So Alice (75 4x4) has been spitting out freeze plugs again and I decided to put in the Jdm engine out of the lifted 80 wagon. Holy crap are the different looking! The old engine has water passage bolted to the top of it, the jdm just has a hump in the middle; the engine and tranny wont quite tighten flush together(right where the alignment studs are{old engine had 'em, new one dont}); and it's really tight to turn over with a ratchet on the crank bolt.

 

Has anyone done a jdm swap? Is there really that much difference between them? I'm kinda stumped at this point, just started drivin her again and now this....:-\

 

Thanks in advance

 

-mike

The water passages were just cast in the block, I believe the US models did the same thing and lost the external water pipe.

 

I have seen problems like the engine and trans both having dowel pins so one needs to be taken out, or just alot of corrosion or rust built up will prevent the pins from going in easily. Also, make sure the clutch is properly centered, so the input shaft will slide into the clutch & pilot bearing.

well, after about 32 times of taking the engine in and out, it turns out that the pilot bearing was causing the binding. got everything back in, now i'm "fighting" the dizzy install, just cant seem to get it lined up right. pulled the valve cover checked TDC, lined up the marks on the dist shaft, just getting a bunch of backfiring now. oh well,

 

-mike

Probably just off a tooth one way or another. They can be a pain in the a$$ sometimes.