Extending Range to 500 miles. Best Options? (1 Viewer)

[LandLocked93]

I'm pushing 300kmi (29xkmi) on 1992 1FZ and get at worst 7mpg on trail.
On level, paved hwy, 18mpg isn't beyond possible.
Tire-size-corrected 21mpg (on 30.4" Patagonia AT tires) has been recorded.

 

[Dusten]

I'm pushing 300kmi (29xkmi) on 1992 1FZ and get at worst 7mpg on trail.
On level, paved hwy, 18mpg isn't beyond possible.
Tire-size-corrected 21mpg (on 30.4" Patagonia AT tires) has been recorded.

So 21 mpg gets you just a touch over 500
18 falls well short.
The normal 14-15 a gasser gets isn't even close.

 

[Dave 2000]

Your 30 mpg is almost 25 here.

With the tank converted to imperial gallons, you'd need 24 mpg imperial to get 500 miles from a tank and that's sucking it bone dry. Still not ideal.

I am a track every tank on a spreadsheet guy and I have a hard believing my 35's are costing me 8-9mpg.

I was not sure of the conversion hence the reason for stating imperial.

Also because we are stateside, the diesel isn't available at breakers. The LS is.

I guessed that as well but does it mean getting a secondhand LS and then juggling with the exhaust system, injection electronics and so forth where a diesel does not need so much 'gumpf' just to get it fitted and running?

As I said, it is possible that there are 'off the shelf' kits for the LS to 80 conversion, being in Spain I do not have any knowledge as to what you have at your disposal?

Regards

Dave

 

[LandLocked93]

So 21 mpg gets you just a touch over 500
18 falls well short.
The normal 14-15 a gasser gets isn't even close.

Agreed.



One could argue the whole thing is a sham.

 

[Dusten]

I was not sure of the conversion hence the reason for stating imperial.


I guessed that as well but does it mean getting a secondhand LS and then juggling with the exhaust system, injection electronics and so forth where a diesel does not need so much 'gumpf' just to get it fitted and running?

As I said, it is possible that there are 'off the shelf' kits for the LS to 80 conversion, being in Spain I do not have any knowledge as to what you have at your disposal?

Regards

Dave

There are more than enough ls swapped vehicles it's not a huge ordeal.

But take exhaust... Just finding exhaust for a 1hdt here is impossible.

 

[Dusten]

Agreed.



One could argue the whole thing is a sham.

Nah, a larger tank would easily suit his needs, and be quite easy

 

[Jorgito]

Honestly, limited range was the biggest dissapoinment of the 1FZ. We traveled in Russia and Mongolia and we had couple of bad moments with running out of gas where we just had to keep going forward as we did not have enough gas to go back to gas station and pray that there would be a gas station in front of us. ( Also with two jerry cans - each 20l )

This was the main reason why I opted for the 1HD-FTE and also got the extended LRA main tank replacement.

 

[Tachycardic]

Ideally, a 1HD-FTE or 5.3L gasser + aux tank would be ideal. I'm currently in South Korea for another 6 months--most SUVs are diesel here. I'm driving a 2008 Hyundai Tuscon diesel and love the torque. I don't drive fast--65-70mph on the highway--is plenty for me.

Realistically, the EV conversion is out. I just don't have the time or ambition to tackle on a project like that. It now boils down to diesel vs the 5.3L. Holy smokes, the 6BT is almost 1000 pounds! The 4BT is about 750-ish, smaller, and give me more room to maneuver around the engine bay. The second gen 4BTA looks good on paper for my application. Is this an option, or are people using the 1st gen 4BT?

 

[White Stripe]

Ideally, a 1HD-FTE or 5.3L gasser + aux tank would be ideal. I'm currently in South Korea for another 6 months--most SUVs are diesel here. I'm driving a 2008 Hyundai Tuscon diesel and love the torque. I don't drive fast--65-70mph on the highway--is plenty for me.

Realistically, the EV conversion is out. I just don't have the time or ambition to tackle on a project like that. It now boils down to diesel vs the 5.3L. Holy smokes, the 6BT is almost 1000 pounds! The 4BT is about 750-ish, smaller, and give me more room to maneuver around the engine bay. The second gen 4BTA looks good on paper for my application. Is this an option, or are people using the 1st gen 4BT?

@Hojack, @GLTHFJ60 and @The Phoenician have 4bt swaps on they're fj60s. They are pretty knowledgeable. It would probably be a pretty easy swap. I would spend a lot of time with thick sound deadening. I'm about 50/50 on if I should have gone diesel. It's a very different power curve and driving experience over a LS swap. I would definitely ride with somebody that has a swap before you do it.

 

[Tachycardic]

Agreed. I read that one has to keep the revs between 1400-2800rpms to access the good stuff. Very different driving characteristics compared to the 5.3L. Why are you 50/50 on whether you should have gone diesel?

 

[iptman]

I got 500 miles driving up to NYC and back starting off with my main and 13 gallon OEM aux tanks topped off. I say spend the money on an aux tank and see how that fits your needs. It won't be wasted money if you then decide later to do an engine swap. Plus a shop should be able to get it installed in a day or 2. Close to instant gratification.

 

[Dave 2000]

There are more than enough ls swapped vehicles it's not a huge ordeal.

But take exhaust... Just finding exhaust for a 1hdt here is impossible.

I guess you will have do what I do, pay to have parts imported a simple thing like an antenna is not available here, so an exhaust which is going to last 25 years....well.

Regards

Dave

 

[Tachycardic]

I got 500 miles driving up to NYC and back starting off with my main and 13 gallon OEM aux tanks topped off. I say spend the money on an aux tank and see how that fits your needs. It won't be wasted money if you then decide later to do an engine swap. Plus a shop should be able to get it installed in a day or 2. Close to instant gratification.

I'm looking at LRA's 24 gallon aux tank. I like it! Prices have gone up to about $2000 with the $100 military/LE discount. That's up from $1600 pre-pandemic. Another reason to hate Covid19!

 

[White Stripe]

Agreed. I read that one has to keep the revs between 1400-2800rpms to access the good stuff. Very different driving characteristics compared to the 5.3L. Why are you 50/50 on whether you should have gone diesel?

Diesels are louder, more mechanical, more tractor like, they don't fire up and drive away as quickly, they dont accelerate that fast. But they have more torque-better for towing- they also get better mpg, they also produce less heat so a beefy cooling system isn't needed. The towing and mileage are a huge appeal. On the other hand the LS is very much like driving a Yukon if done well, but is harder to keep cool, gets worse mpg, and needs higher rpms to get into the power curve. The best I typically see is 14mpg on the highway with my current tune with the 6.0. Not much better mpg than a 1fz, but I do get double the power for the same range. I don't get on it often, when I do I usually start to laugh because it's so fun to drive.

 

[desmocruiser]

24 gallon LRA aux tank and 1FZ with turbo/ SC or LS or Toyota V8 swap, if necessary for what you are towing.

Gas cans are really only helpful when there isn’t gas available, the effort to remove cans, fill cans and replace is much more time consuming than pumping from a gas pump since you are stopped. The ease of pressing a button to transfer fuel as you continue driving for 500 plus mile range is a game changer, plus it puts the 7 lbs per gallon weight in the best and safer location and the refill is just as easy as your reg tank, just a little bit more expensive !

I would love a diesel 80, just haven’t fully gotten my head in the direction of parts sourcing while traveling combined with potential complications of a moderately priced conversion!

 

[NeverFinis]

I wasn't kidding about the 5.3L LS/LT. I have been thinking about this for myself and trying to extend range as much as possible. I already have a 42 gallon aux tank, which I still need to install.

A 5.3L is about 100 to 150lbs lighter than a 1FZ, more fuel efficient and much more power. Being lighter is a huge deal since keeping weight down is important. So much stuff is added to a vehicle for overlanding that one should save weight where they can.

Due to VVT and direct injection, the torque curve of the latest LT motors are just amazing. 383 ft-lbs at 4100 rpm. It is a fairly flat torque curve, despite peaking at 4100 rpm. It will easily compete with a 90's era Toyota diesel for torque at low rpms.

In real world, the 5.3L gets about 1-2 mpg better than a 6.0/6.2L. 5.3L gets about 4-5 mpg better than a 1FZ. 5.3L gets about ~2 mpg better than a 80 with the factory diesel. See fuelly.com.

Each mpg improvement has a massive impact on range.

 

[The Phoenician]

I saw that I was mentioned but I didn't read the entire discussion. Here's my long range set up.

I have a 4bta with compound turbos and a 38 gallon fuel tank with ten gallon Jerry cans. I can do about 14mpg while towing a fully loaded trailer and I managed to get it to go 101mph while towing.
Diesels run cooler until you make them work then they produce a lot of heat. It runs like a tractor but I love that feel.

If you have anything specific you want to know feel free to ask.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Stock tank with my 4bt gets 18-20 depending how fast I go. Thats loaded, but no trailer, over 70kish miles.

Works out to about 400mi range.

 

[Dusten]

I guess you will have do what I do, pay to have parts imported a simple thing like an antenna is not available here, so an exhaust which is going to last 25 years....well.

Regards

Dave

It's not about paying.
The last person I know that got exhaust shipped in actually paid someone in Australia to buy it and ship it to him. Because no one that sells it will ship it here.

 

[Hojack]

Stock tank with my 4bt gets 18-20 depending how fast I go. Thats loaded, but no trailer, over 70kish miles.

Works out to about 400mi range.

Highest mpg I’ve got so far is 23.2 on the Highway to my property.