1998 Diesel Conversion

[180sx]

Problem with california is you have to have an engine thats same year or newer, and you have to have all the emissions equipment from the donor vehicle. The chances of you even passing the visual inspection with that engine is slim to none (unless you know people who know people who have people who know people in high places who can call shots to the people they know in low places).

 

Jose

[jasonb]

Problem with california is you have to have an engine thats same year or newer, and you have to have all the emissions equipment from the donor vehicle. The chances of you even passing the visual inspection with that engine is slim to none (unless you know people who know people who have people who know people in high places who can call shots to the people they know in low places).

 

Jose

 

agreed, its tricky to navigate the rules here. in practice, (and i'm still learning), it looks like there is a big difference in the way pre-1998 and 1998+ diesels are handled. the rules you cited apply to pre-1998 vehicles, but i don't think dmv checks your swap (except to verify you actually did a swap perhaps), and there is no regular emissions test. for 1998+, dmv checks, you have a regular smog check, and from what i've gathered, you need to have working odb interface.

 

it wouldn't surprise me at all if the pre-1998 gradually get more scrutiny in near future, so ymmv. my pf is a '96, so i'm still thinkin'

[MY1PATH]

but then again what emssions station is gonna have a know how of what emissions regs need to be in place for a TD27.

Can you get brownie points for alternatve fuels? I know some places that exept vehcles that have been adapted to running on propane only or enthanol only fuels. Maybe you can get an exemption if you run on vegie oil? (switch back after the test if you like.)

I know if i ever go back to cali I'll be switching to E85 if emissions give me trouble the first time arround.

[jasonb]

for emissions, the 4bt should be no problem though so i've gone and signed up at http://www.4btswaps.com to read through the transmission/tc options.

 

i'm sorry guys, i think i'm spreading misinformation at least wrt to california laws. i don't think the 4bt was ever used in california in the same emissions class as what the pathfinder is in.

 

looking at http://www.dieselnet.com/standards/us/ld.php

it looks like pathfinder is LLDT (< 6000 gvwr)

 

so legally speaking, i'm not sure what would be valid diesel donor.

 

help

[TooQForYou]

Gotta love Florida- no inspections of any kind

[tekazgtr1984]

i'm sorry guys, i think i'm spreading misinformation at least wrt to california laws. i don't think the 4bt was ever used in california in the same emissions class as what the pathfinder is in.

 

looking at http://www.dieselnet...dards/us/ld.php

it looks like pathfinder is LLDT (< 6000 gvwr)

 

so legally speaking, i'm not sure what would be valid diesel donor.

 

help

 

I think the best option would be the JDM equivalent motor for a '98 R50, either the TD27 or the QD32ETI.

 

I know Isuzu makes full turbo diesel swap kits for our type of vehicle; I'm just not sure where to find out more information. What I do know is it's a 3.0L inline-4 direct injection engine.

[jasonb]

I think the best option would be the JDM equivalent motor for a '98 R50, either the TD27 or the QD32ETI.

 

I know Isuzu makes full turbo diesel swap kits for our type of vehicle; I'm just not sure where to find out more information. What I do know is it's a 3.0L inline-4 direct injection engine.

 

in for details on the QD32ETI and isuzu. (in particular, i'm after something suitable for towing). i'm thinking the TD27 maybe too small.

 

400+ ft/lb ftw

 

EDIT: Isuzu iirc makes a cummins 4bt equiv called a 4BD1T & the followon 4BD2T. is that the isuzu you saw swap kit for? that would be awesome.

Edited November 6, 2010 by jasonb

[tekazgtr1984]

in for details on the QD32ETI and isuzu. (in particular, i'm after something suitable for towing). i'm thinking the TD27 maybe too small.

 

400+ ft/lb ftw

 

EDIT: Isuzu iirc makes a cummins 4bt equiv called a 4BD1T & the followon 4BD2T. is that the isuzu you saw swap kit for? that would be awesome.

 

A TD27 alone might not be all that powerful but you'll get more torque than the VG33E. With a few simple bolt-on mods (turbo, intercooler, exhaust, etc.) and a chip tune you could get some pretty wicked power out of the 2.7L.

 

The QD32ETI was the turbo diesel engine available in the '98- R50 Terrano and Terrano Regulus. It'd be virtually a direct drop in if you had all the supporting hardware. I'm not sure about the transmission and if it's reprogrammed differently, though. I've been trying to source a complete engine with transmission but it's proving to be neither easy nor cheap.

 

As for the Isuzu option, all I know is it's a 3.0L inline-4 turbo diesel, similar to the ZD30DDTi engine found in the '99-'04 R50 Terrano. That's all I know at the moment. Sorry.

[jasonb]

appologies for thread hogging, but i gots lots of questions

 

A TD27 alone might not be all that powerful but you'll get more torque than the VG33E. With a few simple bolt-on mods (turbo, intercooler, exhaust, etc.) and a chip tune you could get some pretty wicked power out of the 2.7L.

 

for my own education, do you think the td27 would be suitable for towing? my only reference point is wife's vw jetti tdi with a 2liter. it makes more peak torque than the vg33, but almost none just off idle. i still occasionally stall the car when the aircon is on. seems just about useless for towing. for this reason (no power out of boost) i was shying away from the td27.

 

The QD32ETI was the turbo diesel engine available in the '98- R50 Terrano and Terrano Regulus. It'd be virtually a direct drop in if you had all the supporting hardware. I'm not sure about the transmission and if it's reprogrammed differently, though. I've been trying to source a complete engine with transmission but it's proving to be neither easy nor cheap.

 

 

this looks very interesting. i wonder if there anybody in north america which knows these motors?

Edited November 8, 2010 by jasonb

[180sx]

As far as the multiple importers I found, no one ships diesels. Why? Because no one wants a diesel, so they don't go into agreements with shops and such about diesels. WTF?!?!

 

One place said they could get it, but for $5200 I could buy a whole R50, you know?

 

Jose

[Ocman]

As far as the multiple importers I found, no one ships diesels. Why? Because no one wants a diesel, so they don't go into agreements with shops and such about diesels. WTF?!?!

 

One place said they could get it, but for $5200 I could buy a whole R50, you know?

 

Jose

 

Haven't checked in for a while...great info..My journey on this path has found only a new engine outsourced by Nissan to a chinese manufacturer. "The nissan model QD32Ti is produced by OEM factory who get permission and buy technology and production drawings from Nissan. This engine is widely used for our country military Jeep car, small pickup, and some for Nissan patrol 4X4 on road vehicle, we have supply several engines for our customer who want to install on toyoto 4X4 vehicle in Australia.

 

The price for this engine is USD 4450, which include the shipment to portland."

 

Two issues with this..one is price, especially if a replacement tranny is also needed to get this to work...second is quality of build..would a chinese product built upon nissan specs have the durability of a nonchinese built one?

 

I agree with others in this conversation..buying a clip or whole vehicle would be a better way to go..not sure if a whole vehicle could be imported into USA..a clip could be if one could be found...as the saying goes "If there is a will there is a way"

 

R

[Zibi]

I wouldn't pay that to put a diesel into an R50...you could buy something else in diesel for that...

 

A problem to consider is that it's still fairly common in China for manufacturers to produce unauthorized knockoffs. I had to do a little paper on this a couple years ago, it generally relates to the production of motorcycle engines, medication, and that sort of thing. What happens is plants either acquire the designs and produce without authorization, or plants that produce the parts/engine normally will pull extra shifts unauthorized by the company. The problem is that in these cases there is no or little product control. In something like an engine, that can be bad if the quality of the materials is lacking (inferior steel) or things aren't built exactly to specifications.

 

Anyway I generally don't mind buying cheap Chinese @!*%, but only for things where I won't be crushed if they break. Personally, I wouldn't spend ~$4500 to import an engine. You could get a crate LS3 for the same amount.

[tekazgtr1984]

 

Cheaping out on important parts is never a good idea. Then again, getting gouged by these import shops isn't much good, either.

 

Dan (vengeful) was the one who first told me about the Isuzu 3.0L L4 turbo diesel swap kit and IIRC, wasn't all that hard on the wallet. Might be a good option for you guys south of 49. I just wish I could find some more information on the details of this kit.

[jasonb]

If a QD32ETI could be sourced, that would be quite interesting. but it appears maybe not so easy...

 

So i'm thinking of selling the pf and sourcing a toyota chassis with a broken motor on craigslist and putting a cummins isb 3.9 in it

 

170hp 420ft/lb ftw

 

 

is that just wrong?

[PlatinumRacing]

If a QD32ETI could be sourced, that would be quite interesting. but it appears maybe not so easy...

 

So i'm thinking of selling the pf and sourcing a toyota chassis with a broken motor on craigslist and putting a cummins isb 3.9 in it

 

170hp 420ft/lb ftw

 

 

is that just wrong?

 

 

I don't think so. I actually suggested this on the last page...

[new4x4r]

Well, I'm buying a QD32!!! Winter project/swap!

[1999R50]

Why not just buy my 96 Terrano with QD32Eti and then do a LHD conversion.

I brought it over from Japan a few years ago but I need something 7 seater now.

 

http://ontario.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-cars-trucks-Nissan-Terrano-W0QQAdIdZ452476051