There is an H55 on Ebay right now.
My piggy project
- Thread starter CandyPants
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I have a fj55 with an f engine and a 4speed. The f145 is old, has a lot of miles, and runs like the super low compression champ it is. I run no lift, 33"'s, ARB locker, and 3/4" body lift. It came with the 3 speed with vacuum actuated shifters. When I swapped to a 4 spd the only clearance issue was with the vacuum hoses, and those were flexible enough to not fully collapse when bent. The 3spd sucks. It belongs in the bushes on the side of your house. The 4spd trans can take a few hundred thousand miles. If it turns smooth and looks clean on the inside it is probably good. Don't pay more than $100 for one. With 31" tires and the 4spd the pig felt peppy. Try the transmission swap before the engine, unless you know your engine sucks. The technical links has a great writeup on the swap.
Basic tune up items and specific attention to your carb's condition will give you some power. For mild wheeling, 33's with stock gearing is just fine. with a 4" lift and maybe some trimming, you can fit 35's no matter what anyone tells you. If you have to buy new rims, get some with less backspacing. You'll be grateful.
Basic tune up items and specific attention to your carb's condition will give you some power. For mild wheeling, 33's with stock gearing is just fine. with a 4" lift and maybe some trimming, you can fit 35's no matter what anyone tells you. If you have to buy new rims, get some with less backspacing. You'll be grateful.
Good point, Nat! My FJ60 has a SBC and NV4500 in it (PO conversions), and it's pretty frickin' awesome! No complaints here for low end torque or highway speed power. I think (not 100% sure) that it still has 4.11 OEM gears, and if true, I'd really like to go to 4.56s. I'm getting the jackstands out this weekend to figure it out. The 4.56's really made a big difference in my FJ40. Hope that helps with your pig.
most fj60s are 3.7 gears. 4.11 was an option.
a couple comments...somone mentioned going to a diesel instead of a gasser...well then your gunna be looking at ALOT more money...with the domestice diesels you will have to look at a spring over or other largish lift to clear the oil pan, the other option would be toyota diesels but they are also realy expensive to swap and would require much more work then a V8 or other gasser swap would. when i was looking into diesel swaps general opinion was about i think around 10k once the smoke clears and the rig is on the road...
also...i have heard that the H55 is over rated, i have not run this tranny but from what i know you cant hit 5th gear very often unless its dead flat or down hill...
also...i have heard that the H55 is over rated, i have not run this tranny but from what i know you cant hit 5th gear very often unless its dead flat or down hill...
Mark W
Yep, I really don't really care that much I guess.
That will be completely dependent on the rest of the drivetrain combo. It's only a 17% OD. Pretty mild compared to most.
I've driven this tranny behind a 2F in a '40, a couple of 3B in '70s and a 2H in a '60.
Works great and there is no problem with the practicality of 5th.
Mark...
Mark W
Yep, I really don't really care that much I guess.
It is actually uncommon for power to be your limiting factor when involved in moderate of road use of one of these rigs shod with reasonable size tires. If your F is in good shape, keep it, take care of it and spend your money on other things which will get you a lot more bang for the buck.
The four speed is a great idea. It's a straightforward swap which can be accomplished using all OEM parts. Just find a parts rig with the four speed setup and start swapping pieces.
Lockers, lift, tires, gears, 4 speed, winch, bumpers, roof racks and al sorts of stuff like that will add a lot more fun and function to your rig than a more powerful engine. When the time comes that your F needs replacement, the 2F is a better choice if you can get one for a reasonable price. Chevy V8 is a simple swap too, and if you don't get carried away with high performance mods it can be nearly as basic and reliable as the 2F.
Mark...
Mark W
Yep, I really don't really care that much I guess.
You will need a T/C input gear from a '74 four speed mated T/C. This gear had the splining to fit the four speed output shaft and the tooth configuration to math the "three speed T/C". It is still available new. You also need a special bearing to match both the size of the shaft and the size of the case. Part numbers available in the tech write up section here on mud.
You will also need the bolts that hold the T/C onto the tranny from the fourspeed. They are longer than the ones on the three speed. You also need the high/low shift arm from a fourspeed T/C. Or jusrt swap the whole top plate from the four speed unit.
The 2WD-4WD shift rod is longer on the fourspeed T/C. Swap the whole shift mech to be simple.
Nice mod. The difference between the low range gear reduction is the equivalent of 4.88s instead of 4.11s.
mark...
The 5sp is ideal if you want to long highways trips. Their main enemy is the more powerful turbo diesels or V8s under acceleration in 5th.
The 5sp are long lived in F,B or H engines.
I did 1300 klms last sunday and only down changed 4-5 times on the hills
crushers
post ho
thats CHEAP for a brand new tranny!!
crushers
post ho
IF you are going to swap engines and trannies anyway and if this really is going to be a long distance traveller then may i suggest a 1HZ with a H55F. the money you spend on the engine and tranny will pay for itself in fuel savings (in a few years) but the comfort of driving is priceless...now this being said you live in colorado so i would also suggest you turbo that engine. same fuel milage, excellent torque for off road, great fuel milage compared to either the F or 2F and it is quiet engine.
just a suggestion.
just a suggestion.
crushers
post ho
you also have to remember that the 4 speed 4th is 1-1 and the 3 speed 3rd is 1-1 so highway traveling is no different although the 4 speed is an easier shift and nicer gear selection...
- Thread starter
- #33
Y'all have been a great help. I think I am going to keep the engine until it's dead, providing I can get a different carb on there so it's not such a PITA. The PO put in an electric fuel pump and a Weber carb and it seems to flood the engine with gas. So it definately needs some carb work. I have an aisin that I am going to have rebuilt.
As for the 4spd swap, I am headed to look at some piggy parts on Monday and am going to see if I can find the transmission and Xfer case (along with some badly needed floorboards and other parts).
I think the diesel is a bit rich for my blood right now. I just finished building my FJ Cruiser to where I want it, so the funds are a bit drained at the moment. However, eventually, I'd love to go diesel and do the bio diesel thing.
When I find a donor piggy, I'll post up what I find.
In the meantime, I'll read up on how to do this. I found this in the tech links http://www.toepper.net/Landcruiser pages/3-speed to 4-speed conversion.htm ...is there a better write up with more step by step directions somewhere?
As for the 4spd swap, I am headed to look at some piggy parts on Monday and am going to see if I can find the transmission and Xfer case (along with some badly needed floorboards and other parts).
I think the diesel is a bit rich for my blood right now. I just finished building my FJ Cruiser to where I want it, so the funds are a bit drained at the moment. However, eventually, I'd love to go diesel and do the bio diesel thing.
When I find a donor piggy, I'll post up what I find.
In the meantime, I'll read up on how to do this. I found this in the tech links http://www.toepper.net/Landcruiser pages/3-speed to 4-speed conversion.htm ...is there a better write up with more step by step directions somewhere?
That is where the H55 helps. IMHO
crushers
post ho
ywp i agree, the H55F is one of the nicest shifting, quiet, practical conversions one can make to the older FJs...
Just to clear up a few of the misconceptions here: the SM420 had about a 20 year production run - which is not too far behind the SM465 (and before the period of the ubiquitous automatic tranny).
The SM420 is commonly used in Land Cruisers due to its easy adaptability; with a 3 speed bellhousing, a 3 speed transfer case and a few bits and pieces (3/4" plate adapter, clutch disc, pilot bearing adapter etc...) it's a direct bolt up to an F or 2F.
Land Cruisers are more plentiful in diesel in most of the rest of the world. The modifications required to install and Toyota diesel is not what you might think, it's not any harder than a SBC!
hth, j.
The SM420 is commonly used in Land Cruisers due to its easy adaptability; with a 3 speed bellhousing, a 3 speed transfer case and a few bits and pieces (3/4" plate adapter, clutch disc, pilot bearing adapter etc...) it's a direct bolt up to an F or 2F.
Land Cruisers are more plentiful in diesel in most of the rest of the world. The modifications required to install and Toyota diesel is not what you might think, it's not any harder than a SBC!
hth, j.
The H55 has an excellent set of ratios for most driving: first gear is not overly low at 4.84 and 5th is not too tall even when using large tires.
If my old 3B with nearly 500,000 km on it can push 5th gear / 33" tires most of the time on an Interstate, then it's not geared badly.
My loaded for camping HJ61 can pull all but the steepest hills on the Coquihalla in 5th - and I can cruise at 110 - 120km/h and still get 10.34L/100 km.
If my old 3B with nearly 500,000 km on it can push 5th gear / 33" tires most of the time on an Interstate, then it's not geared badly.
My loaded for camping HJ61 can pull all but the steepest hills on the Coquihalla in 5th - and I can cruise at 110 - 120km/h and still get 10.34L/100 km.
crushers
post ho
hummm, why would you bother to comment on a tranny you have not driven...hearsay is just that hearsay, leave it at that.
the H55F is an excellent tranny and i have swapped a number of them into the gasser F/2F drivetrains. a VERY easy swap indeed. 2F H55F 35" boots and i could hit over 100 mph, climb highway hills at 80 mph and get (relativey) decent gas milage at the double nickle. i have never blown 5th out of a H55F behind a gasser, NA diesel or a turbo diesel in many years of driving them...not yet anyway. am not gentle on my trucks either.
a V8 is NOT easier to swap into a Land Cruiser than a diesel and a PROPERLY done V8 swap will cost the same in the end. (anyone can butcher a V8 swap for cheap)
not wise to post about units you know very little about.
cheers
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- #39
OK, so I will look into an H55F. I'll do some searching and some reading here.
In the mean time, I have a carb and linkage coming to me next Sat. I also found a donor piggy for the rear floorboard. I spent the better part of today cutting it out. Not done yet, but next Sat and it will be mine! I've never done any metal work, so it's going slow...but it's going. Some friends came over and helped, so a big thanks to them!!! Also a bit of the front passenger floorboard will be replaced by the time I'm done.
So the next question I have is about the electric fuel pump. The stock pump is gone, so electric is all I have. But with the stock carb, should I go back to the stock fuel pump? The one I have mounts just below the gas tank on the frame and is pretty chincy.
In the mean time, I have a carb and linkage coming to me next Sat. I also found a donor piggy for the rear floorboard. I spent the better part of today cutting it out. Not done yet, but next Sat and it will be mine! I've never done any metal work, so it's going slow...but it's going. Some friends came over and helped, so a big thanks to them!!! Also a bit of the front passenger floorboard will be replaced by the time I'm done.
So the next question I have is about the electric fuel pump. The stock pump is gone, so electric is all I have. But with the stock carb, should I go back to the stock fuel pump? The one I have mounts just below the gas tank on the frame and is pretty chincy.
Yes ,less dramas with OEM set ups.
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