91 Montero Ls v8 Swap
- Thread starter Urban gorilla
- Start date
Contributor I
I was just talking about this upgrade if the stock motor ever took a crap. I'm doing a fully built LS in my BMW e46 M3 currently and thought, a 5.3/4L60 would be great in a Monty.
That sounds nasty in an e46, had a 5sdp e46 I absolutely loved. Got me through college.
Well I hope it works well. Getting the driveshaft built tomorrow so hopefully driving it by this weekend. Gonna be wierd without the old 90hp motor lol
Well I hope it works well. Getting the driveshaft built tomorrow so hopefully driving it by this weekend. Gonna be wierd without the old 90hp motor lol
Been having an issue with the starter not engaging. I think it's the aftermarket bolts I bought but I wont know until the OEM ones arrive. Its killing progress because I only get to work on the truck about once every other week.
all that is left is pulling it out of the garage and buttoning her up. Then the solid axle goes in!
all that is left is pulling it out of the garage and buttoning her up. Then the solid axle goes in!
Traveler III
I can attest that aftermarket starter bolts for GM's are trash. Hopefully it didn't trash the flexplate.
I didnt even think that would be an issue so I bought some cheap ones the first time.
flywheel is fine thank God. was supposed to get new bolts yesterday but they got delayed. maybe get them by tonight.
Hey decided to have a little girl and stopped working on it lol.
Currently it's running and driving but the power steering needs some work. I'm going to try and get the exhaust finished in the next week or so as well.
I completely understand lol, I'm in the same boat with 2 little boys. I'm wanting to do this to my 89 Monty but I really need to do more research first. I'm probably going to buy a motor and trans and have it ready on the stand for whenever my motor decides to give up.
brother im telling you it is so straight forward and affordable its scary. I did some experimental stuff that i didnt need to do, but if i just included the swap and getting it running it took 2 weekends. I will gladly give you any information i can to help you out along the way.
I have 3 little ones, we had our little girl and my oldest started ice hockey at the same time. i blinked and its been almost 2 years now lol, but i just drove her down the street yesterday and hopefully ill be driving daily in a couple weeks.
Advocate II
@AggieOE If your kids aren't the most important thing in your life, then you're working to provide for the wrong people. They should receive all of your time and effort, and it's good that you find yourself giving it to them, unlike some deadbeats I've known who spawn kids into this world and then won't take care of them. Respect to you.
@Urban gorilla Nice swap project, this looks like it was made to happen! Always liked a Montero, but this turned some thing cool into some thing awesome.
@Urban gorilla Nice swap project, this looks like it was made to happen! Always liked a Montero, but this turned some thing cool into some thing awesome.
Ya man, luckily my boys are starting to show an interest in my projects so hopefully that helps.
As far as the montey goes, just discovered an issue with the ignition. Something is cutting voltage between the battery and the starter. I may just run a separate ignition harness.
Other than that it starts right up and moves well lol
Grill and accessories off the front, going to freshen everything up and repair these rust holes. Possibly going with LED headlights, anyone have experience with the cheaper ones??
I have now halogen lights but I think the LED would be a major upgrade.
I have now halogen lights but I think the LED would be a major upgrade.
@Urban gorilla Yeah, my experience is that everybody I've known who has bought cheap LED's has regretted it badly. I can't speak for the higher-dollar LED's, pretty sure Sylvania makes LED bulbs, but I use Sylvania HID's in all of my vehicles when given the choice.
They aren't the whitest, they aren't the brightest, they consistently last about 2 years at best. They also don't have a flicker rate that causes motion sickness for other drivers and triggers seizures for pedestrians like those obnoxious LED's (don't know a brand name) everybody puts in their Camry's and 4Runners.
Please be aware that "more" light is not always desirable, and blinding LED's are unkind to other drivers and pedestrians, and in some locations lights considered "blinding" or "dazzling" are against the law.
I get bright flashed almost every time I drive at night in my Explorer, but I flash 'em back and they understand that if I wanted to blind them, I could. You might run into this once you put better lights on your rig, regardless of LED, HID, or any other upgrade you should decide upon.
They aren't the whitest, they aren't the brightest, they consistently last about 2 years at best. They also don't have a flicker rate that causes motion sickness for other drivers and triggers seizures for pedestrians like those obnoxious LED's (don't know a brand name) everybody puts in their Camry's and 4Runners.
Please be aware that "more" light is not always desirable, and blinding LED's are unkind to other drivers and pedestrians, and in some locations lights considered "blinding" or "dazzling" are against the law.
I get bright flashed almost every time I drive at night in my Explorer, but I flash 'em back and they understand that if I wanted to blind them, I could. You might run into this once you put better lights on your rig, regardless of LED, HID, or any other upgrade you should decide upon.
Ya kind of what I'm trying to avoid, if I can find a nice housing I may jump on something. Not trying to blind anyone
I'm a big LED lighting nerd, and you really have to do some research when converting.
I'd recommend the sealed beam replacements from JW Speaker, but they're pretty top-dollar.
The big issue with LED headlight bulbs is that while they're bright, they don't have the focal intensity of stock assemblies.
Effective upgrading means also going to a projector style assembly like in an HID application. Something that will concentrate and focus the light while also providing a good cutoff so you don't blind people.
My other recommendation is to use warm white or slightly amber tinted LEDS. Cool white lighting kind of blends in with the bluer tones of early evenings and early mornings and makes me feel like I'm flying blind.
Anywho, I'm loving this build. The Montero is a really rad design with a good chassis that is easy to mod. I'm looking forward to where this goes.
I'd recommend the sealed beam replacements from JW Speaker, but they're pretty top-dollar.
The big issue with LED headlight bulbs is that while they're bright, they don't have the focal intensity of stock assemblies.
Effective upgrading means also going to a projector style assembly like in an HID application. Something that will concentrate and focus the light while also providing a good cutoff so you don't blind people.
My other recommendation is to use warm white or slightly amber tinted LEDS. Cool white lighting kind of blends in with the bluer tones of early evenings and early mornings and makes me feel like I'm flying blind.
Anywho, I'm loving this build. The Montero is a really rad design with a good chassis that is easy to mod. I'm looking forward to where this goes.
Thanks man. I'm interested to see where it goes too lol. Trying to make the suburban gauge cluster work with it, just toying around to see how it looks. It may be a little to curvy for me but I want to see if I can make it work.
Still haven't gotten the exhaust done, shits been popping up every single day.
lol...my Raider (SWB Montero, of course) is totally rust-free EXCEPT those two spots to the left and right of the radiator. IDK who designed that area, but hopefully they got fired :0
Interesting swap, not something I needed thinking about (though a SWB with the V6 and 5MT is plenty quick for an old truck). Keep up the good work.
