Introduction
Greetings
I am starting this thread to share information, ask questions, and generally document my 2RZ engine swap into the 1984 Toyota Pickup that I bought last year. I had some trouble finding recent information about this swap, so hopefully this will help others who arrive here looking for information.
Most of my prior projects have been motorcycles, but I am no stranger to Toyotas. I owned a beautiful 1986 4Runner for a long time, a 2004 Tacoma for a few years, and then a 2009 Tacoma for a couple of years before moving on to a newer Tundra. Despite all of these purchases, I have always missed the '86 the most. Something about manual everything always felt better to me. I grew up riding in similar trucks with my dad, so there's a bit of nostalgia involved.
The 1984 Pickup I bought was a basket case -- it needs everything. Here's a photo:
Here is some high-level information around project decisions:
Engine
The truck came with a 22R from the factory. I decided not to use this for several reasons:
I weighed options for engines and decided to run with either a 2RZ or 3RZ. I recently helped my brother in-law buy a 2000 4Runner (3RZ-FE with a 5-speed manual, 2WD) and fell in love with how well that drivetrain feels. Having a truck that was already set up for a 4 cyl, it seemed like the logical choice and less work with engine mounting.
I found a 1996 2RZ-FE engine on Facebook Marketplace for $800, including some of the wiring harness and ECU. Youch. I learned a lesson here, having seen no less than 10 parts trucks I could
have bought between $1000 - $2000. I would do this next time. But hey, retrospective hindsight -- and all that. The upside is that we got to see the engine run and rev before it was pulled from the truck.
I replaced a few parts on the 2RZ before putting it into the 1984 Pickup:
Emphasizing the "basket case" nature of the truck here, it came with a manual W56 4WD transmission with a "forward shifter case". According to Marlin (RIP) Crawler, the '84 was supposed to come with a G52 transmission, however a friend helped me identify the current transmission as the W56. I bought a W59 bellhousing (thanks, Facebook groups) to adapt the 2RZ to my W56.
Other parts I've bought but not installed yet:
I bought a "Spectra Premium TO10B" fuel tank for a 1987 Toyota Pickup (with 22R-E engine) from RockAuto. The reasoning is that the stock tank and lines were not set up for the higher pressure requirements of EFI, however this tank should be compatible with my frame. This purchase was a setback, since the tank + pump + hanger bracketry were quite expensive, all together. I have not yet mounted the tank or set up fuel lines for the tank yet.
Electrical / Wiring
I bought a parts truck recently, a single-cab, 1996 Toyota Tacoma 2WD, also with a 2RZ-FE (distributor engine). No title, and the frame is extremely rotten -- but we were able to drive it home without issue. The plan was to harvest the wiring harness in its entirety, and swap everything over to the 1984 Pickup.
This is where I am at right now, working on transferring the wiring from the parts truck to my build. I am thankful for having a parts truck, because the idea of combining wiring between the '84 and the '96 engine was intimidating and would have taken me a lot of time. I am aware that others have found wiring diagrams and made this approach work, but I prefer the "lift and shift" strategy in this case.
Here is where I decided to feed the wiring in from the 2RZ harness. It was the only flat spot in the firewall that didn't interfere with the evaporator box (added this, my '84 did not come with factory air conditioning):
Reference
Greetings
I am starting this thread to share information, ask questions, and generally document my 2RZ engine swap into the 1984 Toyota Pickup that I bought last year. I had some trouble finding recent information about this swap, so hopefully this will help others who arrive here looking for information.
Most of my prior projects have been motorcycles, but I am no stranger to Toyotas. I owned a beautiful 1986 4Runner for a long time, a 2004 Tacoma for a few years, and then a 2009 Tacoma for a couple of years before moving on to a newer Tundra. Despite all of these purchases, I have always missed the '86 the most. Something about manual everything always felt better to me. I grew up riding in similar trucks with my dad, so there's a bit of nostalgia involved.
The 1984 Pickup I bought was a basket case -- it needs everything. Here's a photo:
Here is some high-level information around project decisions:
Engine
The truck came with a 22R from the factory. I decided not to use this for several reasons:
- The truck sat in a barn for at least several years and the cylinder walls were heavily pitted
- The head was rebuilt, but had been modified and appeared to be missing parts, including the carburetor
- I have not worked on a carbureted vehicle before. Had this truck not been missing so many parts, I would have considered it
I weighed options for engines and decided to run with either a 2RZ or 3RZ. I recently helped my brother in-law buy a 2000 4Runner (3RZ-FE with a 5-speed manual, 2WD) and fell in love with how well that drivetrain feels. Having a truck that was already set up for a 4 cyl, it seemed like the logical choice and less work with engine mounting.
I found a 1996 2RZ-FE engine on Facebook Marketplace for $800, including some of the wiring harness and ECU. Youch. I learned a lesson here, having seen no less than 10 parts trucks I could
have bought between $1000 - $2000. I would do this next time. But hey, retrospective hindsight -- and all that. The upside is that we got to see the engine run and rev before it was pulled from the truck.
I replaced a few parts on the 2RZ before putting it into the 1984 Pickup:
- Fuel filter (RockAuto)
- OEM oil pan kit: pan, blockoff plate, dipstick, pickup tube (ChillKat)
- Motor mounts (Chillkat)
- Distributor cap (RockAuto)
- Distributor rotor (RockAuto)
- Spark plugs (RockAuto)
- Spark plug wires (RockAuto)
- Exhaust header (RockAuto)
- QA was terrible, the bolt holes are almost all loose or cracked
- I have since ordered an OEM header from a later model 2/3RZ: 17141-75080
- Valve cover gasket + grommets (RockAuto)
- Thermostat + gaskets (RockAuto)
- Accessory belts (RockAuto)
- Accessory idler pulleys (RockAuto)
- Motor mount rubbers (RockAuto)
- Might regret this purchase, they felt really cheap
- 5VZ-FE airbox (eBay, ~$70)
- Water pump (RockAuto)
- Aisin
- Exhaust heat shield
- Probably going to order an OEM part from a later engine, 17167-75100
- Rear main seal
- I have the seal, but have not replaced one before
- Will give this a shot soon, with the motor in the truck
Emphasizing the "basket case" nature of the truck here, it came with a manual W56 4WD transmission with a "forward shifter case". According to Marlin (RIP) Crawler, the '84 was supposed to come with a G52 transmission, however a friend helped me identify the current transmission as the W56. I bought a W59 bellhousing (thanks, Facebook groups) to adapt the 2RZ to my W56.
Other parts I've bought but not installed yet:
- Clutch kit
- Bought for a '96 Tacoma, and since that came with a R150F, I'm assuming it may not work for me
- Slave cylinder
- Flywheel
I bought a "Spectra Premium TO10B" fuel tank for a 1987 Toyota Pickup (with 22R-E engine) from RockAuto. The reasoning is that the stock tank and lines were not set up for the higher pressure requirements of EFI, however this tank should be compatible with my frame. This purchase was a setback, since the tank + pump + hanger bracketry were quite expensive, all together. I have not yet mounted the tank or set up fuel lines for the tank yet.
Electrical / Wiring
I bought a parts truck recently, a single-cab, 1996 Toyota Tacoma 2WD, also with a 2RZ-FE (distributor engine). No title, and the frame is extremely rotten -- but we were able to drive it home without issue. The plan was to harvest the wiring harness in its entirety, and swap everything over to the 1984 Pickup.
This is where I am at right now, working on transferring the wiring from the parts truck to my build. I am thankful for having a parts truck, because the idea of combining wiring between the '84 and the '96 engine was intimidating and would have taken me a lot of time. I am aware that others have found wiring diagrams and made this approach work, but I prefer the "lift and shift" strategy in this case.
Here is where I decided to feed the wiring in from the 2RZ harness. It was the only flat spot in the firewall that didn't interfere with the evaporator box (added this, my '84 did not come with factory air conditioning):
Reference
However, I think there may be a problem with the clutch installation / configuration. I have only driven the truck around the block a few times for testing reasons, but when I'm accelerating in 1st/2nd I hear an intermittent noise that sounds like metal-on-metal. The sound is like one of those old school bicycle bells. I am suspecting the clutch springs perhaps lightly rubbing against the pressure plate, but I am not sure right now since I have only put about a mile on the truck so far. I am definitely open to suggestions on what to do for this.
