I am looking for an engine recommendation. I have a 1970 FJ 40 that has a sbc in it and I am also struggling with the carburetor stalling on steep inclines, possibly also due to altitude. Adding fuel injection is about the cost of a new engine. The sbc doesn’t feel right to me and I would rather not spend that sort of money on it. Would a 3fe be an option that would mate to a 4 speed transmission? Are the diesel options 2H, 12ht, 3bt affected by altitude or angles? Any other Toyota engine to consider? Thanks for the input.
Engine recommendations
- Thread starter tarpaigh
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3FE is bolt it with a 4 speed H42 or H41 and in my opinion is great in a 40. The work lies in the wiring of the ECU, fuel supply and power steering plumbing. It’s an old heavy motor but is super durable and dependable, not the most exotic swap but not a bad option.
Engineer8000
SILVER Star
I've been running a 3FE for 10 years or so, I like it.
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Don't give up on the SBC yet. Both Holley and Edlebrock make off road specific carburetors that are meant to perform better than a street oriented carb in steep terrain conditions. I think you would find one of those much cheaper than EFI or a full on engine swap and would allow you to keep the simplicity, power and weight savings of the Chevy motor.
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if you were closer i’d give you a 3fe.
in reality there’s a reason that they are give away engines though. they’re high mileage and old and heavy and kind of gutless. the plus is that it’s a relatively easy swap compared to some.
diesels are nice and easy to work on but cost more to purchase and fuel prices don’t make them cheaper to run anymore.
not to derail the thought process here but more exploring options, what about a holly sniper for the sbc? they’re cheap and keeps it quite easy compared to a whole engine swap
in reality there’s a reason that they are give away engines though. they’re high mileage and old and heavy and kind of gutless. the plus is that it’s a relatively easy swap compared to some.
diesels are nice and easy to work on but cost more to purchase and fuel prices don’t make them cheaper to run anymore.
not to derail the thought process here but more exploring options, what about a holly sniper for the sbc? they’re cheap and keeps it quite easy compared to a whole engine swap
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I had a SBC with a quadrajet before my ls and honestly it was great at any angle as long as the gas was in the tank. My 5.3 is better, but the quadrajet is truly poor man’s FI. Definitely try one of those before you got to the trouble of a swap.
Find a used one and rebuild it. I’m no carb expert, but UTube university will guide you through a rebuild.
I have a few 2H for sale if you go that route
I agree with the above comments regarding the SBC and Q-Jet combo. I had this combo for 20 years and it performed very well. I also understand the desire for EFI and I finally went that route. Here is a video of me driving up a minor incline with the Q-jet.
When I first tested the SBC I installed in my FJ-40 it had the same problem on steep inclines. It had a Holley and I found a couple of solutions. The first option is to run a short piece of hose from the front bowl air vent to the rear bowl air vent. Holley's had a problem on inclines because the fuel in the bowl would slosh out of the vent and dump into the carb causing it to flood out. The hose routes the fuel from one bowl to the other and doesn't allow it to dump in the carb. Holley later came out with a fix that was inside the bowl, called a whistle kit. It was a couple of plastic pieces that routed the vent to the front of the bowl. In other words it kept the vent access in the air pocket of the bowl and prevented the flooding issue.
The first fix can be done without opening the carb, second requires the removal of the bowls to insert the plastic whistles. Either will allow you to wheel around until you decide which way you want to go.
The first fix can be done without opening the carb, second requires the removal of the bowls to insert the plastic whistles. Either will allow you to wheel around until you decide which way you want to go.
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Engineer8000
SILVER Star
When I had the SBC with Holley, it would occasionally slosh out the vent. I put a longer piece of tubing in place of the Holley vent pipe and it stopped doing that.
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1st I must say that I'm a fan of sbc's, that's my personal preference. Its your 40, you do what makes you happy. I have no dog in the hunt. It sounds like you're searching for excuses to justify an engine swap. The symptoms you describe are issues related to tuning ANY carburatorated engine. Stalling on angles is a float problem. Some carbs are better than others off road. I prefer a qjet, but there's a slight assembly learning curve with them. Any engine in higher elevations are going to lose power. A naturally aspirated diesel is going to belch black smoke and be down on power compared to one with a turbo. Same can be said with a carb engine without proper tuning for the elevation it lives in. FI will automatically compensate for elevation, but power will still be down compared to sea-level.
I started with the stk 6 and it ran fine, but i wanted a sbc. It was a personal desicion. If you want a fuel injected tractor engine, go for it. FI has always been on my list, but it continually gets shoved lower on the list.I struggle with its limitations and complexity. I've been sitting on a Tune Port system for yrs, that i will likely sell. My qjet runs fine, even on angles or laying on its' side. I can't imagine fuel injecting a sbc would be more expensive than swapping a Toyota fuel injected 6 cyl. The swap is straight forward, it's not the initial cost of the big ticket items that gets you, It's the little things that will nickle and dime you.
I started with the stk 6 and it ran fine, but i wanted a sbc. It was a personal desicion. If you want a fuel injected tractor engine, go for it. FI has always been on my list, but it continually gets shoved lower on the list.I struggle with its limitations and complexity. I've been sitting on a Tune Port system for yrs, that i will likely sell. My qjet runs fine, even on angles or laying on its' side. I can't imagine fuel injecting a sbc would be more expensive than swapping a Toyota fuel injected 6 cyl. The swap is straight forward, it's not the initial cost of the big ticket items that gets you, It's the little things that will nickle and dime you.
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My FJ40 / SBC has the earlier model Holley fuel injection from the previous owner, other than instant start up there are things I don't like about it. In the future I'll be changing it back to a carburetor but I'm a luddite when it comes to these things.
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OP: If you're having probs getting carb right on a sbc, are you sure you want to tackle an engine swap or fuel injection?
- Thread starter
- #14
I really appreciate this forum. There is so much wisdom here. I just ran elephant hill yesterday in a 100, nice and slow on those steep inclines. I would like to do that with the 40. My 40 struggled on steep inclines in Silverton CO despite adjusting the carb. I like the 3fe idea and they are readily available. A new carb is much cheaper and easier. I will try that out first before I bust my knuckles on a swap.
What carb are you running now?
I was going to hand build a 283 Corvette engine for mine.
I have use an holley off road truck avanger 670 cfm in the past on a healthy SBC , it was great off road , but running rich from the factory
Later change to TPI 350 from a 87 camaro , it is great but idle rpm is higher and sometime weird cause not using a vss
Other carb choice is :
rochester quadrajet
Edelbrock with off road kit
Later change to TPI 350 from a 87 camaro , it is great but idle rpm is higher and sometime weird cause not using a vss
Other carb choice is :
rochester quadrajet
Edelbrock with off road kit
My qjet handled moderate elevation differences well. I live at 6k and wheeled anywhere from 3k to 9k. Now I never went as high as the Silverton/ouray type stuff. The FI would likely be for sure, but a new carb is easier and cheaper in the short term. For the cost of a 3fe id go ls, but that’s just me
The 3FE is a dog with the A440F behind. People have posted when the A440F is replaced with a H55F it's a different engine.
Few comments say how easy the 3FE is to install. Being a V8 is currently installed may make more challenging that a stock F engine depending on what was removed to get the V8 installed.
Few comments say how easy the 3FE is to install. Being a V8 is currently installed may make more challenging that a stock F engine depending on what was removed to get the V8 installed.
Engineer8000
SILVER Star
Original frame side motor mounts can be a challenge to find. Bolting them back on through the rivet holes is also a challenge. I used button head bolts for the three motor mounts, steering gear mount and the two front tub mounts. You can see how the two front motor mounts are slotted to adjust the position of the 3fe.
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