Land Cruiser with a Cummins turbo diesel conversion

[4Rescue]

They call them "paint shaker" engines for a reason....

The BT series engines are absolutely fantastic (the Cummins powered Rams are the only USDM FS trucks I'd ever consider owning) but IMO it really takes a truck built/designed around them to make them "livable" (even the older Dodges have issues with the NVH shaking some parts to pieces, my uncles 90-something Didge has been a great truck but not without it's own issues) and they are VERY heavy engines to boot which never helps with handling if the suspensions not designed around them...At the very least you should expect to do tons of sound deadening, beef up the frame quite and run huge, liquid dampened engine mounts with them. That seems to be the best recipe I've seen for making a successful Cummins swapped LC.

I'd imagine, as Andre says, some folks just can't live with the final product as a DD (I like a "truckish" ride etc. but even I'd shy away from a Cummins swapped LC as awesome as I think they perform, esp. the few 6BT swapped trucks I've seen around) and can't justify having something that specialized and expensive sitting in the driveway waiting to be driven. Then you get into the ridiculous taxed high price of diesel fuel... Thankfully I have an "alternate" source of fuel (a friend I trade fire-wood for diesel with and a big 600gal gravity feed tank on my property tee-hehehehehe) otherwise I doubt I'd be waist deep into my own 1KZ swap currently, but then I put LOTS of miles on my rigs every year and the fuel savings will make me very happy as will the significant range extension over a petrol trucks... plus... I just want a Diesel end of story. They really are the best type of engine for 4wds unless you're after high-revving HP for whatever reason.

Cheers

Dave

 

[Cimarron13]

I love my 6BT cruiser. It was done by Duiser and they did a fantastic job. Driving it from Oregon to Texas I managed to average 20mpg on 4" of lift, 35's, roof rack, and fully armored. It is definitely not a paint shaker. Here is my build tread on MUD.
http://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/cummins-6bt-nv4500-build.719831/

 

[concretejungle]

I found it very interesting that while i was at the cruise moab event this year i was talking to a few of the Canadian guys who had diesel hilux and a few diesel cruisers, as well as Darren who is from Australia. I made a few comments about how i wish we had the diesel toyota's here and they all said that they prefer the gas over the diesel. It blew my mind. Now to clarify, they said that based on performance, not gas mileage; but regardless they all had love for the gas motor over the diesel.

 

[maxxmaven]

The 4BT could be considered a paint shaker but has the advantage of reduced weight and size. The 6BT is not a paint shaker AT ALL. It has all the power you would ever want yet is larger in both size and weight. Everything is a give and take. www.duiser.com for more info.

They call them "paint shaker" engines for a reason....

The BT series engines are absolutely fantastic (the Cummins powered Rams are the only USDM FS trucks I'd ever consider owning) but IMO it really takes a truck built/designed around them to make them "livable" (even the older Dodges have issues with the NVH shaking some parts to pieces, my uncles 90-something Didge has been a great truck but not without it's own issues) and they are VERY heavy engines to boot which never helps with handling if the suspensions not designed around them...At the very least you should expect to do tons of sound deadening, beef up the frame quite and run huge, liquid dampened engine mounts with them. That seems to be the best recipe I've seen for making a successful Cummins swapped LC.

I'd imagine, as Andre says, some folks just can't live with the final product as a DD (I like a "truckish" ride etc. but even I'd shy away from a Cummins swapped LC as awesome as I think they perform, esp. the few 6BT swapped trucks I've seen around) and can't justify having something that specialized and expensive sitting in the driveway waiting to be driven. Then you get into the ridiculous taxed high price of diesel fuel... Thankfully I have an "alternate" source of fuel (a friend I trade fire-wood for diesel with and a big 600gal gravity feed tank on my property tee-hehehehehe) otherwise I doubt I'd be waist deep into my own 1KZ swap currently, but then I put LOTS of miles on my rigs every year and the fuel savings will make me very happy as will the significant range extension over a petrol trucks... plus... I just want a Diesel end of story. They really are the best type of engine for 4wds unless you're after high-revving HP for whatever reason.

Cheers

Dave

 

[maxxmaven]

Cimarrons 80 series is about as good as it gets!!!!!!!!

I love my 6BT cruiser. It was done by Duiser and they did a fantastic job. Driving it from Oregon to Texas I managed to average 20mpg on 4" of lift, 35's, roof rack, and fully armored. It is definitely not a paint shaker. Here is my build tread on MUD.
http://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/cummins-6bt-nv4500-build.719831/

 

[theside00]

I found it very interesting that while i was at the cruise moab event this year i was talking to a few of the Canadian guys who had diesel hilux and a few diesel cruisers, as well as Darren who is from Australia. I made a few comments about how i wish we had the diesel toyota's here and they all said that they prefer the gas over the diesel. It blew my mind. Now to clarify, they said that based on performance, not gas mileage; but regardless they all had love for the gas motor over the diesel.

We all want what we can't have I guess. They like to take the 1FZ and turbo it and create a lot of HP out of them.

 

[upperporcupine]

Loved mine

I had a Profitt built 80-series with a 4BT that I sold awhile back. It was my wife's daily driver and we both really appreciated it. It was a bit like driving a tractor and was as loud as a city bus, but that appealed to us. We averaged about 15mpg in town and 19 to 20 on the highway. Our reason for selling was really about maintenance. I am not mechanically inclined and paying someone else to figure out and chase the various gremlins got to be too much for us. So, I would add to the previous entries that owning and keeping one of these does require some mechanical knowledge and the time to work on it.

J

 

[redthies]

They like to take the 1FZ and turbo it and create a lot of HP out of them.

Who is this "they" that you speak of? 99% of the Aussies I know (and I know a LOT of them), and 95% of the Canadians (myself included) love turbo diesels. The only forced induction 1FZs I read about are the TRD supercharged ones y'all are doing down south of the border!

 

[Rumpig]

Who is this "they" that you speak of? 99% of the Aussies I know (and I know a LOT of them), and 95% of the Canadians (myself included) love turbo diesels. The only forced induction 1FZs I read about are the TRD supercharged ones y'all are doing down south of the border!

I thought the same thing when i read that originally.....I don't have any mates here in Australia running a petrol Landcruiser at all, they are all drive diesels and the majority are either factory turbo or aftermarket turbo'd vehicles. There are a few guys on LCOOL forum here in Oz that are running Supercharged petrol Crusier's and maybe it's popular in the comp truck scene? (i know they run plenty of V8's, but honestly don't know exactly what they run in those vehicles), but they are certainly a minority when it comes to that type of vehicle set up as an every day driver here. Daz may see a few more of that set up being the 4wd automotive business he is involved in, but the average Aussie wouldn't see it very often if at all, i've only read of them on forums and don't know anyone personally who's gone that route.

 

[redthies]

I thought the same thing when i read that originally. There are a few guys on LCOOL forum here in Oz that are running Supercharged petrol Crusier's and maybe it's popular in the comp truck scene?

I will confess that I've only driven a handful of 4wds in Oz, (all of them diesel), and a big part of the reason I was confident in saying what I did is my experiences on lcool. (We seem to be posting in the same threads here and on lcool rumpig). I met a young Aussie yesterday who is "fresh off the boat" from Oz where he worked at ARBs big shop in Sydney. He now works for a friend of mines shop here in Canada. I hope to pick his brain a little and expand my knowledge as he gives my new 100 series a once-over.

All of that said, theside00 is correct about how "we all want what we can't have". That's just human nature.

 

[Rumpig]

All of that said, theside00 is correct about how "we all want what we can't have". That's just human nature.

the funny thing about what i wrote is, i'm actually toying with the idea of owning a supercharged petrol motor as a replacement for my current vehicle, possibly selling my diesel and buying a petrol model so i can do that to it. I have also been looking into LS3 conversions also, keeping my vehicle and doing an engine swap maybe......so yeah i know where he's coming from, sort of.... the grass is greener on the other side type thing i guess you could say....lol

 

[cumminscruiser]

Cummins Landcruiser

Here is mine, 85 FJ60 with 6BT5.9

One must drive one to really know, you cannot split a diamond in the back seat but that Lincoln cannot run the Rubicon. Mine is an everyday driver.

 

[VillageIdiot]

That is a lot of weight on the front axle... the 5.9 12v is just under 1,000 pounds and the 24v is just under 1200 pounds. yikes... wouldn't want to go down too steep a hill in that (unless I wanted to roll end-for-end down the hill) as the back end would be very light.

 

[theside00]

I guess I shouldnt have said "they" as a general term, I was talking with another cruiser head and shop owner over there that does the turbos on the 1FZ. I would imagine that the normal would be the diesel.

I would rather run the turbo diesel over the turbo gas engine any day.

 

[NCFJ]

I think a big part of diesel conversion sales within a year of the swap is that many of the folks getting the swap done have not dealt with a diesel prior to the swap. The diesel has huge up sides over the stock power plant for sure but most are just not prepared for the diligence the diesel requires. Cold weather issues, louder than what they are accustomed to, vibrations etc all factor in. The bulk of the American public just want to jump in, turn the key and go, anything past that becomes a hassle. Bottom line, they are simply not for everyone.