2002 Toyota Tacoma engine swap ideas

Hey guys I have 2002 Toyota Tacoma I’ve been really wanting to put a new/faster engine into it. I know it’s going to cost me some money but I wanted to get some ideas of what kind of engine swaps people have done on their Tacoma’s and what else had to be done to add a new engine. Also any good shops to go to around the Central Valley or Bay Area please let me know. Thanks hope to hear from some of you guys!

 

How much do you have to spend?

How mechanically inclined are you?

How much blood, sweat, and tears are you willing to sacrifice to the Toyota gods?

This isn't for the faint of heart so really, what's your goal here? Tacoma's are slow, but they're good at it.

 

Bottom line if your paying a shop to do this figure a Big budget maybe $10,000.00 to get started .

What is your end game staying emission legal as that is a interesting project in California for most swaps.

If your staying street legal you might want to check into your emission laws to see what hoops you need to jump through .

Trailer queen that gets hauled to and from any events ??

 

You’re going to have a real hard time doing any engine swap in California. There are lots of rules and regulations, plus you have to get it inspected by the California Bureau of Automotive Repair.

You have to maintain all the original emissions equipment, maintain CARB certification status on all accessories, stuff like that. Other rules include you must use an engine from the same year or newer, and you cannot mix and match engines from cars or trucks.

If you’re going to have a shop do this, expect to pay anywhere between $15,000-$30,000. This isn’t cheap by any imagination of the mind.

That figure comes from companies who actually do engine swaps in comparable vehicles. www.dieseltoys.com will swap the JDM Turbodiesel 1JZT-E into your truck starting at $24,500. My friend owns an HMMV and a company in Phoenix swapped the Detroit Diesel for a Cummins drivetrain for roughly $23,000.

Engine swaps simply are not worth it if you don’t do the work yourself. If you do do the work yourself, you must know this is not an easy or cheap feat — especially in the State of California where you can’t take shortcuts.