Continued thoughts and lessons learned:
1. Accessory drive: Previous examples of LT swaps I had seen used the original accessories on the front of the engine, adding a Saginaw PS pump down low on the driver side where the vacuum pump previously sat. This is a decent option, but makes a very tight fit with the steering gear and most people end up adding a spacer to move the steering box outboard. I used the Swaptime USA accessory drive, which changes the water pump to the L87 design and adds a bracket for a GM Type 2 power steering pump up high. That location eliminates the close interference with the steering box and makes it easier to check/add PS fluid. I used adapters from
@cruisermatt to run AN-6 lines for the PS cooler, which was a cheap Derale two row cooler I mounted to the front crossmember.
Swaptime USA accessory drive
2. Fuel system: I tried copying others' work with a separate fuel pressure regulator and filter, but we found it was a very tight corner of the engine compartment for so many bends and lines. I noticed in Torfab's Youtube video that he just mounted a Corvette-style filter with integrated regulator and mounted it to the brake booster. So much simpler and quite a bit cheaper. I used the commonly available version that comes with AN-6 fittings from Speedway and again adapters from cruisermatt to connect to the OEM supply and return lines. For now, I am just using my original fuel pump but I have a Walbro 255 lph pump that I took out of my FJ40 LS swap because it was too loud. I've heard others have used that same pump in the 80 and also found it to be too loud. If that's the case for me, I'll probably buy a GM pump as they are a gerotor style that is nearly silent.
3. Cooling system: Tor uses a dual SPAL fan setup that apparently works great, but Mitch at Swaptime said I should look at the OEM fan for a 2018 Chevy Cruze. It's also a brushless PWM setup, but it's a single 17" fan instead of two smaller fans so it's considerably lighter. I thought it was worth trying and I think it should work just fine. The ECM turns the fan on slowly when the coolant temp gets to 207* and only spins fast enough to maintain a target temp of around 212*, which is the temp these engines are designed to run best at. With the Swaptime harness, I just needed to connect the pos/neg cables to the battery with a 60A fuse and connect the fan control wire. Done. No relays or thermistors to add.
I used the Gates 52291 hose for a 2020 Silverado 6.2 merged with the OEM FZJ80 hose via a coupler for the top hose and the Gates 52058 chevy bottom hose only required trimming to fit.
For heater hoses, I again started with GM replacement hoses from Dorman (626-780 and 626-755). I only had to add a coupler and some more 5/8 hose to get to the heater control valve. I could have done it all cheaper with bulk hose, but I like the look of the formed hoses and it makes for a slightly more finished/less messy appearance.
4. Throttle pedal: I used a Corvette-style pedal (19417903) and again tapped
@cruisermatt for his very handy DBW pedal bracket, throttle delete plug and the cool little adapter to use the FZJ80 pedal pad. Saved me hours of fabrication, trial and error. I found the position to be a little too close to the brake pedal, but I drilled one hole in the bracket and rotated the pedal slightly to suit my taste.
5. Intake ducting: I started with a cheapo $80
eBay Silverado cold air intake kit, as it comes with a 90* aluminum tube and a straight section with the MAF sensor port. Added a 45* silicone elbow and we chopped it up to fit the original airbox. I love the fact that it looks like a Land Cruiser airbox and allows me to add a snorkel later if I want. (I swore I'd never cut another fender for a snorkel!)
5. Gearing: When I called
@torfab to order his mounts and adapters, he pointed out to me that these drivetrains come out of trucks with MUCH taller gears, including 3.08, 3.23, 3.42 and only getting to 3.73 in the max trailer packages. Knowing my transfer case was almost 30 years old and seeing as how everything else in the drivetrain would be new or rebuilt, I had Jess do a full rebuild and add the Sumo overdrive gears in the high range. That gives me about 0.91 overdrive and makes my original 4.10 gears effectively 3.73. I'm upsizing the tires to 35s which will also help a little bit. If I still want lower cruising RPMs, it gets a little trickier to find 3.73 or 3.55 gears but it looks like they are available in Canada or Australia.
An FZJ80 with 33s and original gear ratios in the axles and TC has a crawl ratio in first gear of about 29:1, and my 8L90 with the overdrive gears (2.42 low range) and 35" tires will have a crawl ratio of about 45:1 in first gear, so I'll probably want to stay in 2nd to keep pace with other 80s.
Cruiser Matt's 80 series swap parts
The differences is that your person put the cats further back than I did and they ran the exhaust over that rear crossmember like stock. I hated doing the exhaust...
