I have a 1989 toyota pickup that I use a lot on the highway. It is a fuel injected 4 cylinder 5 speed and lacks power going up hills. I am thinking about doing a v8 conversion with a small block chevy engine. I do not want to blow my budget and am wondering if it is worth doing keeping the stock transmission and transfer case? Is this worth doing or should i just upgrade to a high performance 22re?
you'll never turn a 22re into a monster, it's a waste of time and money.. 22re's are reliable easy to work on engines that don't blow up easily - leave them in that light and you'll appreciate them more.
As for power, 3rz's make more power and aren't all that difficult to swap in with a few places making the conversion parts you need..
So, providing everything is in good mechanical condition, no problems... Based on my experience, you will hate the V8 fuel economy, or lack thereof. If you're on a budget, regear as exist suggested, that will be your cheapest route. With stock tire sizes, find yourself a set of 4.56 or 4.88 diffs from another Toyota truck or 4Runner, both were offered from the factory.
I did this swap and I can tell you I would never go back, in fact I am in the middle of building another one to replace my rusty 89. I used a 1990 blazer doner truck and swapped the entire drive train. The single most expensive thing was the 4" suspension lift kit to clear the oil pan.
New truck in works is a 93, I am swapping in an LS1/ 4L60e this time.
I know SBCs are dime-a-dozen, but I'm wondering how a 1UZ-FE would be on both swap cost and fuel economy. It's pretty small for a V8 at just 4.0L and really light since it's all-aluminum. I've been throwing around the idea of putting one in a 2WD.
If i do the swap is it worth keeping the stock 5 speed? I have read mixed reviews about it and what would the fuel economy be about if I use a chevy 350?
The stock 5 spd wouldn't last too long. A TH350 or even better, a 700R4.
As for fuel economy, going from a 4 cyl to an 8 cyl, how can you expect anything good?