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LEXUS 1UZ-FE Engine Swap My blood sweat and tears. It will be worth it!!

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  #1  
Unread 02-06-2009, 11:15 PM
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Default Let's Get This 1UZ Tacoma Swap Started

Sorry everyone I got sidetracked working on a few motorcycles in the last few months and got sidetracked really badly. I had towels over my engines because I felt guilty seeing the poor things in the garage. =]




But now it's time to get this show on the road. I need the Lexus in my Taco so I can have fun with it this summer. Recently an old racer buddy of mine has stepped up to offer help with my transmission adapting process. He has all sorts of hydraulic throwout bearings and one with my name on it. It will take a lot of work but it will be worth it. Plus he has tons of leftover high pressure racing fuel adapters and hardware I can pick through. And last night I confirmed that my engineer friend is on standby and ready to help whip out a steel adapter ring for my W59 Tacoma transmission bellhousing to the 1UZ. I'm making room to do the swap tomorrow so I'll be looking forward to starting this week!
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Unread 02-06-2009, 11:42 PM
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So to make a short list of issues I plan on having to address first:
  1. Engine + Transmission Mating Call
  2. Quickly Finding a Toyota Clutch
  3. Hydraulic Throwout Fitting
  4. Headers In The Mail
  5. Engine Mount Fab / Transmission Mount If Needed
  6. Fuel Line Hookup
  7. Adaptronic Computer Wiring
  8. Custom Intake
  9. Exhaust Fabrication
  10. Instrument Panel

1. 1UZ-FE Engine + W59 Transmission - I'll be making a wooden adapter ring as accurately as I can. I will be having the ring machined from approx. 1/2 steel with a recessed ring for the bellhousing to mate to. I'm just doing one for me and I wouldn't consider making one for anyone else unless I had 5 people willing to buy 5 of them. Sorry but my engineer is in super high demand and is not interested in doing any one-offs except for me. I decided on steel since the holding strength for the bellhousing bolts is a few times higher than with aluminum. Having 4wd with a gear reduction transfercase and larger tires will put much more strain on the adapter than a 2wd street car. It takes longer to machine but is much cheaper, not that AL is too expensive.

2. Toyota Clutch - I shouldn't have much trouble finding the right clutch for my flywheel. I have a couple parts houses near me that I have access to and they'll be happy to let me go through their shelves to find what I need.

3. Hydraulic Throwout Bearing - I didn't want to have to spend a few hundred on a conversion from the standard Toyota shift fork but a friend of mine jumped in and will help out with this and give me one of his racing components that he claims will work perfect with my shift fork pivot. He knows the clearances required and he's done it on all sorts of race vehicles so this isn't an issue with his help. Very Happy.

4. Headers - I was even thinking of giving the stock 1UZ manifolds a shot until I found some SS shiny headers for a "too good to be true" price. They are legit though and this will REALLY save me a ton of time and $$. I have come to be friends with a pro welder who can make me headers but just the bends themselves and the collector would be more money than an already assembled set! Even if I have to modify them that will be a cakewalk compared to making some myself. I'm also contemplating running the pipes out each side to a streetbike titanium big bore muffler. I have a couple spare Ti lightweight mufflers that would look crazy mounted just below each door. That might get a little too much attention though! This weekend I'm going to take a couple pictures of the mufflers just mounted in the location I have in mind. That would be fun but a giveaway to any cops with a good eye.

5. Engine Mount Fab - I've been looking at all sort of custom made engine mounts that people have done so I'm full of ideas. I want a rather solid mount with a pivot on a poly bushing. These Lexus engines are really smooth so I'm not even worried. Some people have completely hard mounted the engines without any evident problems or vibration annoyances. The engine should fit just fine under my body that has been lifted already. People have had no problems with the front sump pans under Toyota's that have already had body lifts installed. I'm pretty sure that the transmission won't even be allowed to move from it's current position as the 4wd won't allow any relocating of transmission mounts. I don't foresee this being a big problem at all. If it needs to shift around a little I can fab any new brackets anyways. We'll deal with this as things progress.

INTERMISSION -Play Boring Orchestra Music Now
~-~-~-~-~-~ Break Time! -~-~-~-~-~-~-~
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Unread 02-11-2009, 10:50 PM
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Shall we continue?

6. Fuel Lines - will be converted to AN style fuel fittings, you know the ones you see on custom and race engines. Same thing: http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/store...10019_-1_10267 The volume should be about the same since the engines will use about the same amount of fuel. Provided I am not running any boost I won't need anymore fuel than what the 4cyl uses. I should get better MPG with the V8.

7. Adaptronic EMS - This will be all custom and I'll be putting the whole wiring harness on while keeping it tidy and protected. I'm still contemplating where to mount the computer. I'll probably mount it inside the cab to keep it from heat and vibration. Or I was thinking of putting it in it's own custom made box with air holes and rubber mount it. Not sure on this yet.

8. Custom Intake - Just like it says. I'll be using a foam filter connected to the MAF with a silicone hose to the throttle body. I'll be figuring out how much of a flex joint I'll need after I make the engine mounts to the frame. It'll look nice.

9. Exhaust System - Not sure if I want to use an H pipe or X pipe. I'll have some SS headers soon that are made for a Toyota Sequioa. I'll go from that flange down to the crossover pipe and then v-bands connecting to either titanium streetbike big diameter mufflers pointed out each side of the truck just under the doors. Or I have a brand new full size GM truck exhaust system that I could shorten and have it dump over the rear axle towards the ground. Using the v-band connectors would allow me to swap out the loud pipes for the longer full muffler setup when I wanted to. That would be cool.

10. Instrument Panel - Well I have a set of Autometer gauges but I don't want to tear my dash up. I would like to keep it somewhat stock looking inside but I will want to put a gauge for coolant temp at least. I'm sure I'll be mounting that near the stereo in the double-din area under the AC controls.
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Unread 02-11-2009, 10:50 PM
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All done!

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Unread 02-11-2009, 10:58 PM
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Alrighty, I took a couple short videos of me beating on the 2.7L engine for just a little while longer tonight. Then I backed er into the garage and dropped the oil so it could drip all night long. Then in the morning I'll have the transmission out in no time so I can start making the adapter template. Then it will just be a matter of time until I get my headers in the mail and the steel adapter is milled out.



I just got a new pair of bookshelf speakers for the garage too! Great timing. Circuit City is giving up all they have for 40% off now so I got some Sony speakers for $35. Gotta have some good tunes while your working in the garage all day.

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Unread 02-11-2009, 11:01 PM
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Grab one and throw it in.
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Unread 02-12-2009, 11:01 PM
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Good day, I made some progress indeed.

I LOVE my small bodylift. It's the only way you can clear larger tires on a Tacoma. Plus it gives you all sorts of room to work underneath the truck. Check this out. With the tires, suspension and body lift I don't even have to jack up the truck to drop the tranny/transfer case. I also ripped off all of those lame heat shields a long time ago so it takes an hour to remove the whole thing now.



And here we go! I'll just bolt them together and I'll be in business.


Don't get all upset I'm just kidding. Here begins the tedious task of creating the adapter template. Then I'll be knocking on my neighbors door (multi-national precision engineering company) and he'll make sure that the tolerances are spot on when the adapter is water jetted and machined.



I have a clutch and plate coming at 8AM and I'll be going to pick out my hydraulic throwout after that. Shake and Bake.
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Unread 02-13-2009, 04:10 PM
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I don't know how I got so lucky but I got some new headers in the mail today! Wow I think they will bolt on and just work like they are. I have some detailed pictures I'll post later on but for now here is the new hotness:





Thick ol' flanges on these things too! New bolts and gaskets to boot.
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Unread 02-14-2009, 11:22 PM
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Ok I promised myself I would make progress every single day on this build until it was done. Today I picked up the correct clutch and it's good to go. It's quite different than the 3RZ clutch. The clutch that I put on the 3RZ is an aftermarket and I STRONGLY suggest that anyone replacing their clutch on their 3RZ use a TOYOTA clutch ONLY. I have a friend that hated his big "name brand" heavy duty clutch and this one that I got with the flywheel had some chatter in it from the start... mainly when colder but it still just never worked as well as the ones I got from Toyota.

Old worn out 3RZ Clutch Disc



Old worn out 3RZ engine! Ok well not totally worn out but showing it's age. Still kicked butt.
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Unread 02-14-2009, 11:25 PM
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Fresh new clutch, check out the rubber isolators... interesting.


Just placing the clutch and flywheel on for reference


Bottom backside of the 3RZ and also showing how much room I have to work with.
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Unread 02-14-2009, 11:29 PM
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Here's a good reason to yank the 3RZ engine out. The main pulley seal is just drooling a bit of oil from time to time. And the main oil pan gasket is surely leaking. Not more than a drip or two here and there but the oil really attracts the dirt. Not looking too good. But like I said the engine still runs just great and it's not like I had to keep checking the oil. It doesn't use any oil at all. Toyota builds some really great engines.



I would say that my front diff bushings all need to be swapped out. Now would be a great time to do this while the engine is out.

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Unread 02-14-2009, 11:34 PM
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The rebuildable Donahoe Racing shocks are the best money you can spend. They shafts are so thick and the shock body is so long that when I want to lengthen them all I have to do is send them back and they will put a longer shaft in them! How cool is that? The spring rate makes for a very tight ride but when you hit a jump or some woops they will take them over and over again without breaking a sweat. Best shocks you can buy for the front of your Tacoma. These are the exact same ones they ran on the Donahoe Racing 7S class winning tacoma.



Like I said I think the shocks would feel a bit more compliant with the heavier V6 engine which they were designed and tested to accommodate. That said I am SURE that they will be PERFECT and provide a better ride for the Lexus V8. I can't wait to see how they will feel with the added weight. I am pretty confident it will ride smoother on the street.

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Unread 02-14-2009, 11:39 PM
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A very smart engine builder built a dry sump 1UZ with all sorts of racing goodies on it to test out in an open wheel race car that was going to be the basis for a spec-class racing series. He said the stock cams were good for 6,200 rpm before they stopped making horsepower. They will pull a bit higher revs but it's pointless. When I put together a binder of pertinent 1UZ information together to hand to my engine builder I made sure to put one of the best looking 1UZ pictures on the front of it. Good for inspiration.



Tomorrow I'll be taking measurements and getting the adapter template ready. If I have time I'll also be prepping the empty engine compartment for painting. I can't have a mud colored engine compartment with a super clean engine in there now.
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Unread 02-15-2009, 08:55 PM
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Daily update: Engine is basically just sitting in the compartment ready to hoist up and out. I'm going to wait till tomorrow to build a crate for it for storage in the morning. I got some work to do cleaning the engine bay out that's for sure. And the steering, power brakes and other misc components needs to be cleaned up just as well.

List of random stuff I need to order/check in the morning:
  • Billet fuel filter and stainless braided line to go with new AN fittings
  • Assorted bushings for front end chassis components
  • Need to check mounting location of oil filter - might need a remote one
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Unread 02-17-2009, 12:20 AM
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Ok have a look at my new W59 transmission adapter!



So it's not actually THE adapter but it's the template material. It's 3/16" foam board stuff. Now I just need to begin reverse engineering the castings on both sides of the "adapter".

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