'88 FJ62 6BT swap

[84bj60]

Suprisingly excellent. Stock gears and 35's are turned easily up to 90mph. I am running 20 psi and 2 turns on the fuel screw. Took it 4x4ing on thanksgiving weekend with a welded diff and it spun the tires like crazy. Truck is so much better on and off road.

 

[FLNewt]

Cummins is in!

Got the motor mounted in the truck two nights ago. Would have installed the crossmembers last night, but I started having back spasms yesterday and decided to rest it for a night.

Seems I've run into a problem. My divorced transfercase (NP205) will probably be close to the offset differential that the driveshaft would bind because of the harsh angle. So I'll probably be looking for a centered rear axle (tacoma, mini-truck?) in 3.70.

The good thing is the t-case will be so far away from the front diff I'll hardly have to rotate the front diff at all, likely making a CNT totally unnecessary.

 

[boots4]

So I'll probably be looking for a centered rear axle (tacoma, mini-truck?) in 3.70.

Why not look for something a little stronger if you have to change the axle, especially one behind a 6bt?

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Why not look for something a little stronger if you have to change the axle, especially one behind a 6bt?

Yeah....X2 on the stronger axle.

There is a reason they put a Dana 70 behind the 6BT. Even with the auto cushioning the torque I wouldn't trust an 8" ring and pinion.
Why not swap the original dodge axle in?

 

[FLNewt]

I just sold the dodge back to the PO, but it was 2wd anyway. If it was 4wd I would have done that. The price tag just keeps ticking up and up. I just dropped $400 on a high steer kit for the front axle, it just seems to make no sense to get rid of that one now to try to rig a high steer kit for another axle.

I know some guys that have done 6BT swaps are running the original axles, one for 6 years, with no problem.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

I know some guys that have done 6BT swaps are running the original axles, one for 6 years, with no problem.

The guys running the 9.5" R&P landcruiser axles hold up ok. I think Cody C is on his 3rd R&P though He has a stock 6BT.
Cruiser axles are a lot bigger and stronger than Tacoma or mini-truck axles.

If you ever think you might "want" or "need" to put the pedal to the floor with that 6BT up front I would put a stronger axle in it. Otherwise you might be spending more money to replace it later.

 

[FLNewt]

The guys running the 9.5" R&P landcruiser axles hold up ok. I think Cody C is on his 3rd R&P though He has a stock 6BT.
Cruiser axles are a lot bigger and stronger than Tacoma or mini-truck axles.

If you ever think you might "want" or "need" to put the pedal to the floor with that 6BT up front I would put a stronger axle in it. Otherwise you might be spending more money to replace it later.

A buddy of mine has a ford 9 inch that he said he'll give me. I know I can run 3.70 in that, so I may end up having to do just that. Between the the R&P and new 6 lug axles I'd be out $500 though. Oh, well.

 

[FLNewt]

After working on the transmission mount I realized that the tail-housing wasn't centered. I checked the motor mounts and sure enough I hadn't measured them to make sure they were equidistant from the front of the frame. The passenger was 1.5 inches farther back, shifting the transmission tail-housing a little.

So I cut out the mount, re-welded it in its proper spot, installed the motor, then the trans crossmember.

A few pics of tonights progress.

Motor mount. 4 inch C-channel.

Welded in. I painted the differential and the steering rods before installing the motor.

A little high on the passenger side? Apparently there are 8 rear leafs on the passenger side, and 7 on the drivers. I'll get to that another time.

Trans crossmember. Looks funny because I had made it for the trans when it sat crooked, then just moved the trans bracket instead of making another crossmember. 3 inch C-channel

 

[Haggis]

Amazing build!

 

[FLNewt]

Amazing build!

Thanks, it doesn't always feel that way. I'm on a time crunch, because I'm doing the build at my brother-in-laws, and I've already gone waaayyy over my projected completion time. Thankfully he's like me and is always working on vehicles, and therefore understands how long projects can take, but I still need to get it out of his way.

Because of the rush to complete it I keep having to skip over things I want to do now, like rust repair and rust bullet, but I guess that can wait a bit. If I had room for it at my house I'd be doing a frame off, as I alway see things I want to fix. I'll never be satisfied until there's not a speck of rust on it.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

How is your oil pan/front axle clearance?
Also how much room do you have behind that trans to the rear axle?
Enough to squeeze a NP205 in there?

 

[FLNewt]

How is your oil pan/front axle clearance?
Also how much room do you have behind that trans to the rear axle?
Enough to squeeze a NP205 in there?

Oil pan clearance is about 5-6 inches over the steering arms.

Enough room to squeeze an NP205 in, I didn't measure though.

Does anyone know if I could run the transmission to transfer case union with no driveshaft? Essentially just use a u-joint between the two held in with straps. That would give me a little more space. If the distance between the t-case and the rear axle is too tight I'll have to use a set of double cardan joints on the driveshaft because of the sharp angle.

This is the strap I'm talking about.

It appears the PO of the t-case was using them as well.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

You might be able to use the U-joint idea, I have never heard of just a U-joint between a trans and Tcase though.

I would get the Tcase up on a lift and test it out to see if you get any binding when you twist the input.

Also the NP205 has a good couple of inches up above the input yoke. I fit mine right up under the body and I had a 5 inch drop from the output of the transmission.
Your transmission looks like it is sitting lower in the frame than mine so everything might work out great.

 

[FLNewt]

Also the NP205 has a good couple of inches up above the input yoke. I fit mine right up under the body and I had a 5 inch drop from the output of the transmission.

What did your NP205 come out of?

Mine came out of a Ford, so to run passenger offset I'm running it upside down. Apparently it's fine to run them that way as long as extra gear oil is added. Anyway, this allows the input to sit higher up so it's closer to the body. It will also have the outputs sitting a little lower, allowing me to keep my front axle so close to the stock angle it's scary, as well as being less of an angle towards the rear axle.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Mine was out of a dodge so it is passenger side drop.

Where did you find out that you could run it upside down?

 

[FLNewt]

Mine was out of a dodge so it is passenger side drop.

Where did you find out that you could run it upside down?

A local 4x4 club member. He said they'd run them all sorts of different ways, even straight down for one application. These were on big bogging trucks.

 

[FLNewt]

Twin Stick Parts

I don't know why, but for some reason I'm super excited about running a twin stick set up. Happy New Year!!!!

Also, does anyone know anything about adapting speedometer cables? Trying to find a way to run Toyota speedo with the dodge drivetrain.

 

[FLNewt]

Killer dowel pin

Took care of the killer dowel pin today before I buttoned up the front end. Cost me about $42 including the seal kit. I just cut, bent and ground down a piece of flat bar to fit.

In place and loc-tited.

Stevo, you asked previously about my tie rod/oil pan clearance. It's about 2.5 inches directly underneath, and allows for about 6 inches of articulation on the passenger side wheel before contact.

 

[FLNewt]

Work has been slow the last few months. Graduated from UF on Dec. 15, my daughter was born the 16, and started a new job the 26!!! Being a dad is the best thing in the WHOLE WORLD! My new job has kept me from doing almost anything (6 days a week and generally 60-70hrs), so truck time has been hard to come by.

I've got the core support in and I've been playing around with IC fitting. Looks like I'm going with a 25"x12"x3" with 2.5" inlets http://www.cxracing.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=CXR&Product_Code=IC0006-25&Category_Code=INCO.

My next problem is mating the Dodge PS pump to the Toyota PS gear, as well as the Dodge A/C lines to the Toyota A/C lines. I'm going to replace the Toyota A/C lines and fittings, and just run a new Dodge fitting on the other end for the PS, but for the A/C I'll have to splice the two. I just can't find any numbers for sizes stamped on the hoses, so I've gotta dig, unless anyone knows?


To Do List:
Intercooler and plumbing
A/C
PS
Run fuel lines
Adjust tranny mount for driveshaft clearance
T-case flip mod
Twin stick mod
Build t-case mount and install
Driveshafts and u-joints
Axle shafts for 9 inch rear
Disc brakes rear
Brake lines
Transmission shifting mechanism
T-case shifting mechanism
Radiator and electric fans
Battery tray
Fab intake
Fab intake and exhaust
3.70 for 9 inch rear
Electrical wiring
Re-install bumper, grill, headlights, etc.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

My next problem is mating the Dodge PS pump to the Toyota PS gear,

My toyota line threaded right into the saginaw pump on my engine no issues at all.
I ended up making my own PS lines to incorporate Hydroboost brakes but if you aren't doing that your high pressure line should be ok.

Congrats on the baby too.