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R2.8 Cummins Swapped 1985 Toyota 4runner

An overlander's dream, built with the help of some building Legends

I like to travel around with my mountain bike and explore trails. Good single track, good campsites, good views. The vehicle I had prior to this was an all wheel drive wagon and I kept finding myself wanting to drive things above its capabilities. An 85 toyota 4x4 has long been one of those iconic vehicles and this was the last year built with solid axles. My brother sent me a craiglist listing of an '85, just to tempt me. It was so unique, I couldn’t get it out of my head. I met the seller a few days later at the local hardware store,10 miles from where I was living. It was a very clean SR5 85, rust free, and garage kept.

The previous owner had removed the factory 22RE engine and replaced it with a Toyota 2LT turbo diesel from an 86 2WD pickup. They use the same engine mounts and transmission so it’s a pretty easy swap. Its a fully mechanical engine, kinda like a baby 4BT. This would be my first experience owning a diesel and even though it was slow, leaky, and stinky, I knew I was going to have so much fun with it.

I drove out into the mountains and deserts for a year til it started leaking oil and I had a head go. I got another year out of it on a used head, before it did it again. I realized I was at a crossroad of selling or doubling down on it. Selling it to buy something more reliable was an option but if I let it go I might never be able to afford another one. I convinced myself it was worth going all in on what I had.

Meeting Marlin Czajkowski aka the founder of Marlin Crawler was a game changer.

Early on in this project I ended up getting the phone number for Marlin Czajkowsk (RIP), the founder of Marlin Crawler. He was an amazing person to talk to and a fountain of knowledge and enthusiasm. I was pumped on the project and had one for me out of an 86 Pickup. Getting a transmission core from him was like getting my build blessed by the Toyota Pope.

To put this project together, I quickly found that QuickDraw Brand are the go to for all things R2.8 related. I bought my engine and transmission adapter package from them. Kerrie was great to deal with.

Summit Racing always killing it with the super fast shipping on those aftermarket parts.

Toyotapartsdeal.com became a good way to source a lot of OEM parts when needed.

Some kind folks at WARN, Mishimoto, and Toyo took interest in the build and gave me some great deals on some products.

I have no regrets on this build, exept that I really wish I’d been able to show it to Marlin before he passed away. In the future, I am planning on some new rear leaf springs soon and I have aspirations of a nice custom swing out bumper for a little easier tailgate access and the ability to carry a full size spare.

I'll continue to adventure travel/overlanding/rock crawling. I've already taken it across the Southern California deserts a couple times, as well as multiple trips into the Eastern Sierras. A normal weekend trip for me is to drive 3-5 hours somewhere and then it’s low range all weekend till I scoot back home. I am leaving Friday to drive from California to Denver and back which will be its longest trip. I’m aiming to get out there in 3 or 4 days and then take a week and a half to get back. If I survive that I would like to check the Rubicon off my bucket list this fall.

Now that the build is mostly in the rear view mirror and Ive had a year or two to shake out the kinks I’m just getting into really enjoying it.

Builder Q&A

How did you pick the drivetrain?

Engine I knew I wanted to keep it a diesel. I had done my research. I test drove some TDI’s and OM617s to see which way I wanted to go. After driving the older, most commonly swapped diesels, I thought I'd take a look at a crate engine. The R2.8 is really pretty unique. It is similar in form to what with the 2LT, but better in every way. I learned more about it from watching Dirt Every Day. I became a big fan of Fred and Dave. Transmission I wanted a Toyota minitruck with a 5 speed manual. I didn't think the original W56 was up for the job. At minimum an R150, but ideally I wanted a R151F from a turbo pickup. The 151 has an extra low 1st gear which is nice to have when going off road. It also pairs well with turbos so I can build more boost before shifting to 2nd. Quickdraw Brand make a R2.8 transmission adapter package for the R series toyota transmission which made me help realize my plan. One of the features that these old Toyotas have is how the gear reduction part of the transfer case can be unbolted from the inputs and outputs and selecty bits, so you can get an adapter plate and stack them. Factory low range (2.28) in one case and a 4.7 in the other. Then they can be selected individually or together they compound. That kind of gear reduction when paired with a little baby Cummins was just perfect. My lowest gear is 170:1, or .5 mph at idle. I can get out and walk next to it while it walks itself. I have 3.7’s so I can also cruise comfortably at 65-70 down the highway while getting 23-25 mpg.

Did you get much help on this build?

Plenty! It takes a village to build a truck, or at least it did for me. I know my limits but I was able to connect with a local shop that not only did I trust, I was genuinely excited about. I’m OK with a wrench but I lack space and equipment. What I am good at though is obsessive research, planning, asking questions, and reaching out to the right people to help me so this thing could actually get done. Scott Birdsall who many know from racing diesels at Pikes Peak, was nice enough to take this in at his shop. Big thanks to the team at Chuckles Garage. They’re the best. Bobby has more hours into this than anyone but big thanks to Scott, Everett, Duke, Dale, shop dog Rambo and everyone else! Without them this truck would just still be an idea.

Did you do any budgeting pre build? If so, did you stay with in it?

Yes. I had enough saved to buy a new vehicle but at the time everyone was marking stuff up like crazy so I decided to do this instead and I'm glad I did. I though I had a good idea of what it would cost but ultimately spent twice that. But I increased the scope of what I was doing and got a big case of "well, I guess while we're in there..." I think ive ended up pretty close to having a vehicle that’s capabilities now match where my imagination took me when I first saw that craigslist post. And while it was expensive for a 1st gen 4Runner build, I spent less than the average overlander that only goes on trips to the mall.

What is something you learned on this build?

There are so many firsts for me on this project I’m not sure where to start. I’ve never had a vehicle this modified before, nothing even close. It did inspire me to take a welding class at my local community college so there’s that. But mostly the whole thing was just a big lesson in patience, planning, research and being stubborn. Just because you can’t do everything yourself doesnt mean you cant get something unique done. But you do have to do your homework to make sure you know where you want to end up, and accept that things will crop up you didn’t expect. Embrace the process. Be engaged. Have a vision that is based on purpose and function. And don't do it if you dont have at least double the money you think it will take.