350 chev into MQ

[gone fishin]

Just looking for info and pointers on fitting a 350 Chev into a SWB MQ currently running the L28 and 4 speed manual, I want to keep things simple so don't really want to worry about any fancy electrics to go with auto's etc.
I have an adaptor kit for the 4 spd.
Does the MQ require a slim line starter or will a normal starter fit, can the L28 radiator be retained as they are a fairly big unit as is.
I am running a 60mm body lift and the current motor, g/box assy has also been raised to tuck up more.
I presume engine mounts will be easy enough to make up.
any info is greatly appreciated.

[bigbennymq]

Serious mate dont bother spending all that money on an mq i have one and i got a turbo put on it and now shes a beast just work on other things than the engine

[Heathx4]

Just looking for info and pointers on fitting a 350 Chev into a SWB MQ currently running the L28 and 4 speed manual

Done recently.

I want to keep things simple so don't really want to worry about any fancy electrics to go with auto's etc.

Fine. 4sp will have the engine sitting very close to the firewall. You'll need to 'massage' the firewall away, and it'll be a bitch to get at the bellhousing bolts. Body lift will make things a *lot* easier though!

5sp moves the engine further forward, but gives you plenty of other dramas.

Does the MQ require a slim line starter or will a normal starter fit

Depends on your exhaust. My normal starter sat pretty much touching the extractor flange. Works, but tight and heavy. I have 4 into 1 extractors that go to a flange near the block, about level with the sump bolts. Now have a little hi-torque joey and much happier!

can the L28 radiator be retained as they are a fairly big unit as is.

Yes, if in good nick, but fit thermos as well. Heaps of room with the 4sp. Tight with the 5sp.

I am running a 60mm body lift and the current motor, g/box assy has also been raised to tuck up more.

Well that spoils the advantage of the body lift for working on the V8! Still possible.

I presume engine mounts will be easy enough to make up.

S'pose, as long as you like raising and lowering engines! Big tip - design your mounts with consideration of where your exhaust (and starter, and other engine fittings) will run!

any info is greatly appreciated.

Good luck. My conversion is still giving me grief but not even in the same ballpark as the turbo when you fire the 350 up and feel the torque.

[cooter]

if you wanna do it cheap ill sell you a chassis box marks adapter egn mnts radiator xover twin exhaust and extrctors and diffs 2 if ya want for 600 pick up

[V8Patrol]

Just looking for info and pointers on fitting a 350 Chev into a SWB MQ currently running the L28 and 4 speed manual, I want to keep things simple so don't really want to worry about any fancy electrics to go with auto's etc.

Well then its a fairly straight forward conversion then with no major mods needed. The main drama will be higher than desired engine revs @ 100kph and this will depend largely on the tyre size you run, I'd strongly suggest 33"s as the smallest tyre to use, 35"s would be better again and so would fitting a 5spd box instead of the 4 spd for the higher gearing.....

The only clearance issue body wise will depend on the rockercover choice you make ...... the high covers will rub and be a bytch when installing the engine, they will hit hard on the little bracket that holds the steel clutchline to rubber line fitting ( this can be moved easilly tho ). No firewall mods are needed when dealing with the L28 motor arrangement, however if theres a SD33 fitted then its hammerin time !!

I have an adaptor kit for the 4 spd.

made by whom ????
CRS ( Castlemaine RodShop )
Marks Addaptors
or Dellow.
Each kit requires a differant setup and will give differing results as to the ease of fitting and general overall suitability.....
there are little "tricks" that you'll miss out on so ASK before you find yaself having to pull the V8 out yet again to alter some insignificant part..... did you know that the L28 4spd box input shaft will need modding ??? ....... it WILL hit the back of the 350 crank if left std... !!!!


What Clutch pak are you planing to use ????
Again there are several choices so be wide awake before selecting the bits or you'll be spending another w/end replacing the clutchplate !!
Best combination is red or blue V8 holden flywheel drilled to suit the chev crank, the V8 holden heavy duty towing pressureplate, & the clutch plate from a 99 model TDI Patrol ..... this combination WILL NOT FAIL !
WARNING : do NOT use the lightened flywheels ie: from the VN series up..... they crack far to easily when river xings happen !

Does the MQ require a slim line starter or will a normal starter fit

This will depend entirely on ya budget and the headers you choose to fit as to the "desired clearance" you'll obtain ay the end.
Block huggers made by Castlemaine Electricts will allow heaps of room in the engine bay and are the best choice by far, they clear the large snout, small snout and hitorque starters easily
Standard cast iron manifolds will also clear all the starters well BUT they create dramas with exhaust pipe direction specifically on the drivers side of the block ( some twit @ nissan put a drive shaft there !!! )
RAMS HORN manifolds are excelent if you wish to run a cast manifold, unfortunately they are as common as rocking horse shyte .... good luck here !!!

footnote: the hitorque starters draw far less current than the old style long or short snout chev starters which inturn leaves a far healthier battery for winching

can the L28 radiator be retained as they are a fairly big unit as is.

Yes ........ but ....
the inlet and outlet size on the radiator needs to be made bigger tho to suit the std top & bottom radiator hoses that suit the chev
Most radiator shops will have the correct sizes availible for purchase.

TIPS / WARNINGS :
1/
If you have a powersteering unit there WILL BE & I repeat WILL BE clearance issues between the bottom radiator hose and the end of the pwr steering box if you dont plan the upsized outlet location perfectly. This can be overcome by using large copper elbows which are available from plumbing supply shops.
2/
Count the number of cores you have in the radiator ...... THEY VARY from model to model and whether the rig has aircon or not fitted from factory The choice radiator is the one that had aircon, it has the highest number of cores of all the variant radiators.
The core number varys from 34 cores up to 48 core units.

I am running a 60mm body lift and the current motor, g/box assy has also been raised to tuck up more.

How much ??????
If the engine/box alignment has been raised to the same as the lift then the std SD33 diesel radiator cowl will line up perfectly with the chev waterpump fan assembly

I'm assuming that you'll be running the engine fan inconjunction with a 16" Davis Craig thermo fan ( best, cheapest & simplest combination overall ). Some members have chosen the twin AU phord shyte thermo setups instead and havent faulted em that I'm aware of, personally tho they didnt work anywhere near well enough to warrant the expense..... but then I dont pussy mine around !

I presume engine mounts will be easy enough to make up.
any info is greatly appreciated.

Engine mounts are kinder stuff !
The electrical side is dead set simple stuff, should take less than 3 hours to do, dont forget to wire back in the ballist resistor if using a points type dizzy or you'll be replacing points and condensor every 3000K's or when ya deep in the scrub ....

A HEI dizzy is well worth its weight in gold ! ..... just set n forget !

The std nissan oil and temp senders can easilly be re-threaded to suit the chev block

There is a heap more info in the MQ/MK Bible on this exact conversion


Kingy

[rochrd]

Do ur homework, get a pen n paper and start adding all ur cost, don't forget all the headf#*ks u go throw.
ive been there, and done that. I spent $18,000 on my MQ, Now my new toy a GQ 4.2 turbo straight gas 210kw to rear wheels.
still got the MQ sitting in the garage, but wished i saved the money that spent on it. Cos i won't even get half of that back.
Why did i spend so much?
cos i built it to keep, but then a mate had to part with his GQ after spending over $50.000. i couldn't let it go to a stranger.
i guess what i'm saying is if u really want a 350 in an MQ buy one already done and gain his lose.
MQ are great rigs, but face it there worth nothing, so dont throw money away.
P.s GQ are almost as cheap and are more capable and comferable.

[V8Patrol]

I spent $18,000 on my MQ

You must have wasted a heap somewhere

I've spent less than 10,000 on mine and that includes the original purchase price......

Its had a .....
350 fitted, 5spd box fitted, SOA, 35" BFG muddies fitted with a spare set of 38"TSL's for the mud, custom interior, resprayed, and powersteering fitted aswell....... and I'm still under the 10grand mark !!!

I cant see how anyone could spend $18,000 on an MQ

[gone fishin]

Cheers for the info gents. I will have a good read through all the other threads about it and see what happens.
The motor only set me back $500 for a good runner,
A few things I will chase up in time.
And for those who knock MQ's do you or have you actually owned 1. I have raced mine for nearly 3 years with no major drama's.
Oh and I also have a GQ SWB and a GU wagon, so I can pick and choose what I want to drive.
Thanks.

[Screwy]

I spent $18,000 on my MQ

You must have wasted a heap somewhere

I've spent less than 10,000 on mine and that includes the original purchase price......

Its had a .....
350 fitted, 5spd box fitted, SOA, 35" BFG muddies fitted with a spare set of 38"TSL's for the mud, custom interior, resprayed, and powersteering fitted aswell....... and I'm still under the 10grand mark !!!

I cant see how anyone could spend $18,000 on an MQ

quite easily when you buy bits for it to improve it from an allrounder to a rockcrawler....

a pair of air lockers fitter is over $2500.... gearbox change with rock hoppers theres another $2500.... big tyres not just baby 35s..... another $3000.... PLUS all the crap i have in mine that u have done to yours as well puts me over 20,000..... very easy to do

[rochrd]

there ya go, ova 20k spent, top rig by the way.
like to c what u got for 10k!!!!!!!!!
as long as ur happy with it and it gets where u got 2 go.
i started from ground up, tyres,2'' rhino shackels, new brakediscs, drums, calapors, all new steering arms, td steering dampner, pwr steering, td adj shockers all round, 4k on motor, forged pistons, bored balanced and blue printed, everything under the bonnet is new. 3 core radator, starter motor, alternater, dizzy, carby, wiring in engine bay, thormo fans, all new hoses and belts, thermoste and water pump, the list goes on. got recpits for everything. there all genuine nissan parts.
thats nothing, just cant be stuffed typing everything.
i belive, when u do something, do it proply or dont do it at all.
there enough half hearted jobs out there, but not mine, im proud of my rig and all thats been done to her.
u spent 10k thats great 4 u. u pay for what u get.

[Screwy]

well i was under 10,000 and i had spring over and V8....

what pushed me all the way up to $20,000 was the ute swap all the chassis and suspension mods, the air lockers gearbox/transfer and rockhoppers and the air compressor setup and the tyres and all the tube work for the cage and tray.

screw

[gone fishin]

Just looking for info and pointers on fitting a 350 Chev into a SWB MQ currently running the L28 and 4 speed manual, I want to keep things simple so don't really want to worry about any fancy electrics to go with auto's etc.

Well then its a fairly straight forward conversion then with no major mods needed. The main drama will be higher than desired engine revs @ 100kph and this will depend largely on the tyre size you run, I'd strongly suggest 33"s as the smallest tyre to use, 35"s would be better again and so would fitting a 5spd box instead of the 4 spd for the higher gearing.....

The only clearance issue body wise will depend on the rockercover choice you make ...... the high covers will rub and be a bytch when installing the engine, they will hit hard on the little bracket that holds the steel clutchline to rubber line fitting ( this can be moved easilly tho ). No firewall mods are needed when dealing with the L28 motor arrangement, however if theres a SD33 fitted then its hammerin time !!

I have an adaptor kit for the 4 spd.

made by whom ????
CRS ( Castlemaine RodShop )
Marks Addaptors
or Dellow.
Each kit requires a differant setup and will give differing results as to the ease of fitting and general overall suitability.....
there are little "tricks" that you'll miss out on so ASK before you find yaself having to pull the V8 out yet again to alter some insignificant part..... did you know that the L28 4spd box input shaft will need modding ??? ....... it WILL hit the back of the 350 crank if left std... !!!!


What Clutch pak are you planing to use ????
Again there are several choices so be wide awake before selecting the bits or you'll be spending another w/end replacing the clutchplate !!
Best combination is red or blue V8 holden flywheel drilled to suit the chev crank, the V8 holden heavy duty towing pressureplate, & the clutch plate from a 99 model TDI Patrol ..... this combination WILL NOT FAIL !
WARNING : do NOT use the lightened flywheels ie: from the VN series up..... they crack far to easily when river xings happen !

Does the MQ require a slim line starter or will a normal starter fit

This will depend entirely on ya budget and the headers you choose to fit as to the "desired clearance" you'll obtain ay the end.
Block huggers made by Castlemaine Electricts will allow heaps of room in the engine bay and are the best choice by far, they clear the large snout, small snout and hitorque starters easily
Standard cast iron manifolds will also clear all the starters well BUT they create dramas with exhaust pipe direction specifically on the drivers side of the block ( some twit @ nissan put a drive shaft there !!! )
RAMS HORN manifolds are excelent if you wish to run a cast manifold, unfortunately they are as common as rocking horse shyte .... good luck here !!!

footnote: the hitorque starters draw far less current than the old style long or short snout chev starters which inturn leaves a far healthier battery for winching

can the L28 radiator be retained as they are a fairly big unit as is.

Yes ........ but ....
the inlet and outlet size on the radiator needs to be made bigger tho to suit the std top & bottom radiator hoses that suit the chev
Most radiator shops will have the correct sizes availible for purchase.

TIPS / WARNINGS :
1/
If you have a powersteering unit there WILL BE & I repeat WILL BE clearance issues between the bottom radiator hose and the end of the pwr steering box if you dont plan the upsized outlet location perfectly. This can be overcome by using large copper elbows which are available from plumbing supply shops.
2/
Count the number of cores you have in the radiator ...... THEY VARY from model to model and whether the rig has aircon or not fitted from factory The choice radiator is the one that had aircon, it has the highest number of cores of all the variant radiators.
The core number varys from 34 cores up to 48 core units.

I am running a 60mm body lift and the current motor, g/box assy has also been raised to tuck up more.

How much ??????
If the engine/box alignment has been raised to the same as the lift then the std SD33 diesel radiator cowl will line up perfectly with the chev waterpump fan assembly

I'm assuming that you'll be running the engine fan inconjunction with a 16" Davis Craig thermo fan ( best, cheapest & simplest combination overall ). Some members have chosen the twin AU phord shyte thermo setups instead and havent faulted em that I'm aware of, personally tho they didnt work anywhere near well enough to warrant the expense..... but then I dont pussy mine around !

I presume engine mounts will be easy enough to make up.
any info is greatly appreciated.

Engine mounts are kinder stuff !
The electrical side is dead set simple stuff, should take less than 3 hours to do, dont forget to wire back in the ballist resistor if using a points type dizzy or you'll be replacing points and condensor every 3000K's or when ya deep in the scrub ....

A HEI dizzy is well worth its weight in gold ! ..... just set n forget !

The std nissan oil and temp senders can easilly be re-threaded to suit the chev block

There is a heap more info in the MQ/MK Bible on this exact conversion


Kingy

G'day V8PATROL.

I'm not sure what brand of adaptor it is, supposedly a mates brothers has 1 i can buy, but until I get it in my own hands I'll beleive him then.
The 60mm body lift and enigne lift to suit can easily be changed, the motor and gearbox was only raised to give a flat under carriage as we have also removed the front cross member.
It is currently running 33's, but when the motor goes in it will be on 35's, I only do 10km's a day to and from work, so revs aren't a major issue, and down the track it will most likely be trailered if needed.
the current L28 has electronic igniton so i will be setting up the same in the 350 dizzy.
What adaptor kit do you reckon is best if this other 1 doesn't come through.
The 4 speed isn't a certainty, so I can always change it to a 5 speed if needed, but will most likely keep it as a 4 speed as I have a spare 1 as well.
Thermo's etc, I will decide when it progresses that far, my neighbour is very switched on when it comes to these motors in cars but hasn't ever had much to do wtih 4B's.
Thanks for the input.

[V8Patrol]

I'm not sure what brand of adaptor it is, supposedly a mates brothers has 1 i can buy, but until I get it in my own hands I'll beleive him then.

Ask him what make it is !!!
Different manafacturers use different things to get around "problem spots", they also have different things in the "kits" themselves..... some come with engine mounts whilst others rely on you being able to make ya own for example.
The age of the kit may well have a big effect on what you'll need if the kit is not supplied as a complete kit, for example the Marks kit ( early version) utilised an extended snout for the input shaft...... its no-longer available as a "spare part " .....

The 60mm body lift and enigne lift to suit can easily be changed, the motor and gearbox was only raised to give a flat under carriage as we have also removed the front cross member.

The only reason I asked this was to acertain whether the engine fan could be out of alignment with the radiator thus stopping the std diesel fan shroud being used if your installing an engine fan.

It is currently running 33's, but when the motor goes in it will be on 35's, I only do 10km's a day to and from work, so revs aren't a major issue, and down the track it will most likely be trailered if needed.

The 35's will suit it much better, the only issue here now will be the crawl ability in 1st gear.
The diesel box comes in two ratios for the 1st gear, the boxes are for either the turbo or non turbo box and one has a lower 1st gear that suits the 35's better ....... but as you've said .... a later conversion if needed.

The 4 speed isn't a certainty, so I can always change it to a 5 speed if needed, but will most likely keep it as a 4 speed as I have a spare 1 as well.

the current L28 has electronic igniton so i will be setting up the same in the 350 dizzy.

Excelent choice !!

What adaptor kit do you reckon is best if this other 1 doesn't come through.

I personaly perfer the CRS ( Castlemaine RodShop ) belhousing over the others, this is based purely on strength alone.
The CRS "kit" is also far cheaper than the others !
Warning: the CRS "kit" comes only as a belhousing and a spigot bush .... thats all !!!, you WILL have to make the enginemounts.

Thermo's etc, I will decide when it progresses that far, my neighbour is very switched on when it comes to these motors in cars but hasn't ever had much to do wtih 4B's.
Thanks for the input.

kewl


Aircon or powersteering fitted ??????

Did you count the number of cores in ya radiator ?????


Kingy

[kc_ksom]

OR!!!!!

You could just buy mine already engineered and on LPG for $3500, ready to go... see my for sale add...

Price was 5500. will take 3500 without the wheels, I will throw some 31's on 2nd hand.... what ya reckon.....
Casey

[gone fishin]

OR!!!!!

You could just buy mine already engineered and on LPG for $3500, ready to go... see my for sale add...

Price was 5500. will take 3500 without the wheels, I will throw some 31's on 2nd hand.... what ya reckon.....
Casey

yer but the freight would kill me, I was going to see what you wanted to part some of it out, but again the freight would cost too much.

[jessie928]

i have a MQ engineered with 350 chev, LPG, bullbar, towbar, rollbar, jerrycan holder, complete car, just minus the engine
1000$

in sydney

[gone fishin]

Aircon or powersteering fitted ??????

Did you count the number of cores in ya radiator ?????


Kingy

Yes I have genuine power steering, so I will need to look into that side of things, no I don't have air cond, but I haven't had a chance to look at the radiator yet.

[MKPatrolGuy]

i have a MQ engineered with 350 chev, LPG, bullbar, towbar, rollbar, jerrycan holder, complete car, just minus the engine
1000$

in sydney

LWB or SWB?

[V8Patrol]

Yes I have genuine power steering, so I will need to look into that side of things

The drama will be the bottom hose fitting....... with the larger bottom hose that the chev uses the radius of the rubber is larger than the std nissan hose and as a result it rubs on the end of the pwr steering box if a straight out outlet is used on the radiator like the std nissan one.

This can easilly be overcome by fitting an inch and 3/4 copper elbow instead of the straight outlet. There is a genuine rubber hose that fits a V8 ford car that will fit perfectly between the chev water pump and the Nissan radiator if the copper elbow is used instead of the straight out nissan outlet..

Kingy

[V8Patrol]

like to c what u got for 10k!!!!!!!!!

http://www.outerlimits4x4.com/PHP_Modul ... php?t=7890
My appologies if the pics arent working.

u spent 10k thats great 4 u. u pay for what u get.

No, I've spent LESS than $10,000 on mine, thats probably where the differance is .... I do all my own work.
Juddy ( the panel beater that sprayed Jeffs ute that shyte green {sorry Jeff I still hate the color }) also has a 350 chev and a SOA, 35's and a sweet black respray etc done to his rig...... he has spent less than $6000.
As for "u pay for what u get" well I'm more than happy with my "allrounder", after all I'm 100% confident in its offroad abilities, the way it tows whether its a tri-axle trailer with 2ton onboard across 2 state borders on a fairly regular basis or draging Jeffs ute back here from Melbourne to be prepared for the continuing conversion you now see......
I know when I hit the key in the morning that I will get to Cobar tommorow night without a hickup.

I can see exactly where Jeff has spent the extra dollars to reach the level he has with is rig and it is without doubt one of a very few MQ's that has been modded to this level if not perhaps the only one that has reached such a high standard in this country, & yes I have been involved with the buildup right from the very start up to the ute conversion, after which Jeff has taken over much of the work himself.
To obtain such a level the dollars MUST be spent but for those of us that choose to own "allrounders" then $10,000 is pretty-well the benchmark unless your a 'chequebook wheeler', you know the ones..... claim they did it all when really they just hand over the cheque to the real mechanic / fabricator in which case spending $20,000 wouldnt be hard at all

Kingy

[jessie928]

i have a MQ engineered with 350 chev, LPG, bullbar, towbar, rollbar, jerrycan holder, complete car, just minus the engine
1000$

in sydney

LWB or SWB?

Its a SWB

[MKPatrolGuy]

i have a MQ engineered with 350 chev, LPG, bullbar, towbar, rollbar, jerrycan holder, complete car, just minus the engine
1000$

in sydney

LWB or SWB?

Its a SWB

4 speed or 5 speed?

[pongo]

Wanna swap ya MQ for a 81 model jag that is fully engineered for a LPG chev and t400. Ill just have to remove my chev first


Cheers

[pongo]

or the wife's 4runner on LPG . Seriously i can do this one if theres cash adj my way . I dont have any cash due to needing rego in 2 weeks otherwise yours'd already be sold

Cheers

[cloughy]

To obtain such a level the dollars MUST be spent but for those of us that choose to own "allrounders" then $10,000 is pretty-well the benchmark unless your a 'chequebook wheeler', you know the ones..... claim they did it all when really they just hand over the cheque to the real mechanic / fabricator in which case spending $20,000 wouldnt be hard at all

Kingy