Offroad-Express

I have a '97 Toyota Hilux Surf SSR-G 3.0ITD that sometime in the next year or so, I want to, if possible, take the diesel out as its seen quite a life, and replace with a Lexus V8.

Can it be done on such a year of Hilux? If yes, where in the Auckland region can one go to get quotes etc done at?

I did have a '89 Toyota Hilux Surf a couple years ago that had a Holden 308 V8 that I re-cond, painted, done up which was a complete time waster of an event. Spent too much, drank to much (the motor, not me, allthough I sometimes had to wonder), took too long etc etc, but since have driven friends Lexus powered surfs ('91 vintage) they seem to be very powerful for what I need...a cruiser, and sounds pretty good and see pretty well balanced.

So yea, if anyone knows any stuff, that would be great.

Give the guys at Performance Metal works in Silverdale a call.

Not sure of the drive-in drive-out cost but heard was around the $10k mark.

Good luck.

put a post up at lextreme.com. there is an nz guy on there who does them I think. I think his user there is gloverman??

You could try 4WD Systems in Target Road in Glenfield. Phone 0800 493 695.
Ian has done these conversions before and knows a 'trick' or two about the conversions, especially the mods required to the gearbox that are necessary to get the best from it.

shot guys,

the surf is currently a auto and I would like to keep it that way, anyone know if that poses any problems, or extra costs prehaps?

anyone know the relative merits of a crowd called 'boosted performance' in howick who claim they have done many a 1UZ conversion?

Ill try the guys in question and see what they say but yea let us know if you do know anything.

Don't know about the "boosted Performance" outfit, never heard of them until now, but 4WD Systems have done the conversion before and with an auto. That's where the 'extra' work comes in making sure the auto is more compatible with the power and torque curves of the V8.
Talk to 4WD systems and they will be able to advise more and give you cost options. Talking to them doesn't obligate you anything, just helps you in the decision making process and gives a better idea of work and costs involved.

Oh yeap, emailed them (4WD Systems) They are currently pretty busy but Ill try get down to them to talk to them.

Boosted perf reckon, i quote from email:
The engine bays are pretty much removed of everything unneeded which tidys them up a lot. They are quite a compact engine which means there is not a lot hanging off them to clutter up the bay. Everything fits surprisingly well.
What I meant by it being tricky is that it’s not as straight forward as doing an already petrol one. We would either have to get the fuel tank out of a petrol surf or use the diesel tank but make a surge tank and use a lift pump and external fuel pump. Either way the entire fuel system has to be converted for petrol. No big deal it just needs to be taken into account when quoting prices.

The Auto is no problem, we use the factory auto transmission that comes with the engine as the engine ECU and auto trans ECU are one unit. It means there is a bit of work to get the 4WD driveline to work with the new trans. The transfer case needs to be modified and a new driveshaft made. No big deal it just needs to be taken into account when we price it up.

Other things like air conditioning, cooling system, certification etc. will all need to be discussed/looked at before an actual quote is put together.

Estimated Drive in/Drive out :10K

Thoughts anyone?

I have a 1UZ Surf and they are good solid conversions when done right.

Before making a decision on who to use I would be talking to someone who has one of their conversions.

Unless you are very familiar with conversions it will be difficult to tell the difference between outfits who have done a lot of good conversions and those who have done a few 1UZ's into other vehicles.

In my opinion the two key areas to talk about are cooling and the auto setup or clutch setup. Both are areas where cost can be cut but where it will hurt you later on.

Matt.

10k, for that i would like it certed as well, and all the bugs ironed out, if it was me i would not pick the cheapest unless i had seen their work, and just not pics either, do you have to get it done in auck, their might be better places further afield, i have heard of prices for this conversion, drive in drive out with prices from as low as 6k, i have the lexus auto behind mine and i love it, it is very smooth except the ratio difference from 1 to 2 is quite large, i could carry on but thats enough

Oh yeap, thanks guys, sounds good.

Yea I dont know much about 1UZ conversions so I would have to talk to some of these people at these places.
I dont and are probably not going for the cheapest. I learnt the hard way last year while doing up the Holden 308 in my old '89 surf that things add up pretty quickly if you are not careful so I would want it done right first time, like everything.

Can they use any of the cooling systems etc out of the diesel thats in it for the V8?

Im basing all my guestimations on work before I talk to them around the 10K mark or more to be safe, as this wont be a off road machine, only a town tractor and getting down the beach, mainly a cruiser but I want to cruise in style and with the sound of the Lexus beneath the buldging bonnet of the previous Intercooled turbo diesel, which might possibly decieve others until the foot is planted firmly to the floor.

Not sure on what area you are from, but 4wd accessories in CHCH has done a few now. Talk with them.

A few conversions I have seen have used the old diesel rad with a thermo fan but this won't be sufficient offroad for some hard work.

At a minimum you would need to have the old rad rebuilt, flushed, recored etc but you want to go with the biggest rad you can get and preferably alloy as well.

The thermo fan (preferably a large single) should be mounted as a puller which means the rad needs to be recessed as far into the front as it can.

Might be easier/cheaper to keep an eye on trademe. Converted Hilux's come up reasonably often.

Matt.

talked about this the other day with a guy who does conversions he reckoned 10k too, also said theres 5k in parts alone,motor ,link computer,clutch,bellhousing,radiator,fans and all the misc stuff you dont think of till you get in to it, the motor is the cheapest part!!

if your doing sand driving you need to be especially carful with cooling for both the motor and the auto.

yea na like said this is purely going to be a daily driver into town and work, this is one of the newer model surfs a 97 so its not going to see any off road action, and its the ssr-g so its decked out in all luxurious items so yea. ive been and done the whole off road surf thing with my 89 and what a nightmare it is, i know how important the cooling is on doing off road stuff with conversions, half the time I was more worried to drive it than anything so I sold it.

I know theres a heap of coverted surfs on trade me but they are all old and thats where i bought my first V8 problems surf from and sold it so yea, not going there again! but thanks heaps for your help anyhow! Just that this surf is really nice and i have got all manner of things in it as well as leather seats and new re trim and yea need to, well actually re=phrase that, want to get the lexus put in it at some stage. 10K sounds resonable, I will have to talk to the people I have been put in touch with here as well as people I know to see what I can get done.

Im in Auckland by the way if anyone did have any more people that know anything bout it.

Once done I will put up a big post so everyone knows all about how to do it and who etc etc so all is happy, as well as pics!

Performance metalworks have done well over 20 of those conversion. Phone Jono he knows all there is to know, can orgainse the cert and everything. There are lots of gotyas so be careful about who you get to do it.

have you had any luck? if u still looking ive personally got a V8 hilux with a 1uzfe and the best person ive spoken to who has a minumum of 35 conversions and who id call the best in the country is in hams. ring:078479959 . or the next best is here in Taupo and he's really good at super charging them, he's done a few including his van, rally truck that runs a nissan v8, a land cruser and is building is own custom car with a twin turbo set up. dont have number but if you interested ill get it for you.

http://www.lextreme.com - a WEALTH of information in the FORUM section... ;o)

TPOV8farmer wrote:have you had any luck? if u still looking ive personally got a V8 hilux with a 1uzfe and the best person ive spoken to who has a minumum of 35 conversions and who id call the best in the country is in hams. ring:078479959 . or the next best is here in Taupo and he's really good at super charging them, he's done a few including his van, rally truck that runs a nissan v8, a land cruser and is building is own custom car with a twin turbo set up. dont have number but if you interested ill get it for you.

I'd be keen to talk with the chap about supercharging a lexus V8 going into an AC Cobra project. ;o) Was considering twin turbo (one on each bank) simply because no-one really seems to know about superchargers but if this guy knows his stuff like you say ... slobber... slobber...

look around lextreme or pm me and ill get you in contact with a guy in hamilton who is awesome with these lexus motors. supercharging all depend on your budget, this guy will do it in taupo with a second hand ford m90 sc, but if looks matter then you start to spend more money. Bullet cars in in auzzy do kits for supercharging with all very in budget and wats included. ive herd of and just reciently seen it been done, motors being run on stardard ecu with 7psi. so it verys on wat you want and your budget.

would be good to see a breakdown of that 10k - seems awful high given that the motor itself is only $1500 including gearbox!

again - check out http://www.lextreme.com/forums - sooooo much information there.

here's one for starters:
http://lextreme.com/forums/showthread.p ... lux+1uz-fe

know of anyone who does conversion kits?? also about how many $$ ??
if i got hold of a complete motor, would need the rest of the parts to put into a Hilux 4x4, solid front axel, double cab.

If your still in the market for getting this done try Brendan on 021 475437.

He's done heaps of these into all sorts of things. They make a bell housing adaptor for manuals, and even have a new supercharger kit (which is in the final testing stages)

Worth getting a price from though, he did a mates conversion into a surf which came up nicely. His pricing is also very reasonable, he's based up Albany way.

I just had a chat to Brendan - what a REALLY helpful guy - will try and pop in with The Beast as soon as I can.

He was able to explain quite clearly what is involved with fitting a Lexus V8 into an FJ40, what gearbox changes are required, etc., ... and give a breakdown of the costs (engine mounting, gearbox, wiring, fuel line / pump, cooling work required, etc., ...)

For those who don't know - he specialises in turbos but clearly knows a bit more than just turbos So he was also able to explain costs and work required to turbo my existing 3B engine - again with easy to understand breakdown of work required and associated costs.

Really nice guy to chat to, knowledgeable and clear with his explanations - helps to dispel the Big Grey Mist that goes with this sort of work!

chocolatelustboy wrote:I just had a chat to Brendan - what a REALLY helpful guy - will try and pop in with The Beast as soon as I can.

For those who don't know - he specialises in turbos but clearly knows a bit more than just turbos So he was also able to explain costs and work required to turbo my existing 3B engine.

Really nice guy to chat to, knowledgeable and clear with his explanations - helps to dispel the Big Grey Mist that goes with this sort of work!

brendons a good mate of mine him and damian are the original 1uz conversion guys .. hence why they have all the proper bits for the conversion
kelvin . also a real good mate of mine is also a top fellow .. hes the guy in hams and comes under the car tune company

in all honesty id rate them both above johnno ...
hope that helps with your direction

vvega wrote:hope that helps with your direction

The directions are easy - he's literally 5 minutes' drive from my house - probably only about 2 if I could go straight over the fields! (now there's a thought ...)

kelvin from the care tune companys got my vote
i got my mounts, bellhousing and a whole heap of info off him
top bloke

4WDbits wrote:Performance metalworks have done well over 20 of those conversion. Phone Jono he knows all there is to know, can orgainse the cert and everything. There are lots of gotyas so be careful about who you get to do it.

Have seen Jonos work, 100%

vvega wrote:

chocolatelustboy wrote:I just had a chat to Brendan - what a REALLY helpful guy - will try and pop in with The Beast as soon as I can.

For those who don't know - he specialises in turbos but clearly knows a bit more than just turbos So he was also able to explain costs and work required to turbo my existing 3B engine.

Really nice guy to chat to, knowledgeable and clear with his explanations - helps to dispel the Big Grey Mist that goes with this sort of work!

brendons a good mate of mine him and damian are the original 1uz conversion guys .. hence why they have all the proper bits for the conversion
kelvin . also a real good mate of mine is also a top fellow .. hes the guy in hams and comes under the car tune company

in all honesty id rate them both above johnno ...
hope that helps with your direction

Yeah, I also know Brendan quite well, would deff put him at #1, he converted one of his hilux's to 1UZ in one day
and behind him, kelvin in hams, seems to know what he`s talking about ..

i also know your brother very well
say hi to him next time you see him