doing, completely epic!

I'm just wondering why not do a 12hdt/h55 swap? By the time you've paid for adapters, ect you could have picked up a ready to drop in Toyota setup.

Again, just curious. Keep up the good work.

OM606TD with NV4500/Orion into a 1969ish FJ40

Hi!
I've been working on an interesting swap. I haven't documented it thus far becuase my time limited and there is a deadline on the rig being running. However, I wanted to get the bullet points down and post them in case anyone else is pursueing a similar setup and is looking for info.

To my knowledge, no one has documented this engine going into a '40 thus far. Not saying it hasn't been done, but after months and months of rearch, the closest I came to finding this unicorn is an excellent thread on this forum about a 606TD in a FJ80.

Why this engine/tranny?

We are overhauling the rig to be a serious family overland vehical. This will include overseas trekking as well as stateside adventures.
Diesel is the clear choice, as the 350 that was in the truck got 7mpg with a tailwind and no trailer. We will have a trailer and be remote - I need range enough to not fear running out of fuel in the Yukon.

Why Mercedes? Small, quiet, high-revving (more transmission options), reliable, internationally available. Also I just love their diesels. So pretty.

Why not a OM617 - that's comparativly common in a 40 and the engines are readily availible and MUCH cheaper?
We are gonna be towing a small but dense trailer of gear, and I was not sure the 617 would perform well under the added load of a close to 6K pound GVW. Also, the OM606 has the destinction of being the most evolved Merc diesel that can still be 100% mechanically controlled. Which is kinda cool. 6 cylinders has, according to some, and advantage in being a naturally balanced engine and thus somewhat gentler on internals such as the timing chain.

NV4500 - I wanted burly, 5-speed, and something that could be adapted to the 606. Pretty much narrowed it down the NV4500 right there.

Orion - I crushed the transfer case and front drive shaft on a trip through Ochoco last summer. So might as well upgrade.

I took a lot of measurements, but not enough to be really sure the engine would even fit. So I just took gamble and went for it.
Oil pan could be a serious problem, as could be the oil filter, intake manifold, etc. etc. Lots of potential dealbreakers. Including straight up just being too long.

A few months ago I found (which wasn't easy) an OM606.962 long block in good running order. I bought it.
I overhauled it as follows:
Fuel Pump: Swapped the electronic 606 pump for a mechanical 603. Lots of great info on the northern euro drift car forums on this engine.
I had Dieselmeken (Goran Lindgren) rebuild the 603 pump with his 7.5mm elements and tune it for a power output range of 300-400hp. His external ALDA and fuel screws will allow me to balance this to the turbo output.

Checked timing chain stretch (within spec) and set the engine to 0* TDC using the OEM proceedure. Required pulling pre-chamber 1. That was stubborn. Installed and timed the pump per Goran's instructions. He also sent me a lot of strange swedish candy that my children snarfled.

Injectors: Pulled all the injectors, cleaned them, and installed Bosio injector tips.

Fuel Filter: OM603 fuel filter - the 606 fuel filter and hoses are meant for the electronic pump and the fittings suck anyways.

Turbo: Holset HX35 Turbo

Exhaust Headers: Elbe Engineering in Estonia built the tubular headers.

Glow Plugs: Nice new ones from Bosch France. None broke coming out. *Phew.

Next I purchased an OM606 -> GM V8 adapter kit from Bendtsen's Transmission Adapters. Although the owner has a bit of a reputation for being tough to work with, I found him to be gruff but reasonible. He is also the only source for an adapter I could find. 4x4 labs MAY make one, some components of that appeared to be aluminum and I felt steel needed to be used. In the Bendsten adapter, the crank adapter is steel.

The kit is really a thing of beauty. It uses the Mercs flex plate and starter and adapts that to a neutral balance GM350 flywheel.
It includes a nice phospher bronze pilot bushing already installed.

From AA, I sourced a rebuilt NV4500 with upgraded mainshaft and 5th gear nut, a bellhousing adapter that fits to a Chev 350 (as the adapter is designed for a GM v8) and the Orion kit with a Centerforce I clutch.

It is worth putting out there, as others have re. the 617 swaps, that this is NOT a cheap swap. Not even close.
The main drive, from engine to the orion, ran me over 10k USD, not including some unique tools required by the Merc.

Fortunately, it all fit together beautifully, much more easily than I'd expected. The adapter plate worked perfectly, clutch went in and aligned very nicely, locks up tight and releases like it's supposed to.

The only small issue is that the bolt locations from the adapter to the bellhousing aren't perfect - the top 5 bolts align, but bottom bolts are nowhere close. I'm deciding how to deal with this, but with the top 5 it's held together stoutly enough to proceed while I consider options.

I pulled the 350, Downey Adatper, H42, and Transfer case as a single unit. Dropped the bib and the front bull bar and it was a pretty straightforward pull. Pulling engines is scary.

Then I lifted the 606 and NV4500 into place - the Merc engine mounts lined up about perfectly with the old mounts from the 350! New perches not needed - hooray!

The intake manifold clears the break booster (Not by a lot, but enough). The Oil filter clears the break booster. The Oil pan clears the front front pumpken by enough to make me comfortable (truck is on an OME HD Dakar kit).

The alternator is a little too close for comfort to the frame rail. I'll figure out something.

There is NO room in the front for an intercooler, and the SPAL low profile fan will indeed be necessary. I'll still likely have to modify the radiator mount for max clearance.
I'll either do a top-mounted intercooler or run without one.

I have installed Dakota Digital's FJ40 cluster and will have EGT and Boost in the message centers, so I can track whether or not I need an intercooler. I'm hoping not - the bigger turbo and free-flowing exhaust may make enough airflow to keep EGTs in the safe zone. We'll see.

Battery and other odds and ends will have to be creative, but the hood closes with room to spare. Driveline angle will be about perfect.

That's where I've gotten so far!

I have a few pictures, but mostly just greasy engine parts strewn across my garage and driveway (did I mention this is happening outside? Muuudy wet blegh. So not worth much, honestly.

So I'll post them if people are interested, but mostly I just want to get this info up in case others are searching.

Long and short of it: It appears you can fit an OM606.962 into a FJ40. Bendsten's Adapter works great. You will spend a lot of money.
I'm happy to answer specific questions. I also have a strong running but thirsty Chev 350 mounted to an H42 if someone is looking for that setup (minus transfer case - need that for the orion.) PM me - I'll post in the classifieds section as well.

Many thanks to this community for getting me this far - I've never worked on engines before this and it would be absolutely impossible without the knowledge of those who've dared before and bothered to record it.

*gn

OM606TD with NV4500/Orion into a 1969ish FJ40

Hi!
I've been working on an interesting swap. I haven't documented it thus far becuase my time limited and there is a deadline on the rig being running. However, I wanted to get the bullet points down and post them in case anyone else is pursueing a similar setup and is looking for info.

To my knowledge, no one has documented this engine going into a '40 thus far. Not saying it hasn't been done, but after months and months of rearch, the closest I came to finding this unicorn is an excellent thread on this forum about a 606TD in a FJ80.

Why this engine/tranny?

We are overhauling the rig to be a serious family overland vehical. This will include overseas trekking as well as stateside adventures.
Diesel is the clear choice, as the 350 that was in the truck got 7mpg with a tailwind and no trailer. We will have a trailer and be remote - I need range enough to not fear running out of fuel in the Yukon.

Why Mercedes? Small, quiet, high-revving (more transmission options), reliable, internationally available. Also I just love their diesels. So pretty.

Why not a OM617 - that's comparativly common in a 40 and the engines are readily availible and MUCH cheaper?
We are gonna be towing a small but dense trailer of gear, and I was not sure the 617 would perform well under the added load of a close to 6K pound GVW. Also, the OM606 has the destinction of being the most evolved Merc diesel that can still be 100% mechanically controlled. Which is kinda cool. 6 cylinders has, according to some, and advantage in being a naturally balanced engine and thus somewhat gentler on internals such as the timing chain.

NV4500 - I wanted burly, 5-speed, and something that could be adapted to the 606. Pretty much narrowed it down the NV4500 right there.

Orion - I crushed the transfer case and front drive shaft on a trip through Ochoco last summer. So might as well upgrade.

I took a lot of measurements, but not enough to be really sure the engine would even fit. So I just took gamble and went for it.
Oil pan could be a serious problem, as could be the oil filter, intake manifold, etc. etc. Lots of potential dealbreakers. Including straight up just being too long.

A few months ago I found (which wasn't easy) an OM606.962 long block in good running order. I bought it.
I overhauled it as follows:
Fuel Pump: Swapped the electronic 606 pump for a mechanical 603. Lots of great info on the northern euro drift car forums on this engine.
I had Dieselmeken (Goran Lindgren) rebuild the 603 pump with his 7.5mm elements and tune it for a power output range of 300-400hp. His external ALDA and fuel screws will allow me to balance this to the turbo output.

Checked timing chain stretch (within spec) and set the engine to 0* TDC using the OEM proceedure. Required pulling pre-chamber 1. That was stubborn. Installed and timed the pump per Goran's instructions. He also sent me a lot of strange swedish candy that my children snarfled.

Injectors: Pulled all the injectors, cleaned them, and installed Bosio injector tips.

Fuel Filter: OM603 fuel filter - the 606 fuel filter and hoses are meant for the electronic pump and the fittings suck anyways.

Turbo: Holset HX35 Turbo

Exhaust Headers: Elbe Engineering in Estonia built the tubular headers.

Glow Plugs: Nice new ones from Bosch France. None broke coming out. *Phew.

Next I purchased an OM606 -> GM V8 adapter kit from Bendtsen's Transmission Adapters. Although the owner has a bit of a reputation for being tough to work with, I found him to be gruff but reasonible. He is also the only source for an adapter I could find. 4x4 labs MAY make one, some components of that appeared to be aluminum and I felt steel needed to be used. In the Bendsten adapter, the crank adapter is steel.

The kit is really a thing of beauty. It uses the Mercs flex plate and starter and adapts that to a neutral balance GM350 flywheel.
It includes a nice phospher bronze pilot bushing already installed.

From AA, I sourced a rebuilt NV4500 with upgraded mainshaft and 5th gear nut, a bellhousing adapter that fits to a Chev 350 (as the adapter is designed for a GM v8) and the Orion kit with a Centerforce I clutch.

It is worth putting out there, as others have re. the 617 swaps, that this is NOT a cheap swap. Not even close.
The main drive, from engine to the orion, ran me over 10k USD, not including some unique tools required by the Merc.

Fortunately, it all fit together beautifully, much more easily than I'd expected. The adapter plate worked perfectly, clutch went in and aligned very nicely, locks up tight and releases like it's supposed to.

The only small issue is that the bolt locations from the adapter to the bellhousing aren't perfect - the top 5 bolts align, but bottom bolts are nowhere close. I'm deciding how to deal with this, but with the top 5 it's held together stoutly enough to proceed while I consider options.

I pulled the 350, Downey Adatper, H42, and Transfer case as a single unit. Dropped the bib and the front bull bar and it was a pretty straightforward pull. Pulling engines is scary.

Then I lifted the 606 and NV4500 into place - the Merc engine mounts lined up about perfectly with the old mounts from the 350! New perches not needed - hooray!

The intake manifold clears the break booster (Not by a lot, but enough). The Oil filter clears the break booster. The Oil pan clears the front front pumpken by enough to make me comfortable (truck is on an OME HD Dakar kit).

The alternator is a little too close for comfort to the frame rail. I'll figure out something.

There is NO room in the front for an intercooler, and the SPAL low profile fan will indeed be necessary. I'll still likely have to modify the radiator mount for max clearance.
I'll either do a top-mounted intercooler or run without one.

I have installed Dakota Digital's FJ40 cluster and will have EGT and Boost in the message centers, so I can track whether or not I need an intercooler. I'm hoping not - the bigger turbo and free-flowing exhaust may make enough airflow to keep EGTs in the safe zone. We'll see.

Battery and other odds and ends will have to be creative, but the hood closes with room to spare. Driveline angle will be about perfect.

That's where I've gotten so far!

I have a few pictures, but mostly just greasy engine parts strewn across my garage and driveway (did I mention this is happening outside? Muuudy wet blegh. So not worth much, honestly.

So I'll post them if people are interested, but mostly I just want to get this info up in case others are searching.

Long and short of it: It appears you can fit an OM606.962 into a FJ40. Bendsten's Adapter works great. You will spend a lot of money.
I'm happy to answer specific questions. I also have a strong running but thirsty Chev 350 mounted to an H42 if someone is looking for that setup (minus transfer case - need that for the orion.) PM me - I'll post in the classifieds section as well.

Many thanks to this community for getting me this far - I've never worked on engines before this and it would be absolutely impossible without the knowledge of those who've dared before and bothered to record it.

*gn

 

[ravenholm]

I'm totally into everything you're doing, completely epic!

I'm just wondering why not do a 12hdt/h55 swap? By the time you've paid for adapters, ect you could have picked up a ready to drop in Toyota setup.

Again, just curious. Keep up the good work.

What a great question.

I wish the answer were simple. I believe toyota makes great stuff, including diesel engines.

I also believe that Mercedes makes the best diesel mills on the planet. Open for LOTS of debate, but it ends up a personal call.

Also, i got pretty addicted to the fun of my chev 350. I wanted way better milage, and at least as much power. I had read some stuff on performance mods for 606s and so that's where I went.

Logical? No. Toyota? No. Passionate?

Sooooo..... There. Or something.
But probably, at the end of the day, you're right.

*gn