Yoda

I'm in desperate need of a water bypass pipe for a 2nd generation 1UZ. It's a steel pipe that runs from the front water bridge to the heater matrix. It's secures into the block with two bolts. Part number is 16206-50100. No longer an available part from Lexus. For speed please call or text me on 07968 524 942. Cash waiting. Thank you for your attention. Luke

This all started because a local LPG fitter told me he's had bad experiences fitting LPG to 2UZ's. He refused to do a 1UZ on the basis the valves wouldn't take it. However as you can see from this thread the consensus is opposite. I've also had good feedback on the 1UZ facebook pages. Also something else occurred to me. I have a standalone engine management system. I can adjust my air fuel ratio and have already done so for petrol. The thing that apparently kills valves with LPG is that it runs hotter. But being able to adjust the AFR should fix that. So all things considered so far I cannot see a reason against doing it.

Interesting. Every day's a school day. Do you feel that in the throttle?

What do you mean by Pinking Caractacus?

Definitey getting used to driving the truck with the V8 in it now. And absolutely loving it. However, I'm curious, can someone tell me which fuel I'm supposed to be running a 1UZ on? 95 or 97/99? I'll be mapping it soon and playing around with the air fuel ratio and timing. So I'll be able to map it for which ever fuel I like. But I'm curious which fuel it was designed for and which fuel you all run on?

Cheers bud. For the most psrt this more or less brings this thread to a close. That said there is still engine related mods to come. Snorkel, exhaust, mapping, head work, ...... Super charger ..... So I'll keep the updates coming. This lot cost a pretty penny though so nothing happening in the very short term that costs money. Oh, and I plan to get the engine valet and detailed then buy a second set of rocker covers and an intake. I'll then clean them up and get them painted orange and then swap them out.

Sorry didn't answer all of that did I. That is just from an open filter. It's not even in the snorkel yet as you saw. There's also no exhaust note at present. I mean really none. The LS400 headers are built for quietness and my exhaust is nothing special. To save money we reused my existing single pipe 2.5" stainless and merged both headers into it. It has two silencers on it as well. First things I'll be doing which cost basically nothing is reconnecting the snorkel and removing one of the exhaust silencers. Later this year I want to have a full twin balanced exhaust made up. Probably 2.5" both sides and Hurricane headers from Oz. But that could be a grand easily right there. That I'm pretty sure will sound epic though.

Actually my previous off road toy was a Jeep Cherokee. Loved it. Still miss it. I needed a pick up though so bought an L200. Just had no idea how bad the engines were at the time. Raptor was an inspiration taken from watching an episode of West Coast Customs where they Line X'd an entire truck. So Line X was my first choice but you can't DIY it. I never built this to be a challenge truck. If you hit something hard enough the paint will still scratch. But practically eliminates pin striping that you get from green laning. If a branch looks too big - get out and move it. It's not an advert. I'm not sponsored. Though I wish I was.

There's some guys on the 1UZ Facebook groups with the Lexus V8 in all sorts of vehicles getting much better mileage. One chap I've got to know has a 1UZ in a Cherokee on 35" tyres and gets 25-28mpg. So I reckon we can get it up from 13. That wasn't exactly driving economically either. But mapping can achieve a lot. Plus it's probably worth me going through the spark plugs and HT leads to make sure they're top notch. My best mate has a 600bhp Holden with an LS1 that he's mapped to still return 27.5mpg. Lpg is on the cards. I did put up a post about it on here a while back because I had been told it destroys valves on the 1UZ. MikeyV I think you were one that commented to say you thought that was rubbish :)

So here it is; the grand reveal. The videos are aimed more at the L200 community as you'll see from things I say. But interesting I think for you guys to see more of the truck the engine is sitting in now. I am extremely pleased. In the way home I only got 13mpg which isn't exactly great. The gear ratios and lock up feel fine so doubt it's them. The Spitronics ECU get-you-on-the-road base map runs rich for safety. I need to get a wide band lambder sensor and start mapping soon. I'm sure we can get the engine to run better than it is. http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/Luke_E...nc8bfb.mp4.html - What it now looks like. Bumper, light bar, gear levers, and ECU's. A few things we agreed from the outset would be left to me to finish off. Sorry about the bad camera work in this one. Think I left the screen lock on.http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/Luke_E...y0wgke.mp4.html - The engine.http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/Luke_E...cw8nip.mp4.html - The one you're all really waiting for

The truck is done. Ready for collection. Only problem is I'm sick right now and don't know if I'm going to be well enough to get it Saturday. Full video coming when I do get it though.

Literally down to one problem to overcome and it's all done. The software for the TCU seems to be incorrect and is holding the gearbox in 4th. Once they've overcome this it's a test drive and we should be good. It's been running several times now so the engine looks good. No suprises there. I did have to buy a new alternator though as the original one was a bit kaput once they ran it for a while. Meanwhile here's a picture of my relocated radiator and twin electric fans.

Ive heard about this test. Is it really possible? I've seen a full wine glass test on YouTube. That was impressive.

It's alive! http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/Luke_Elliott/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2016-01/DA7AECFA-0559-404E-987B-C38BF27E9A13_zpszxvt4dvb.mp4.html

Wiring, ECU and TCU...

They lost a week due to flooding but they're back on it now. As you can see it's a pretty snug fit to the steering column and battery tray. But it's in. Happy days! They're working on all sorts of things at the moment. Fuel system. Engine wiring. Exhaust. I had to find some new props after we discovered the splines in the box are different. How do I make these photos a tad smaller?

Diesel hunk o' junk go bye bye! Engine and box are out. Few more ancillery bits and bobs for him to pull out. He's going to give the bay a good clean to remove the grease, road grime and oil. He's confirmed he will be using the Pajero box. The relevant parts from the Lexus box have been swapped over. He's also confirmed that the prop shaft and gearbox cross member will need modifying. But we pretty much knew that anyway. The Pajero box is 8" longer than my manual one was. And the bumper is out for galvanising as you can see.

Perfect. I head up that way about once a month anayway. I'll be in contact when I'm back on the road.

Both engines are fairly insanely brilliant to be honest with you. I don't think you can answer which is better. They're both legends. The 2JZ has more off the shelf tuning parts available. A bigger industry behind it if you will. Therefore more directions you can go in. Much like the Chevy LS1. There's a thousand ways to build a big power motor. The 1UZ is a famed for its reliability. Not quite the variety of tuning parts the 2JZ has. But still everything you would want to do is there for it. Also the 1UZ is a V8. For me that wins hands down. I don't know soarers very well but one downside of the 1UZ is that it was never produced with a factory manual gearbox. So if manual is what you want the solutions are more limited than the 2JZ.

It will be in the new year wh I get my truck back from the engine swap. Until then I'm without a vehicle. Where are you located?

Forums and Internet advice can be great but this is its one failing. Someone says something like that and it's very hard to verify. These things are often just hearsay. And yours is 1999 on LPG....

Thanks for the feedback guys. It appears at least as if this issue is not something known on this forum? Which is why I asked in the first place. Mike, sorry bad choice of words. No I haven't bought anything. I mean he's sold me a fast one as in spun a web of lies? Although I'm still perplexed at his motivation for such. 50,000 is fairly solid proo though. Just to clarify one thing, I don't have an LS400. The 1UZ is going in my truck as we speak. I would actually like to come and see yours. I would also like to speak to the chaps that did yours. I can't go anywhere until my truck comes back in the new year though. I asked the same question on a couple of 1UZ Facebook groups. The response was a mixture of good and bad reports. Then one guy came on and said that due to the change over to unleaded fuel Lexus built the 1990-1994 1UZ with hardened valves and seats. He suggests this might be the reason some people think the 1UZ doesn't cope well with LPG and others think it's great. Anyone know if there's any credence to the hardened valve story?

That's the only bit I don't get. He's not trying to make money out of me because he's basically recommending that I don't have it done. If he was trying to con me he'd stay quiet and take my money and let me deal with the consequences. As per my OP he suggests that the problem does not manifest for 15-20,000 miles. So without trying to make anyone look like they don't know what they're talking about (because honestly I'm happy there are people doing it) what kind of mileage have you all done since having LPG fitted?

This is the thing. LPG is 55p/litre down here and that's a saving of over 50p/litre. Even at £1600 for the conversion it's a no brainer to do it. So, can I assume that you feel I've been sold a fast one? If I may be objective for a moment, what would be his motivation for telling me this? If he was a cowboy wouldn't he stay quiet and take my money? Then plead ignorance if and when the engine rattled itself to pieces? I'm clueless either way. This is all new to me. But I did half guess it wouldn't be difficult to find people that are running it and proving it works. I've actually just noticed you're in Hampshire. Me too. Where did you get your installation done? And how many miles have you done since being on LPG? You being local could be a great help. I'm keen to understand what's really happening.

So I just made some enquiries about fitting an LPG system to my truck once I get it back. The second chap I spoke to said he's done a few 2UZ Land Cruiser conversions and within 15-20,000 miles the valve seats and valves have shaken themselves to pieces due to the extra heat. The only solution he's aware of is hardened valves and seats at over £2k which makes the conversion hardly worth it. Though he's never done a 1UZ his assumption is that they would suffer the same way. He says this problem is common in Japanese engines. German and American tend to run well with LPG. Other European makes is a mixture of compatibility. So, has anyone successfully run a 1UZ on LPG. Or is this is a known issue with no work practical around solution?