Marks adapters for D2 chevy swap

[drumhed]

Looking to swap a chevy engine into my D2 (2004), and I'm looking for opinions and experiences on such endeavors. Honestly, I just want the simplest, hot-rod style setup. The bottom line is, the truck needs a new engine. Rover V8's suck (no offense), never mind the fact that I cannot buy a decent one in the states. I figure it's either stuff a Chevy in this truck, or scrap it and switch to a Jeep Cherokee. And I don't give a rat's ass about stock appearance or OBDII..... In any way shape or form. It will need to remain somewhat highway friendly and have A/C and window controls, but I've heard you can trick the body computer into thinking there's a running 4.6 in the truck?

The interior will be gutted and caged. The truck is registered and driven deep in the heart of Good Ole' Boy Country, where we don't have inspections and can drive whatever the fsck we damn well please... So don't get into an argument about why I should keep the Rover engine and electronics--it's a non-starter with me. And for what it's worth, I'll mention that I'm shooting for the 325hp range (flywheel).

My question is about Mark's 4wd adapters, and whether or not to go for a 350 or LS. Obviously, I am going to ask this same question to Mark's before I buy anything, but figured there may be some folks with experience around Rovers with Chevy engines.

So Mark4wd.com sells LS motor mounts and 4L80E adapter kits for D2's, and 350 motor mounts and 350/zf bellhousing adapters for--apparently--RRC's and D1's. Does anyone know why the 350 stuff is not offered for D2 and what it would take to make the kit work if one were so inclined? I know I will need a compushift for my ZF, but what else would stop me from using the 350 kit on a D2? Or for that matter, why not adapt GM T400 to the 230 transfer case.?

For those who have experience with the LS/4L80e route, what were some of the challenges?

Obviously, either way I am going to have a hell of a time with air conditioning. I have considered a vintage air universal kit, since this will probably have a sheet-metal dash anyway. But if the Rover AC can be fed by a foreign (chevy) compressor, then I would stick with stock.

I look forward to any shaming.. I mean insight the forum has to offer. I would also like to mention that I'm looking for a shop or individual to do the swap, so if any of you would like to simply take my money and solve my problem, please PM me.

 

[Mongo]

simplest route is dump the D2 and buy a jeep...seriously

 

[ERover82]

FJ80

 

[robertf]

You wont find many first hand experiences if any. Its way more expensive to do correctly than a new rover v8

Youre gambling with the strength of the ZF.
Ditching overdrive for a th400 or 350 is a terrible idea.
The 4 speeds are really wide and biased towards the passenget side. Driveshaft clearance becomes a problem. A 2 piece front driveshaft on a AWD vehicle will shake the truck apart on the highway
6 speed seems to work fine on defenders, but they arent old enough to be cheap


Go with the Cherokee, but they dont take well to cheap v8 swaps either

 

[Shiftonthefly1]

'MERICA!!!

I think there was a guy who successfully integrated the Rover engine management to somehow control a early chevy. Of course that was years ago he posted that video...no final product was ever posted. If you do a search you'll find a ton of people trying to do the same. None successfully as far as I found.

With enough money and 'Merica anything is possible.

 

[fishEH]

Trailhead 4x4 in Ohio has swapped Chevy's into more than a few D2's. Last I heard he wasn't offering a DIY kit yet but it might be worth a call.(I think he's in Moab right now though)

 

[Mongo]

keep hearin' about this guy doing the swap, but cant find any writeups on them (looking beyond the typical places)...be interested to see how they handled the BCU aspect of the install, if they do at all...

 

[aliastel]

I think a lot of the swap movement has as much to do with people buying cheap vehicles and thinking that it will be cheap and easy fix to swap an American engine in. Also, a lot of people just like the looks of Land Rovers, but don't really want to learn the ins and outs of working on them. Fear of the unknown.

 

[robertf]

keep hearin' about this guy doing the swap, but cant find any writeups on them (looking beyond the typical places)...be interested to see how they handled the BCU aspect of the install, if they do at all...

If its the one Im thinking of they just put all the rover stuff on a 4.8 so nothing loses any communication. My question about this is how well can it possibly run without retuning a 4.0/4.6 ecm, and if they are retuning it why are they not advertising that capability?

As for communication with the BCM, its primitive stuff by now and the bulk of it is described in the RAVE book. If someone really wanted to do a clean swap that wouldnt be a problem, but you know as well as I do that everyone who has ever asked how to do a GM swap on this forum wants cheap not clean.

 

[Mongo]

If its the one Im thinking of they just put all the rover stuff on a 4.8 so nothing loses any communication. My question about this is how well can it possibly run without retuning a 4.0/4.6 ecm, and if they are retuning it why are they not advertising that capability?Yep...my question exactly as to what are they doing...

As for communication with the BCM, its primitive stuff by now and the bulk of it is described in the RAVE book. If someone really wanted to do a clean swap that wouldnt be a problem, but you know as well as I do that everyone who has ever asked how to do a GM swap on this forum wants cheap not clean.

nailed that one...

 

[drumhed]

Cheap is not what I'm going for.. I expect to spend $8-15K on this project. The reason for such a wide range is obvious.. A 350 hooked up to the ZF would be half the expense and trouble of an LS engine, 4L80E, transfer case adapter, and custom drive shafts, so if there's some physical/mechanical reason I can't mount a 350 in the D2 engine bay, that's probably my biggest question at the moment and I still haven't heard any replies about that.

Is the ZF really that big of a worry with 300-325 hp and 350-375 ft-lbs? I have always subscribed to the notion that driveline shock from raucous behavior was the real driveline killer, not a little extra power being applied smoothly on the highway.

I think it's absolutely ludicrous to try and run the LS with the Bosch system. With either Chevy setup (350 or LS), I am planning to run FiTech or FAST EFI. I'm sure if the BCM is fed the right signals, it won't care if it's being pulled by a mule. That's what I'd hope to achieve, and I have heard others claim to have done it (such as the shop in the Northwest that puts imported TDI's in American D2's).

 

[aliastel]

Cheap is not what I'm going for.. I expect to spend $8-15K on this project. The reason for such a wide range is obvious.. A 350 hooked up to the ZF would be half the expense and trouble of an LS engine, 4L80E, transfer case adapter, and custom drive shafts, so if there's some physical/mechanical reason I can't mount a 350 in the D2 engine bay, that's probably my biggest question at the moment and I still haven't heard any replies about that.

Is the ZF really that big of a worry with 300-325 hp and 350-375 ft-lbs? I have always subscribed to the notion that driveline shock from raucous behavior was the real driveline killer, not a little extra power being applied smoothly on the highway.

I think it's absolutely ludicrous to try and run the LS with the Bosch system. With either Chevy setup (350 or LS), I am planning to run FiTech or FAST EFI. I'm sure if the BCM is fed the right signals, it won't care if it's being pulled by a mule. That's what I'd hope to achieve, and I have heard others claim to have done it (such as the shop in the Northwest that puts imported TDI's in American D2's).

The transmission is rated to about 330 ft. lbs, which may work but you're on the edge. Also, you will need a stand alone controller for it if you are eliminating the stock wiring. You may have trouble integrating the abs and traction control as well. For all the trouble why not just get a really nice professionally built top hatted 4.6 from someone like D&D. You'll be pushing the same torque for a lot less money.

 

[Mongo]

Why guys want to drop 8k to 15k on truck worth 3k is beyond me. It's not like the D2 is "unique", has a outstanding ride, is a collector truck, Blah, blah, blah...

You've havent heard about issues or are getting input because what you want to do just is done that much, as for the reason stated above.

The ZF will self-destruct and the trans controller is about 1200 bucks.

if your looking for a mall cruiser, buy a FJ80.

But if you want to piss money away, go for it

 

[drumhed]

Honestly, I am probably going to ditch the ABS and traction control in favor of locking diffs. As I said, I am looking for a simple/reliable setup. Even if I put a top hat 4.6 in, it's probably going to get aftermarket engine management and gutting of any complicated factory equipment that I can get rid of. There is no inspection to pass in Alabama.

 

[Mongo]

So is this a daily driver, a mall carawler or a trail truck? answered my own question...if you're gutting it, just drop whatever you want in it, who cares about any creature comforts

What you're talking about doing is not going to be reliable or will it be simple in any aspect of what you want to do...

 

[drumhed]

Why guys want to drop 8k to 15k on truck worth 3k is beyond me. It's not like the D2 is "unique", has a outstanding ride, is a collector truck, Blah, blah, blah...

The Discovery actually is unique and cool, but I see your point and that's the whole decision I'm faced with. I have certainly had enough fun in it that I don't feel "jipped" for having $4k tied up in it. But she's about wore the fuck out, and something has to be done to get my wheeling adventures to the next level. By all means, I can take another $4k and buy a clapped out K5 Blazer or a mild-mannered Cherokee Classic and be in basically the same place--refurbishing/upgrading a drivetrain. But there's nothing special about those vehicles either. People drop $15K into $3K vehicles all the time.. It's called hot-rodding.

A 4x4 Toyota with equivalent off road equipment to my D2 would set me back $15-20K, but is it really the golden goose? If so, this is all moot.. But I suspect the only thing special about a Toyota is reliability.

 

[drumhed]

So is this a daily driver, a mall carawler or a trail truck? answered my own question...

Trail truck

 

[robertf]

You might be able to do a gen 4 or 5 + 6 speed on that budget if you do all the work yourself, but it would be a shame to do all that work and gut the truck and put in a metal dash.

Hooking up the AC is the easiest part of that project. I get the allure of aftermarket EMS, everything is open to you and well documented, but there is a big difference in reliability of equipment made for a niche market vs mass production. Ive seen plenty of those all in one kits quit working off road because the owner never drove or tuned it in cold weather, at altitude, on crap gasoline, etc

 

[Mongo]

I hate to disappoint but the FJ80 kicks the shit out of a D2...If you find a D2 unique, thats great, but also a D2 is not a medium to "take to the next level". Lockers, hd axles, small lift and 35's will get you everywhere you want to go, they aren't race cars, never will be even with a new power plant. I modified the living shit out of my D2 and never was the engine a issue.

You really need to figure out what you want, but a D2 isn't a good canidate for major mods...

 

[drumhed]

They have come a long way in the last 5 years. Wide Band O2 and self-tuning are now the norm, not the cutting-edge. And I can get the system for a little more than a Hawkeye scanner would cost me. It's easy to be allured by that.