Diesel vs Gasser (1 Viewer)

[Dieseler]

This week I have been driving the 61 since the went out of town and what a difference to the gasser 62 , the gasser is costing me 50 bucks a week to drive and 100 to fill it , the 61 after 3 days of driving the same distance the needle has barely moved and yes the gauge does work fine.
Even though I like the way the gasser excellerates...the diesel just down right sounds meaner when you push on that little pedal and has so much more torque, the last couple of days of driving the 61 I have been debating with myself whether I should bite the bullet and go further into debt and bring in another 61.
I love my 62 with the amby doors it rides nice has the same lift as the 61 but darn I cant afford the price of gas I am really thinking hard on a motor transplant.
Its a shame Toyota stopped the production on the 12ht of all the diesel I have owned I say it is the best motor Toyota designed for power and fuel mileage.
Heres the tech part did they install the factory looking radio in the 24v 61 I have yet to see one with a stock radio in it and did it have some sort of converter I have read there was a small converter possibly under the passenger seat, these JDM radios just plain suck I can only get one station I need some more stations and I like the look of the plain OEM radio that came in the 60 and 62s.

 

[Tapage]

I'm a diesel lover since always .. but knowing the Toyota engines ( 12H-T it's one of the big time expensives engines ) I can't make numbers to justify just in fuel the cost of the engine plus swap ..

If you are doing coz you like diesels, fuel economy it's a plus ..

 

[BreckenridgeCruiser]

I'd say drop a 1HZ in and turbo it... I know Wayne will agree with Tapage about the cost of fuel never coming out of a swap, but I also feel that is it nice to have a truck you like to drive and to see it being efficient.

K

 

[Dieseler]

I know all the pros of the 1HZ being a motor still in production and availability of parts but as for the roar the 12ht stills wins hands down in my opinion the 1HZ is close but that timing belt is a design flaw in opinion.
Cost on my end for a swapout is still half the price as to just buying a motor from someone local.... plus buying a complete 61 I can road test it out for awhile before chopping it up for the swap and recoup some of the cost parting out the remaining pieces.
Plus its just fun to work on cruisers I always like adding another project to my limited time.

Anyone with some feedback on the radio.

 

[Kynot62]

I don't agree with people who say you won't get your money out of the diesel swap. I drive my BJ daily and it burns half the fuel my 62 does. Over a year ago I started saving over $150 a month in fuel costs just in driving to work. Do the math, thats more than $1800 I didn't spend on fuel.... And this was mostly when gas and diesel was less than $3 a gallon, now it's almost $4.

Last summer I only spent half the money on fuel my buddy did driving to Rubicon and back, another $250 dollars not spent. Off road my diesel gets almost 4 times the mileage my 62 got (in low range over 10mpg compared to 3 or less for the 62) I used barely 2 gallons of fuel running Rubicon, while some of the V8 powered 40's used about 16 gallons. And we can't forget the 10mpg their tow rigs got getting there trailered 40's down to California.

You get your money back quicker than you would think. But if your rig sits in the driveway most of the time it will take longer.

Tony

 

[Freewheel]

Hey Dieseler,
I think the JDM radios are in a different frequency band than the N American ones. It will overlap a bit at one end - is your one radio frequency at one of the ends of the dial?

 

[Dieseler]

yeh it has the low end only , I was thinking the OEM radio might have the whole frequency but thinking about it now it probably wont since Japan uses the lower bands , I could still use a north american OEM radio but I am still curious where the mini converter for the radio would be hidden if its still there.

 

[77cruiser77]

As you already know I have a wrecked HJ61 and I was tearing it apart. While doing so I found something odd inside the dash located above the glove box with wires that go to where the radio is. I had an after market stereo from the PO so these wires simply ended with connectors and nothing connected to them but it makes sense this is where the factory 24V to 12V converter is located.

 

[crushers]

comments already made for me...
the radio is 12V so if you want factory then go buy one out of a 62 and swap it in.

me, i do not drive enough to justify a swap
but then
i have enough diesels sitting here not to care.
now
i want to go WVO but sources are getting to be a bugger to find.

 

[cruiser9]

Good morning gentlemen. Yet another great thread. I am new to the diesel scene so forgive me if i Sound ignorant. I say it depends on the driving. For me, I am on the fence whether the added cost of a diesel truck is worth it, for the driving I do. For example, I am still watching a bj71 ( Wayne and Kraig you know the one, he came down on his price on the web). Now if I can get it for a few dollars more than a similar condition gasser than I will. But for me to spend lets say 20 thousand for one vs 12 for a gasser, thats a lot of driving to justify the added expense. I loved my 62. One family owner etc..still kicking myself in the ass for selling it. But yes the gas usage was a little on the high side LOL. However, for my dd, i only work 2 miles or less away, and i don't drive very far other than that. So I say do a pro con list, as i have done over and over again ( I know its a problem.). I look forward to reading more.

 

[RufusTheDufus]

i want to go WVO but sources are getting to be a bugger to find.

I started down that path a while ago with the intent of eventually processing my own biodiesel. Then a new biodiesel operation started up in Portland and started paying restaurants $.41 to $.50 per gallon and my sources for oil signed long term contracts with those folks.

 

[Kynot62]

Good morning gentlemen. Yet another great thread. I am new to the diesel scene so forgive me if i Sound ignorant. I say it depends on the driving. For me, I am on the fence whether the added cost of a diesel truck is worth it, for the driving I do. For example, I am still watching a bj71 ( Wayne and Kraig you know the one, he came down on his price on the web). Now if I can get it for a few dollars more than a similar condition gasser than I will. But for me to spend lets say 20 thousand for one vs 12 for a gasser, thats a lot of driving to justify the added expense. I loved my 62. One family owner etc..still kicking myself in the ass for selling it. But yes the gas usage was a little on the high side LOL. However, for my dd, i only work 2 miles or less away, and i don't drive very far other than that. So I say do a pro con list, as i have done over and over again ( I know its a problem.). I look forward to reading more.

On the practical side of things can we justify any of the money we spend on our Land Cruisers? Look at all the stuff we put on them that gets very littlle use.

Could I accept a $10K conversion, absolutely not. But could I justify it by doing the work myself, yes. You don't have to spend a fortune to swap it over.

Dieseler, I am a fan of the factory 62 radio as well I vote for a converter and run that radio

Rufus, I wondered about that the first time I saw veg oil being used for Biofuel. Realistically there is very little of it available. Same thing goes for electric cars, whats going to happen in large cites that currently have brown outs and everyone plugs in those 800 lb batteries for a recharge...

Tony

 

[Dieseler]

I have a converter but want to add some more assecories like a CB plus the kids like to run their high end electronics off it so if I can find the factory unit I will use it since the OEM radio does not draw alot like a 200Watt high end stereo sytem with 100w spearkers.
My rational on a swap comes from driving both gas and diesel for over 25 years there is no camparison in my mind especially when I have owned a diesel (BJ42) for 25 years and the only maintainence is oil changes and filters yearly where the wifes gasser (FJ62) has cost hundreds in tuneups, carb tuning to pass aircare and twice the cost in fuel in the 25 years we have owned our first cruisers.
I know I can do a conversion for less than 3Gs and have the satifaction of doing it myself and then recoup some of the 3Gs when I sell off the gasser parts now my cost coould drop below the 2G price tag.
Bio Diesel is something I have not tried yet had thought about setting up a still in behind the garage but never got around to it...plus I would have to drive around and collect fryer oil from all the restaraunts locally and we have like a 1000 of them where I live, I talked to a guy once who delivers bulk fuel weekly to the marina close to us and he said if I bought a large capacity holding tank he would sell me marine grade for alot cheaper IIR it was like 20-30 cents cheaper than the pump,I could go this route and blend it with some homebrew Bio ( cutting out the tax man has me thinking now).

 

[cruiser9]

Once again all good points...

 

[crushers]

lets see,
3K for a donor motor?
interesting, got an example?

 

[Dieseler]

Crusher

Ive brought in several 61s,and all the others I have listed below the price ranging from 3k to 5k... I only need a low mileage donor with a low rating easily obtainable from auction you should know this since you have imported JDMs if I am not mistaken , realistically I only have to pay the duty and then it can be chopped up with no other expense,I guess living beside the port of entry helps since I can pick it up and drive it home on a $15 permit I do my own paperwork on arrival Japanese agent does my export paperwork for a reasoanble price and arranges shipping.
Example would be the 61 listed below I paid 5k total I could sell the cable locks for 3k which would mean 2k for the motor and the 5spd trans that would not include selling off all the body parts and frame ,doors with power glass gee I could get it down to 1k plus the 3F gasser motor only has 80,000 original on it I am sure I could get something for it dont know what market price is 1k maybe..

Thanks Crusher it could be less than I thought.

 

[Cmoney]

Very timely issue on this diesel thread. I am having Proffitts build me a cruiser on one of their 79 bodies. After missing a 1/2 cut deal and dead ends on others I was about to consider going with a gas engine. This thread has given me the drive to stay on course and try and locate the diesel engine I've always wanted for my dream vehicle. Thanks guys for the inspiration and advice!!!!!

 

[bad_religion_au]

ahhh some great myths in here.

firstly, if your doing cost benefit analysis on a diesel swap, don't forget to factor in the extra maintanence costs (service interval about twice as often, service parts are more $$$, compare the costs of getting your injectors reco'd vs throwing a new set of cheapo plugs at a petrol, price of injector pump crapping out, glowplug replacements if not direct injected, turbo reco costs in the long run).

it's not as simple as comparing fuel costs.

i was convinced (was mechanically illiterate) that diesel was the way to go for a 4wd when i bought the Hj45. i learnt the hard way, after i bought the fj40, that petrols are NOT necisarily the most expensive cruiser to run.

 

[BreckenridgeCruiser]

I have to disagree. My BJ44 has over 140K miles on it (which is on the young side) and it has never needed injectors, pumps, or any of the major engine reco you are talking about. For my 2B/3B engine the service intervals are the same as with a gasser. What engine are you talking about? Plus, you have to do more than plugs in a gasser... Cap, rotor, wires and plugs are just the electrical system for running the engine. Rebuilding carbs (Same years as the engines I'm talking about) and chasing vacuum leaks and such can be pricey too. Plus making sure all of the USA emissions crap is still working when you have to get tested and the price way outpaces a diesel.

I am not sure about a $3K swap, but when I rebuild my 3B it should be close (around $4K for a core, rebuild kit and all of the machine and shop work). It's not exactly a swap, but I'm excited for a sealed head gasket for a change!

I have never driven a 12HT, but from the way people here talk about them, they sound awesome! I didn't know/forgot about the timing belt on the HZ. That sucks since every other Toyota engine I have ever driven has had gears or at least a chain! Does the 1HD-T have the belt too?

Lastly... for gas, I average over 100% more economy out of my BJ44 (30+ Mpg vs 13-15mpg for the 2F in my old 40 and max of 17mpg in my old 60). It now is my daily driver so I am paying for any mods/rebuilds/upkeep very well with the mileage alone.

I can see that if my rig was not used often, the benefit would diminish rapidly, but for a DD...

Cruiser9... Did you mean that BJ41 came down in price? Good luck!

 

[77cruiser77]

Dieseler if its a 12HT that you're after to do a swap I have a wrecked 61 a couple of hours away from where you live.