Goose Gear 80 Series Engine Replacement (1 Viewer)

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I've talked about this in other threads, including my build thread. However, I felt that some may want to follow just the engine replacement part of this build. If you are interested in the rest of my build it can be accessed through the link in the signature section below.

Anyway, about two months ago my engine blew while the GG 80 was returning from Prescott, Arizona.

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Your engine blew? Please elaborate.
 
My first thought was to do an LS swap. I live in California so I did the homework about doing a CARB compliant LS swap. I started a thread here on MUD board and got a lot of good advice. I finally made a phone call to the BAR (Bureau of Automotive Repair) referee and quickly discovered that doing an LS swap on my 96' was going to be next to impossible because it is OBD II. If it threw any code it would fail. I didn't have the money to put $25k on the roulette wheel and hope it hit my number. From my research it seems that each BAR referee has their own set of rules for passing. With that in mind I decided to pass on doing an LS swap and go to plan B.
 
Someone on my LS thread mentioned that new short blocks were still available. I had read that those were next to impossible to find, but with plan A off the table I decided to pursue this as plan B. Sure enough, I found it available on Olathe Toyota's site and purchased it. Fingers crossed, I was hoping I wouldn't get the dreaded email that told me that the part was no longer available. To my great relief three weeks later it showed up!

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For those who don't engine, that means it stopped "cranking over".
I wasn't using the strict definition of the term. I am not a mechanic by trade so don't use the nomenclature correctly. My engine lost compression, likely by the rings compressing. I apologize for any confusion.
 
I talked to @NLXTACY and he suggested that I replace the PHH and motor and trans mounts. I decided to replace all the rubber and he was kind enough to put that package together. A few days later and I was happy that the Wit's End package came. Always a happy day to see a box from Joey!

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I wasn't using the strict definition of the term. I am not a mechanic by trade so don't use the nomenclature correctly. My engine lost compression, likely by the rings compressing. I apologize for any confusion.
I've just been in a jest and joke mode lately. Your goods look juicy and look forward to the pornz sure to come
.:popcorn:
 
After this I decided to do the motor completely right and order the new cylinder head. So what if I won't have any money for the next three (four, five?) years. Who needs money anyway? Seriously, with Land Cruisers becoming more collectible I figured putting essentially a new long block on the GG 80 would only increase and maintain its value. Also, I didn't want to go try to purchase this later and get the dreaded "NLA."

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After this I ordered the cylinder head gasket kit. That should be arriving tomorrow. Next up was to order the head bolts. I did not expect them to be soooo expensive! They are $23.64 MSRP and you need 24. 😯 I went to McGeorge's website, because they usually have the best price on these types of things (that I have found) and they still wanted around $16.50 a bolt. I talked to a friend of mine and he suggest that I check out American Racing Products to see if they make something for the 80. They specialize in manufacturing bolts for racing. I checked their site, but while they made bolts for Toyotas, they did not make them for any Land Cruisers.

As a last resort I checked partsouq. They had them for $9.27 a bolt. 🙌 Score! Got out my credit card and ordered 24 of them. Now they are on their way.
 
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After this I ordered the cylinder head gasket kit. That should be arriving tomorrow. Next up was to order the head bolts. I did not expect them to be soooo expensive! They are $23.64 MSRP and you need 14. 😯 I went to McGeorge's website, because they usually have the best price on these types of things (that I have found) and they still wanted around $16.50 a bolt. I talked to a friend of mine and he suggest that I check out American Racing Products to see if they make something for the 80. They specialize in manufacturing bolts for racing. I checked their site, but while they made bolts for Toyotas, they did not make them for any Land Cruisers.

As a last resort I checked partsouq. They had them for $9.27 a bolt. 🙌 Score! Got out my credit card and ordered 14 of them. Now they are on their way.
Pretty sure the ARP head stud kit for the Supra or an Opel V6 works for the 1FZ-FE.
 
Useless comment here (not just here🤔? lol) but I too have been noodling between V8 or stock swap for a while. And while the V8 may be more exciting, the I6 will garner more potential shoppers imo, regardless of any intent to sell.
I feel it's the interface of the V8 to the rest of the truck that seems to be the weakest link.
For example, I want all the Toyo dash lights to remain useful and relevant, without an added box here or an additional wire harness there. Some of the hack jobs I've seen (not yours @EricG lol) to make that happen just seem a bridge too far for the average guy. (unless there's a turn-key kit somewhere now?)

Could be wrong of course, and a V8 certainly is a selling point for those who have done it. But it's hard to imagine having one foot in SAE and the rest of your body in metric. Just too much diversity. (yeah that's a real thing)
Seems a turbo or S/C on the I6 to attain similar, reliable V8 power (albeit @twice the cost eh) makes more long term sense. Could be wrong here too. Still weighing pros/cons...

Staying tuned to your journey👍
 

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