Double cab with 3.8 v6....something a little different.

hii all

I had an older model L200 at the time that i had done a 4G54 conversion and tip/hoist deck on but, the body was ready for the scrap pile.


Attachment 13940


I brought a newer double cab ute with a blown engine and had been sitting for about 2years under a tree.

Attachment 13942

once they engine was fitted to the new ute it was running fine for about 6 months till the heater hose split and i cooked it.

Attachment 13941


since then ive fitted a 2003 VX holden commodore engine and auto trans. this was fine till i got sick of the slush box and decided to go with a T5 manual. here are some pix of what it is like now....
Attachment 13943Attachment 13944Attachment 13945Attachment 13946

just wanted to see what you guys think. any questions?any advice? Im wanting to do a body drop. has anyone done or seen one done before? any info or help would be great!!!

i can do a thread on the build up so far if anyone is keen??

Quote:

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Originally Posted by holdsubishi

i can do a thread on the build up so far if anyone is keen??

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Do you have to ask??

That thing is awesome!

thanks! I've owned the blue/yellow one for about 2 years now, it has been a work in progress for the last year. It is currently not driveable as i dont have a driveshaft made up yet and funds are a lil tight atm.


here are a few pix of the build......

Attachment 13947
mocking up....

Attachment 13948
cut out old mounts, made up new and welded em in. noched the crossmember

the auto fit in fine with just a small mod to the floor to clear the trans cooler lines and filler tube.

I soon got over the auto and started gatering parts for a manual convertion. they proved very hard to find in New Zealand so i had to get alot of them from Australia.

I soon found out the hard way that fitting the T5 box in the tiny L200 tunel was never going to happen... so out came the grinder....

Attachment 13949

That's really cool man. As far as I know there aren't any four door trucks built in the U.S.
Never even heard of a commodore either. Looks like a general motors engine.

yes it is a GM engine. im not sure what they are traded or registered as over there but this is the car description....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holden_Commodore_%28VY%29

Awesome, I have a grand national that needs tons of body work and was just browsing to see if anyone has done a 3.9 auto in one of these!

I am glad it fits like butter and with minimal mods!

transdapt used to make a motor swap kit for the buick 3.8 for the 1st gen trucks - it was motor mounts and headers with drivers side outlet reversed to the front of the block to clear the steering box.

4 door is my favourite body style, and the buick 3800 if my favourite powerplant
I'd love a daily driven auto 3800. Should be a torquey snappy little ride
What auto came behind the holden 3800 ? not the 'huge' 4L80 or 60 ? I'd think a T5 would easily go anywhere one of those fitted

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dash

4 door is my favourite body style, and the buick 3800 if my favourite powerplant
I'd love a daily driven auto 3800. Should be a torquey snappy little ride
What auto came behind the holden 3800 ? not the 'huge' 4L80 or 60 ? I'd think a T5 would easily go anywhere one of those fitted

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holden_Commodore_%28VS%29

A friend of mine said the Isuzu Rodeo 3.2L V6 is a swap for the GM V6 and makes more power. It seems to be the same engine as the one used in the Isuzu Trooper and Frontera.

Can you post a couple more detailed pics and notes on this swap for me? I just grinned from ear to ear when I saw what 3.8 was in there.

I having been kicking the idea around of swapping in the L67 (Supercharged 3800) mated to a 5 spd from an F body (Camaro/Firebird) or if I had to the 2.8 S10/blazer tranny.

The L67 only came in FWD format here in the states so there is some modification that has to be done for the intake to work .....but you guys have the Holden which came in RWD format N/A and Supercharged which means there is not any fab needed for the intake to route correctly.

Theres a ton of info out there on these motors in RWD format and I didnt think anyone had done it in a MM/D50 yet.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by unc25

Can you post a couple more detailed pics and notes on this swap for me? I just grinned from ear to ear when I saw what 3.8 was in there.

I having been kicking the idea around of swapping in the L67 (Supercharged 3800) mated to a 5 spd from an F body (Camaro/Firebird) or if I had to the 2.8 S10/blazer tranny.

The L67 only came in FWD format here in the states so there is some modification that has to be done for the intake to work .....but you guys have the Holden which came in RWD format N/A and Supercharged which means there is not any fab needed for the intake to route correctly.

Theres a ton of info out there on these motors in RWD format and I didnt think anyone had done it in a MM/D50 yet.

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The problem was our original V6's were copies of FWD Buick engines (the very first engines were shipped from the US https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holden_Commodore_%28VN%29) - the intake manifolds had the throttle bodies off the rear of them. The bodies are rejigged versions of Opel built cars. I've seen these engine and drivetrains squeezed into other smaller sedans. They're cheap to buy and easy to find but it's weird you guys didn't get them in RWD...

after 1987 GM went fwd on everything - those are 3800 gen II motors

There are thousands - I mean thousands of these things around. Running cars are cheap as $600 to buy and parts from wrecking yards are plentiful and equally cheap.

hey, Camaro and firebird had 3.8.

camaro/firebird had the L36 normally aspirated 3800
For stop n go daily, a normally aspirated 3800 with auto tranny would be perfect for a truck this size
They're torquey compact little motors that pull away strong from off idle. Must gear the truck properly tho
I came accross quite a few rwd 3800 swaps in the u.s. online, n.a. and supercharged
I stumbled upon a $200 grand prix, that ran great, bad tranny. Pulled the powerplant/electronics then scapped the hull

Friend has a Supercharged 3800 in his Chevette. He used a Camaro V6 Trans and the engine block mounts. the engine was out of a Bonneville SSEi

wow... that's exactly what I had planned for my L67! Friend has a 2 door chevette in his shed he says he'll sell to me
does he have anything about his chevette online ?

Sorry no, I can get a few pic's if you want. Thing has full air ride, Volvo Posi with rear disc's and Fiero front suspension upgrades.

Sounds wild.... heck yeah, some pictures/info would be great!
Can put em in the "Other vehicles" section I guess.
Just saw you put a KA24DET Chevette there. Cool sleeper. Wierd marriage


4L60 on the shop floor looks hella wide as it gets near the base.
I wondered if a chevette floorpan could swallow one, without major surgery.
I had planned to adapt some 4spd japanese non-computer auto tranny, as they're a lot smaller

For the Chevette he used a T5 from a 96 V6 Canmaro as its the same bolt pattern. Yeah the 4L series is bigger then any 3 speed auto or any of the standard tranny's

Oh hey, this is the truck my diff and spindles came from

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Originally Posted by tortron

Oh hey, this is the truck my diff and spindles came from

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This member hasn't updated so I guess now we know what happened to it...

A 3.8l of the other kind. I was thinking 6g75 MIVEC.

Gone to a nice farm to live out the rest of its days?

No off to scrap the week after, engune and box had gone about a year prior. I forget why it got parted