Vortec 350 and twin cases in a 1978 FJ40

[mano002]

Hello all,

this thread will be where I ask questions and post pictures of my Drivetrain swap.

What I have now:
Stock drivetrain. 2F, H42, 1 piece case
Axles and Suspension: BJ60 axles, SOA with flipped springs, ~100" wheelbase.

What I am installing:
Engine... '98 Vortec 350, Griffen Alum rad, Taurus fan, snorkle
Tranny... 10 spline 465
T-case 1 ... 203
T-case 2 ... Splitcase

The drivetrain is sitting in another cruiser that I bought, but its never been finished. Apparently there is a guy nearby that can flash the computer to not need the VSS and just run O2 sensors on each bank of the engine.

I realise I will have to push the drivetrain as far forward as possible to get it all to work. I will also have to fab up a new crossmember and finally build a traction bar.

Current Questions:
- Fuel supply - I will need a fuel pump and regulator. I have some some searching and apparently the E2000 or bosche 979 inline pumps are the standard choice.
- Air filter - will need something between the engine and the snorkle. Since I raised the fenders there isnt a ton of room in the engine bay. Any suggestions?

Thanks, Kevin

Before Picture from last summer:

 

[chicago]

Hello all,

this thread will be where I ask questions and post pictures of my Drivetrain swap.

What I have now:
Stock drivetrain. 2F, H42, 1 piece case
Axles and Suspension: BJ60 axles, SOA with flipped springs, ~100" wheelbase.

What I am installing:
Engine... '98 Vortec 350, Griffen Alum rad, Taurus fan, snorkle
Tranny... 10 spline 465
T-case 1 ... 203
T-case 2 ... Splitcase

The drivetrain is sitting in another cruiser that I bought, but its never been finished. Apparently there is a guy nearby that can flash the computer to not need the VSS and just run O2 sensors on each bank of the engine.

I realise I will have to push the drivetrain as far forward as possible to get it all to work. I will also have to fab up a new crossmember and finally build a traction bar.

Current Questions:
- Fuel supply - I will need a fuel pump and regulator. I have some some searching and apparently the E2000 or bosche 979 inline pumps are the standard choice.
- Air filter - will need something between the engine and the snorkle. Since I raised the fenders there isnt a ton of room in the engine bay. Any suggestions?

Thanks, Kevin

Before Picture from last summer:

Same set up Im CURRENTLY building, minus the SM465. Just getting to the fuel system NOW.
What tank are you running? I had to chop out the stock gas pan and have had a HELL of a time with that...Doing the same thing as you on the pump. Im leaning more towards an in tank set up for reliablilty and longevity reasons. Seems there is a HIGH rate of failure after a short time with the in line...However, people claim to have equal success with em, so...
IIRC, liljohn had figured a way to re program the comp for the manual trans. Might wanna hit him up. I know folks had a lot of problems getting those to jive.
Another thing to watch out of is the rear drive shaft...You might be okay with the 465, but I had to shoot everything as far to the rear as I could to get one in. It ended up being good, but I was a bit nervous about that....Just keep that in the back of your mind if you HAVEN"T moved the rear axle back. 100 in wb, Id have to guess so, but just wanna mention it.
I know NOTHING re. the snorkel...I live in the desert!

 

[mano002]

Thanks Chicago. I am definitely aware of the rear driveshaft length. The rear springs are flipped right now, and I could move everything back further if really needed.

I have the stock under the seat tank. I have been following your thread on the in-tank set-up. Heat isnt as much of a concern up here, but I like the idea.

 

[chicago]

Thanks Chicago. I am definitely aware of the rear driveshaft length. The rear springs are flipped right now, and I could move everything back further if really needed.

I have the stock under the seat tank. I have been following your thread on the in-tank set-up. Heat isnt as much of a concern up here, but I like the idea.

The tank under the seat MIGHT have to go away. Just be aware of that. Cheating the assembly over to the PS of the rig to clear the steering crap really forces that split case into it. As a heads up, if you can find a way to SAVE that, youll be SOOOOOO MUCH better off. That one thing alone has caused me SOOOOO much additional work. That being said, youll then have the issues with the steering shaft and such.
Should prove to be a really nice set up when done. I cant wait to try mine out.
ALL of my trials and tribulations on this have been pretty well documented in my build thread (Chicago builds a 40), but if you have any questions along the way, just lemme know. Ill tell you where the places ive gone wrong or "SHOULD HAVE...MAYBE" issues. That gas pan thing is ONE of the BIGGEST though. If you can find a better way to run the steering shaft where it WONT hit, you MIGHT be able to massage the pan around the split case. Other wise...making a trans tunnel, finding a place to put the tank, leg room issue for the pass. etc. Its all coming to the final stages NOW, but its been a ROUGH BUILD for ME. Year and 4 mos. Ive been at it and that has been NOT SLACKIN. Granted...I took it down the the frame and the rig was a MESS to begin with....All relative I guess.

Good luck! Cant wait to see what you come up with for this!

 

[mano002]

I have been reading your build recently. You have a doen a ton of work that I won't have to do. my body is in fair condition, and I had it down the bare frame a few years ago, and did the 60 series axles 2 years ago.

I am hoping that with the SM465 that the drivetrain is a bit shorter than your set-up, I wont have to do quite as much work as you. I think I will mock mine up with the t-cases attached and if I have to install everything an inch lower, I'd rather give up an inch of ground clearance and build a beefy skid plate over doing all the floor and fuel tank work. I really dont want to do a body lift, as I am already too tall as it is. Maybe I'm lazy, but that was my plan.

I also have a metaltech cage to install, and a swing out tire carrier to finish. I am going to have a slow start in March and the first half of April, as I am working during the day and doing night classes as well. I am aiming to be done in 6 months, its an aggressive timeline, but I think its achievable.

 

[jefishing]

I just finished my driveterain install. I put in a TBI305,Sm465,Toybox,splitcase and was able to keep everthing pretty much stock. The motor sits back enough where I can use the orginal radiator mount and the tranny shifter is about and inch away from the heater. The stock fuel tank will work fine and so will the stock tranny cover. The body stiffener will have to be trimmed alittle for the splitcase case gear shifter. I ended up with a 99 inch wheel base and the rear D shaft is 24" long. I plan on running a inline fuel pump and filter just have'nt got that far yet. The new crossmember I built is about 21 1/2 inches off the ground, that was my old frame height with SUA set up so I am happy with that. Cant wait to see what you come up with.

 

[chicago]

I have been reading your build recently. You have a doen a ton of work that I won't have to do. my body is in fair condition, and I had it down the bare frame a few years ago, and did the 60 series axles 2 years ago.

I am hoping that with the SM465 that the drivetrain is a bit shorter than your set-up, I wont have to do quite as much work as you. I think I will mock mine up with the t-cases attached and if I have to install everything an inch lower, I'd rather give up an inch of ground clearance and build a beefy skid plate over doing all the floor and fuel tank work. I really dont want to do a body lift, as I am already too tall as it is. Maybe I'm lazy, but that was my plan.

I also have a metaltech cage to install, and a swing out tire carrier to finish. I am going to have a slow start in March and the first half of April, as I am working during the day and doing night classes as well. I am aiming to be done in 6 months, its an aggressive timeline, but I think its achievable.

AAAAAH YES! I forgot about that manual trans you have. Im the only dumb ass that converted to the auto. Yes...avoid doing what I did like the plague!

 

[Elbert]

walbro fuel pump, GM SUV/pickup fuel filter of the same year your engine is, You do need a VSS to take advantage of the power of the PCM...night and day difference between non vss and having one. Vortec has fuel regulator built into fuel injection spider. I run the Stock GM pickup/suv filter from similar GM vehicle 96-99.

 

[etrnlbzz]

"AAAAAH YES! I forgot about that manual trans you have. Im the only dumb ass that converted to the auto. Yes...avoid doing what I did like the plague!"

Not the only dumb ass.....

I went to 4 link to give me a 24" rear drive shaft 109" wheel base.