I guess its time to post up my '78. I bought this cruiser about 11 years ago. It came with a Chevy V8, TH350 & a 4spd case. I've only driven her about 100 miles and most of that was on the ride home from buying it.
When I bought it the tranny or t-case was making a whining noise. I figured there was a bad bearing somewhere and i'd have no trouble just rebuilding the offending unit. I tore it all apart and discovered the genius who did the conversion welded the input shaft of the t-case to the input bearing. On further teardown I found the input gear had stress cracks on every spline and tooth! it was a bomb waiting to go off. So I had a useless th350 adapter a V8 and an automatic I didn't really want. a little time passed..
I bought a hard top with side doors and ambulance doors. Paint is now a bit faded but better than the rest of the truck! I also bought the correct windshield frame with the wipers at the bottom. its primed and has been for years but not installed.
I searched around and found a th-400 adapter used in good condition and my buddy got me a free th400 tranny that I had rebuilt. Time passed and I never got around to installing the th-400 and I sold it. I decided I wanted a manual and I found a sm420 with an adapter and t-case already assembled. I bought all the parts I needed for the conversion and then let it sit for another couple of years.
I got into building turbo MR2's and even put a 7mgte in my '85 pickup and still the cruiser sat.
I finally found MUD a few months ago and got inspired reading all the build threads to get the cruiser up and running again. I still havent done much other than plan and sell off all the stuff I won't need.
My plan is:
1. 1KZ-TE 3.0L Turbo diesel, maybe setup for WVO.
2. NV4500 (my uncle gave me a used one, 29 spline dodge HD)
3. Mini truck PS
4. Milemarker Hyd. winch.( took it off my truck, I hope it fits, haven't measured yet...)
5. Rear disk brakes.
6. Rebuild steering, its scary!
7. gets some factory wheels and caps with the "tall skinny" look tires. 33x 10.50's?
8. fix the little bit of rust it has and paint it.
The biggest challenge will be getting the NV4500 mated up to the 1KZ. I'm trying to get a bellhousing, flywheel and Pressure plate for the 1KZ that I can modify to fit the NV4500. Its hard to find and import manuals so i'm just getting the parts I need.
I'm still selling stuff and saving money so if anyone is in need of a 7mgte powered '85 4x4 or a nice seemingly low mileage 350 4 bolt crate motor let me know!
Here are some pics as it sits:
When I bought it the tranny or t-case was making a whining noise. I figured there was a bad bearing somewhere and i'd have no trouble just rebuilding the offending unit. I tore it all apart and discovered the genius who did the conversion welded the input shaft of the t-case to the input bearing. On further teardown I found the input gear had stress cracks on every spline and tooth! it was a bomb waiting to go off. So I had a useless th350 adapter a V8 and an automatic I didn't really want. a little time passed..
I bought a hard top with side doors and ambulance doors. Paint is now a bit faded but better than the rest of the truck! I also bought the correct windshield frame with the wipers at the bottom. its primed and has been for years but not installed.
I searched around and found a th-400 adapter used in good condition and my buddy got me a free th400 tranny that I had rebuilt. Time passed and I never got around to installing the th-400 and I sold it. I decided I wanted a manual and I found a sm420 with an adapter and t-case already assembled. I bought all the parts I needed for the conversion and then let it sit for another couple of years.
I got into building turbo MR2's and even put a 7mgte in my '85 pickup and still the cruiser sat.
I finally found MUD a few months ago and got inspired reading all the build threads to get the cruiser up and running again. I still havent done much other than plan and sell off all the stuff I won't need.
My plan is:
1. 1KZ-TE 3.0L Turbo diesel, maybe setup for WVO.
2. NV4500 (my uncle gave me a used one, 29 spline dodge HD)
3. Mini truck PS
4. Milemarker Hyd. winch.( took it off my truck, I hope it fits, haven't measured yet...)
5. Rear disk brakes.
6. Rebuild steering, its scary!
7. gets some factory wheels and caps with the "tall skinny" look tires. 33x 10.50's?
8. fix the little bit of rust it has and paint it.
The biggest challenge will be getting the NV4500 mated up to the 1KZ. I'm trying to get a bellhousing, flywheel and Pressure plate for the 1KZ that I can modify to fit the NV4500. Its hard to find and import manuals so i'm just getting the parts I need.
I'm still selling stuff and saving money so if anyone is in need of a 7mgte powered '85 4x4 or a nice seemingly low mileage 350 4 bolt crate motor let me know!
Here are some pics as it sits: