With the 3.0 V6 and 22R build ups a hot topic here lately I was surprised by a thread on the Marlin Crawler board that describes the benefits offered by the 3RZ Tacoma 4 cylinder. It seems that it's much easier to swap into an early truck or 4runner than a 3.4 5VZ-FE and at least as powerful as a 3.0 3VZ-FE and about 80 lbs lighter. They are as cheap in the junkyard as a 22R rebuild, bolt right up to a W series transmission, are easily made smog legal and get gas mileage in the low 20's on the highway. Check it out! -- Matt

i don't know about the "easier" or cheap part -- you still have to fabricate engine mounts and do all the wiring/fuel delivery/exhaust. same type of deal with the 3.4, with the exception that you need to put in a V6 or turbo transmission.

also, most of these engines are in the $1500-up range in the yards. compare that to the 22R that you can get all day for $300 in running shape.

don't get me wrong, they seem like a good mill, but if i was to upgrade my '91 truck, i'd put in a 3.4. as for the '79, simplicity is important, and i don't need horsepower on the trail, so the 22R is perfect.

I'm doing the 5mge supra swap myself. It's pretty well documented on this board in the toyota tech section.

http://4x4wire.com/toyota/tech/supra/

Also here as well: http://www.4wd.net.nz/suprasurf.htm

I can get the whole motor out of a 86 cressida with the harness if I pull it myself for $200.
The pluses it uses a w58 bellhousing so basically all you do is unbolt the bellhousing from your g54 or w56 and bolt the manual transmission one from the supra. No fabrication required for the engine mounts basically you combine the 5mge mounts with the 22r mounts.
Anyways I am lazy hey I admit it so the less fabrication required in a motor swap I am all for it.
Also they are only 40lbs heaiver than the 22r. Which isn't that bad.

Also the CR is low enough on some of these motor you can turbo them fairly easily stock.
Here's a article on how to turbo one using parts from a 7mgte motor.

http://geocities.com/aarongarney/5mgte.html

These motors have beeen around since 1995. If you shop you can find them for as low as $500 pretty easily, of course you'll still need a wiring harness and ECU, but you end up with a motor that puts out 150hp and 177lbs ft in stock form. I would guess that the easier part comes from the fact that it's a much roomier fit in the engine bay. No need for a body lift or trimming the hood like you have to do with the 5VZ-FE and no problems with exhaust manifolds clearing the frame rails.




I'm a big fan of the 5m - 7m engine family and you are right that they are cheap as anything and easy to swap in. my only problem with them is that you have to monkey around with radiator and fan positions which makes keeping your A/C a challenge.

I have to admit that the 7MGTE has captured my imagination. I want to work with one, but I think the best candidate for that motor is a Datsun 280Z, which has a large engine bay with lots of room for a big intercooler behind the grille.

If money was no object, I'd drop a 5ZV-FE into a first generation 4runner and cap it off with a TRD supercharger (what I really want is a Japanese version of the Ford Bronco, with V8 levels of power <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" /> ) -- Matt

Actually My vote would go to the 6/7mge over the 5mge hands down. I think of it like the 3.4 compaired to the 3.0. That was basicly the pinacle for the m series. more stroke and more low end power, better powerband. Perfect for a truck.

If I could figure out a neat way to mount an air conditioning condensor behind the grill of my truck while running a 7M motor I'd start doing it tomorrow. I've already got Supra 7M-GTE and 7M-GE bellhousings that I scrounged so that I can fabricate a bellhousing to mate a 7M motor to my R151F tranny. -- Matt

Where did you hear this? Do you have weights for both motors? I have always heard that the M motors are more like 150 lbs heavier than the 22R.

not on your list, but I've been very happy with my 22rte swap. there aren't many conversions out there for our trucks that you can drop on the same motor mounts, plug in the harness, and turn the key. at 5 psi, my fully armored 84 4runner is every but as fast as my ligher 2002 3.4L tacoma dd.