Thread: 4BD1 into Defender

Originally Posted by Rand Lover

Thanks Isuzurover,

The 130 is from 1995.

This link summarises the emissions standards:
https://www.dieselnet.com/standards/au/

The important bit:

The first emission standards (apart from smoke standards) for heavy diesel fueled vehicles became effective in 1995 for all new models and in 1996 for all existing models. These emission standards were introduced via ADR70/00 (adopting ECE R49, US & Japanese HDV standards). The requirements of the 1995/96 standards were:

Required: Euro 1 for both light-duty and heavy-duty vehicles. Euro 2 and 3 were also accepted though not included in the regulation.
Acceptable alternatives: US EPA ?91 or ?94 (EPA ?98 was also accepted though not included in the regulation); 1993 Japanese exhaust emission standards for ?light duty and medium duty vehicles? and 1994 Japanese exhaust emission standards for ?passenger cars and heavy duty vehicles?.

So it depends on whether your vehicle is assessed as being pre or post the Euro 1 requirement as to which engine you can fit. What does your compliance plate say wrt ADRs?

Originally Posted by isuzurover

The solution they came up with (way back when the S3 stage 1 was brought out) was to get CKD Stage 1 v8s shipped to Australia with everything but the engine.

Funny you should say this. A few days ago I bought a cab chassis series 3 stage 1 with a naturally aspirated 4bd1. The VIN says it should be a v8. But in text, directly above the VIN is says "4 cylinder diesel".

Needs a bit of work ie engine needs priming every time to start (pin hole in old fuel line maybe?), and left and right front cab mounts rusted along with respective side wall of chassis where they mount. And seized brakes.

Wonder what Dervish has decided. And Rand Lover for that matter (I think I got the connection when he said 'gold prospecting')

Originally Posted by workingonit

...

Needs a bit of work ie engine needs priming every time to start ...

More likely the primer mechanism is letting air in (At least that is what happened to me). The primer unit is available as a separate item to the fuel pump. About $100ish from Isuzu I recall but cheaper elsewhere.

I have been to MVR today ( Motor Vehicles Registration) and the boys 3 of them told me that there is not a worry at all , as long as I can prove that the new engine is not a stolen one , if it was a petrol engine different story cos I would have to add extra exhaust catalytic converter or something...
They said if I have to do some welding on the chassis it has to be done by a certified welder that's all .

Sometimes it's good to live in a territory , where the bureaucrats don't have the last word on everything.

All I have to do now is find a good reputable place to find a good engine and gear box . Any suggestions.Is any of these companies sell complete kits ?

Cheers for your infos.

Originally Posted by Rand Lover

I have been to MVR today ( Motor Vehicles Registration) and the boys 3 of them told me that there is not a worry at all , as long as I can prove that the new engine is not a stolen one , if it was a petrol engine different story cos I would have to add extra exhaust catalytic converter or something...
They said if I have to do some welding on the chassis it has to be done by a certified welder that's all .

Sometimes it's good to live in a territory , where the bureaucrats don't have the last word on everything.

All I have to do now is find a good reputable place to find a good engine and gear box . Any suggestions.Is any of these companies sell complete kits ?

Cheers for your infos.

Read my edit on the previous page about the 6-speed option.

Your best bet is to get an engine and box from a truck wrecker (or buy an old truck). Then you need a shifter setup and an adaptor to an LT230. I believe the only company currently making adaptors is a place in SEQ making CNC billet adaptors (search on here - someone has one).

I don't think Sheldon is doing his any more?

Sheldon had a well designed shifter setup by all accounts. The other option is to adapt a cable shifter mechanism from a car.

Originally Posted by workingonit

...

Wonder what Dervish has decided.

Decided in what regard?

Originally Posted by Rand Lover

I have been to MVR today ( Motor Vehicles Registration) and the boys 3 of them told me that there is not a worry at all , as long as I can prove that the new engine is not a stolen one , if it was a petrol engine different story cos I would have to add extra exhaust catalytic converter or something...

With regards to emissions regulations, I don't think I've ever read about anyone being knocked back on a 4BD1 into Defender conversion. According to the engineer, it would have been possible on my '97 Defender if I had decided to go the engine swap route and KLR are currently working on a '96 130 4BD1 conversion (both in NSW). So whether emissions regs are getting put into the "too hard" basket or what, I don't know; but there's a number of 4BD1 Defenders out there now.



To add a bit more info into this thread, the actual body swap (Defender onto Perentie chassis) was completed last year at KLR; that was with basic Perentie mechanicals except for the rear diff from the Defender as it was the stronger 130-spec unit and had disc brakes and Hi-tough shafts and flanges. I went the body swap route to avoid the expense of engineering and also get the advantages of the Perentie chassis. The work involved in the conversion was not hard but there was a lot of it; adapting the wiring looms to each other and replacing worn out bits all through the body in particular.



To get to this point was somewhere around the 4 week mark.



Since then the Defentie/Pretendie has been turbocharged and converted to 5 speed. The difference with the turbo is staggering. KLR achieve a reliable 110hp at the wheels from the kit with plenty of dyno results on different vehicles to prove it; this is up from ~50hp atw from a standard Perentie.



I also went ahead and put the r380 back in. I know what reaction that will earn, but there are quite a number of r380s behind 4BD1Ts out there - some with a lot of kilometers all without trouble. The r380 seems to punch well above its weight. Behind the r380 is a roller bearing 1.003:1 LT230. Originally we put a 1.222:1 LT230Q in, but the ratios were just a little too short. That said, the 1.222:1 ratio would've been acceptable if there was no alternative and possibly better if you planned to do much heavy towing. With the gearing as it is, 4th is good up to 100 km/h with 5th being used only as a cruising gear at 100+.



I'm still looking for a taper bearing 1.003:1 LT230. I should get a year or two out of the roller bearing unit and it was only $100, so I'm not complaining.

I have been asked a few times about what I'd done about the fuel tank. The standard Perentie tank is pretty average in design and also implementation, so I wasn't keen to keep it. It would've also meant cutting the tool box out from under the driver's seat. I ended up having one made - 97L, it probably could have been larger but it will do.



We are still working on a spare wheel carrier - there are a couple out there that will work well with the Perentie chassis. Unfortunately the Kaymar that I had wasn't one of them.



I couldn't be happier with the result from this conversion. It's smooth, quiet and quick - things that the 300tdi (which I still like as a motor) could never have been. If only you could've walked into a dealership and bought this vehicle in the 90's, nobody would even know what a Nissan Patrol was.

Originally Posted by Dervish

... If only you could've walked into a dealership and bought this vehicle in the 90's, nobody would even know what a Nissan Patrol was.

Well you could - apart from the turbo and the gal chassis. The last 110 county sold in ~91/92 in Australia.

They sold VERY poorly. Between 1984 and 1988 the price of 110s more than doubled due to an increase in the value of the pound. Meaning sales fell through the floor and mid 80's rangies appreciated in price rather than depreciated!

Nissotas on the other hand were comparatively cheaper.

EDIT: 1988 prices according to redbook
110 county 3.9D $47k
Nissan GQ 4.2D Wagon (base model) $33k
60 Series Cruiser (base model) $35k

The same trend continued into the early 90s.

Originally Posted by Dervish

With regards to emissions regulations, I don't think I've ever read about anyone being knocked back on a 4BD1 into Defender conversion. According to the engineer, it would have been possible on my '97 Defender if I had decided to go the engine swap route and KLR are currently working on a '96 130 4BD1 conversion (both in NSW). So whether emissions regs are getting put into the "too hard" basket or what, I don't know; but there's a number of 4BD1 Defenders out there now.
<snip>

Not do-able in VIC in a post-'95 Defender.
I'm aware of how some have got them done in other states, but in VIC its a case of engine change == engineer signoff == ADR compliance check == FAIL. Pre-95 chassis not a problem.

I approached a couple of engineers regarding it, and even shelled out some dollars for an initial inspection/confirmation but was knocked back by both independently.

Awesome for those of you in other states that can do them though. Wonder how it would go getting one rego'd in VIC afterwards? That's an angle I didn't think of at the time...

Steve