Do you have one? If so, what trans? Who did the install? How do you like it?
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
- Thread starter
- #3
Yeah, I've read through there, lots of great info.
Do you have emissions testing in your area? E-rod is CARB(California air research board) exempt for 95 and earlier so is a good but expensive option for engine swaps in California or areas with similar smog regulations. The supplied cats make swapping a bit tougher as compared to a simple LS swap with headers or earlier style exhaust manifolds so if you don't need it to pass smog there are better options.
- Thread starter
- #5
My truck is a 96. No emissions testing in my area for vehicles 96 and older, but not sure I'd want to build something that didn't have some level of emissions testing capability.
I've seen the Gen III motor swaps, which look inexpensive but seems like all the Gen III motors have a ton of miles these days. I guess I could go Gen IV with the Pacific harness, but then how close am I to just buying a new motor from the General. Hmm.
I've seen the Gen III motor swaps, which look inexpensive but seems like all the Gen III motors have a ton of miles these days. I guess I could go Gen IV with the Pacific harness, but then how close am I to just buying a new motor from the General. Hmm.
E-rod still isnt OBD-2 compliant so if they decided in your area to start smogging 96 and earlier you'd likely still not be compliant. I think Id look into something like a LQ4 with some kind of stand alone harness/ECU, iron block but alot cheaper than a LS3 and plenty of power for a 4WD.
Build your own harness. Almost all of the parts will be supplied by the donor vehicle and the rest is a pair of good metripack crimpers, soldering iron, and modular fuse block away. All of the info including pictures is out there.
Or, if you want really low miles look into a GenV engine. There are some tricks to sort out (vacuum pump, different accessory mounting) but they make very impressive power per liter due to the direct injection. Since many people aren't swapping these yet they were comparable or CHEAPER than GenIV packages when I was looking. But.. companies are starting to offer harnesses and tunes, which basically means it can be DIY, which means they are becoming a competitive option.
Or, if you want really low miles look into a GenV engine. There are some tricks to sort out (vacuum pump, different accessory mounting) but they make very impressive power per liter due to the direct injection. Since many people aren't swapping these yet they were comparable or CHEAPER than GenIV packages when I was looking. But.. companies are starting to offer harnesses and tunes, which basically means it can be DIY, which means they are becoming a competitive option.
ICON does fully CARB compliant LS swaps. The kit comes pre-certified from the manufacturer, as the whole thing has its own EO number. You can buy the same thing and put it in yourself. Granted, not the cheapest way to go. but it is guaranteed no – hassle.
I'm not sure where you are located in New England but I do LS swaps at Back Bay Customs in Maine and it's really not something the state/county will care about for inspection on older vehicles. I would get a used truck motor with under 80K or a new LS from GM, put cats on it and enjoy it. You will still have the OBD system intact if you use a factory GM PCM/ECM but a standalone engine management will 100% work as well.
Not true. All E-rod packages come with a fully OBDII compliant setup and have diagnostic ports in the supplied harness. The entire idea behind these engines was for pre '96 cars/trucks to pass emission tests in all 50 states.
Also, installing an LQ4/LQ9 engine into an 80 series (for example) would mean the ECU would need a reflash to show a VIN of a light duty truck, not a 2500, which those engines came in, in order to be a viable swap into the lighter LC. Not only that, but ALL emissions equipment for that year of truck would need to be present. Stock manifolds (presents a big issue in our trucks), CATs installed at required distances, O2 sensors present, no fault codes, no 'tamper' codes, evaporative emissions, etc...
For those living in places where you can get a 'quick' pass, or just a sniffer test, this would be a simple swap. Not in places like CO and CA where extensive testing and inspections are performed. You have to do your homework, or you're going to be up s*** creek quick come time to get inspected.
The thing to consider is what these places look for. If your door card says they should be seeing an EGR system, you better make sure the engine you swapped in has one, or its a 'red flag' and they go into full inspection mode. Have your ducks in a row and you just might skate. Otherwise, spend the money on an E-rod or rebuilding your engine. Just my opinion..
Not sure if Jonathan Ward bought up every 5.3L that Chevy Performance made, but the 5.3L (GVWR 7200 or less) is not available currently. Multiple sites are saying it is discontinued. I have a few emails out trying to get answers, as I am most definitely going to try this route with my FZJ. It's just too good of a deal to pass up.
The thing about the 6.2L is that it is only certified for GVWR of 5725 or less. That means no 80 series trucks can 'technically' be swapped to the E-rod 6.2L and pass inspection (in a state like CO or CA that has them), should your referee decide to dig a little deeper after you hand him your magic piece of paper with an executive order number written on it.
Last edited:
Another engine swap option for you. Keeps it Toyota and the slight bump in performance should keep you happy. 
Toyota's 230mph Land Cruiser: the full story
Toyota's 230mph Land Cruiser: the full story
For those interested...I did just find a video of Mr. Ward describing a 97 FZJ80 with a corvette engine. That'd be the 6.2L, so perhaps it isn't as big of a deal as anticipated...
I hate to follow three different threads for the same information, but it is what it is. TX makes engine swaps sound straight forward, but you need the emissions equipment of the newer engine. I think the erod is much cleaner than the Toyota engine.
While you might get 2x as much power as the old 1FZ, do not expect huge power. Here is a dyno from a guy with a 6L and newer 6 speed auto that only made 267rwhp. Stock 1FZ makes about 135awhp, and almost 200awhp with the TRD SC. A good turbo setup will make 350awhp. It is a lot of expense to go through to get 267rwhp.
This was just an Aussie truck, a 105, the guy took the 1FZ out and spend close to $20k Aus, and then found out it had less power than his buddies truck with a turbo. So they took it to the dyno and the Toyota drivetrain must just soak up a lot of power because that 400+hp V8 only put down 267rwhp. I thought it was our transmissions sucking all the power, but must be the transfercase? Either way, just throwing it out there.
You and your logic and knowledge.
I like the 1st gear in the 6l80
Without more info regarding what they did with intake, exhaust, MAF calibration, VVE calibration, fuel system... lots of stuff.. I'm not willing to give up on my swap just yet.
The 3.5" exhaust through the rear suspension is proving to be a giant pain in the ass, by the way. But that's what GM used with this engine...
Oh and I don't have an official weight yet but the all aluminum v8 is so much lighter the front end gained 1.5" in height with everything else being equal
The 3.5" exhaust through the rear suspension is proving to be a giant pain in the ass, by the way. But that's what GM used with this engine...
Oh and I don't have an official weight yet but the all aluminum v8 is so much lighter the front end gained 1.5" in height with everything else being equal
A
Alignment?
- Thread starter
- #20
Fair enough. So how much to refresh engine, trans, and then add a turbo/SC. How much am I in for? How many MPG am I getting? What am I running for engine management, what does that cost?