What kind of motor can I put in a 94 Toyota Pickup DX (1 Viewer)

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C

Chickenmagnet

Joined
Jan 30, 2017
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I’ve owned this truck for about 24 years. It runs great, newer clutch, clean interior, 170k odo... But it has some cosmetic and mechanical issues. Local shop says it needs 3k in engine repair, obviously body is not great. It does run very well but I don’t drive more than 30 miles a month anymore. Mostly dump and Home Depot trips. I was thinking if I was going to put 3Gs into it anyway, maybe a fancy motor swap To make it a sleeper?? Any ideas would be appreciated. Definitely not selling it. Daily drivers are Duramax and 18 S4. Frame is possibly bent from being stopped behind a motorcycle, and rear ended from girl texting in minivan. Any thoughts on a good swap would be appreciated!

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gnob said:
Is your truck a 4cyl or v6?
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This. If you are starting from a 4cyl/22re, go with the 2.7/3RZ from a Tacoma/4R. If you are starting from a V6/3VZ, then install the 3.4/5VZ-FE. Both swaps are well documented.
 
Ford roller cam pushrod 5.0. 225hp/290ftlbs bone stock right out of the box. Carb'd for simplicity, EFI might blow the budget.

3k isnt going to get you very far paying someone else to do the swap. (Any swap)
 
Hey everyone thanks for the info! I’ll start looking it over. Budget would be 5k–ish. Although might pay more if I can beef it up. It’s the v6 model. Also any info in finding a used bed for this truck? I’ve looked online and I’m going to try the TOYOTA salvage yard in Denver.
 
gnob said:
Does it run well or need 3k in work? Something doesn't really add up here.
Is your truck a 4cyl or v6?
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It runs great. But I need to get the timing belt and water pump done, rebuild the radiator and replace the manifold gaskets. I got a quote for roughly 3k.
 
aztoyman said:
Easy stuff if you have some basic mechanical skills and watch some youtube videos. If it runs great dig in and freshen it up.
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I'm going to echo this. We all started someplace, and some of us didn't have the advantage of YouTube and the Internet at the time.
 
I personally question the ethics of shops trying to sell jobs like this, especially when they all know 3.0 legacy.

If i were you, i would start collecting parts for a 3.4 swap. Start doing swap homework. Put those dollars towards something actually good.

Mind you the radiator is important, but is the radiator questionable because of the motor? Etc
 
gnob said:
I personally question the ethics of shops trying to sell jobs like this, especially when they all know 3.0 legacy.

If i were you, i would start collecting parts for a 3.4 swap. Start doing swap homework. Put those dollars towards something actually good.

Mind you the radiator is important, but is the radiator questionable because of the motor? Etc
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Can you elaborate? Should it be cheaper? Is the 3.0 Troublesome? It’s been flawless for me. I bought the truck in 97 with 63k miles and have put about 110k on it but only about 6k in the last 7 years. I had The clutch done 2 years ago. I personally did the front brakes around the same time. I’ve done little maintenance items every year but nothing significant. i could probably do the radiator rebuild myself. Not sure about the gaskets, pretty sure I don’t have the patience for T belt replacement. my biggest issue is no time. I only drive the truck to the dump, ground materials or Home Depot. I looked at the 3.4 replacement and maybe I’d go that route eventually or if this motor dies, but I was thinking it would be fun to have a beefy sleeper. Plus its a manual transmission and I still enjoy driving it. Thanks again for the input. Also i read about TOS that does the 3.4 swap in Oregon, but is There something similar in Denver area?
 
The 3.0 tends to blow the head gaskets if they're stock. If it was me I'd just fix it and keep driving it and slowly save up for a swap. The timing belt can be done if you take it slow and just be careful to mark everything you remove to make it easier to put back together.
 
I've done a 3.4 swap in my 88. IF .......you decide to do it, I highly recommend getting a complete RUNNING donor vehicle. Preferably a manual trans if yours is manual. There's a LOT of parts off the donor that will help with the swap. Parting out what you don't need will help pay for your swap. This is assuming you are doing the swap yourself or with the help of others. If you're paying a shop, I can't offer much help. I guess be clear with your expectations, get a solid quote and hopefully get some sort of warranty. Good luck with whatever you decide.
 
A good donor is the way to go. My original harness was junk and it was old so I just used the Tacoma harness and swapped everything I could. Upgraded the wiper motor, brake MC, fuse box, ignition. I almost did the whole Tacoma dash but it wasn't a good fit and a bit too round for such a square style 4Runner. I went from 22R to 3RZ and did everything myself at my leisure. I already owned both vehicles and just bought a replacement 3RZ from Yota1 cause the original had over 300K and burnt valves. If I didn't need another engine it would have been a cheap swap.
 
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