Stevesk88

Has anyone herd of doing this? I want to swap in a bobcat motor into my 86. After working on bobcat skid steers it would seem as though this would work, they're about the same size as the 22. And have about the same power. Any ideas? I think this would be a really cool diesel alternative.

technojunkie

Who is the manufacturer of the engine and what model is it? I know that the Cummins 4bt is a popular engine for construction equipment and folks like to swap those in to full size trucks. A little less available is the b3.3t (which is 3.3L as opposed to the 4bt's 3.9L).

The 3.3 is much better sized to fit a compact truck, and is 500lbs as opposed to the 700lbs of the 4bt.

snobdds

I have a Kubota skidsteer with a diesel engine it. It only pushes about 70hp, and that is big for a Skidsteer. The 22re is about 112hp from the factory.

If I remember right, bobcat was right around the same HP ratings.

I think it is too small of an engine to put into a truck. Good luck though, I would be interested to watch this...

Stevesk88

I have herd of that conversion just lately, the cummins that is. I sounds like a pretty cool swap but i'm wanting to do something out there. Some of the larger Bobcats i've worked on have had a little more than a 100 horses. It doesn't seem like a good idea for a daily driver or anything, being that there are so many hills around here haha, unless gearing was done. But for a one purpose truck it would seem that a bobcat engine would have more tourque than our re's. Just not sure how a fly wheel and clutch would would adapt.

SoCal4Running

There's a lot of 4 cylinder diesel being "banned" out here in California that are used in construction equipment.

My company is retrofitting our 30+ machines to the new Teir 4 emissions.

I would kill to get my hands on one of the 4BT's or JD Powerteck 4.5L's that are being removed.

I don't know where these motors are going but do know that the shop that is retrofitting for us is doing it with grant money. No charge to us.

Transplanter

Even if it made enough power,driveability will be terrible with an industrial injection pump designed to run at one rpm and a low one at that. The 3.3 isn't made by cummins at all and is a pos. My brother is a mech for the county and they have tons of problems with them.

technojunkie

There's a lot you can do with the pumps if you have the commitment/skill. There are lots of b3.3t swaps into land rovers and FJs that do just fine as daily drivers. Same with 4bt... It's not easy or cheap I'll be the first to admit; but it has been done successfully.

Steve you're right about the torque, that's the real benefit to diesel over gas. If you want to tread new ground you obviously need to ensure the engine you're considering will fit your engine compartment and that your front end can handle the weight. Beyond that you have a lot of fab work to do and will need to learn a lot about injection pumps or make friends with someone who does.

The real question is, how much project do you want?

westjohns yota

i can almost see this working, yes there would be a ton of fabing to make it work, you would need to make a trans adapter, and ensure the trans you get can handle the power of it, also how would wiring work? theres alot you would have to come up with

Stevesk88

Well i do have the resources to do this. I work for a napa and my boss is a deisel knowlege base. Know's where to get the right parts and know's how to make this work. After discussing this with him he says that the 4bt would be okay but it weighs alot. He said a better swap would be the 2.8L DOHC deisel from the jeep liberty. Or a vw diesel being that they're lighter and more avalible. Really going to do some more searching on the liberty swap.
The reasoning i'm asking about all this is cause i'm doing my solid axle swap soon so the next step after that's going to be the diesel swap.

technojunkie

Wiring would be trivial assuming a mechanical diesel. Alt->batt, Batt->starter, and fuel cutoff solenoid. And the w56 and r150/151 trannies have all been successfully used for 4/5 cylinder conversions so I wouldn't be overly concerned there.

5runner

search 4bt swaps that is what most skid steers are it is a the same as the 5.7 cummings in the dodge just missing 2 cylinders and yes there are great motors but a little price so if u can get a good deal on one the do it!

PowerstrokeJoe

Actually 99% of the skid steers out now run Kubota engines. The only ones I know that run the 4bt are the Case ones and I am pretty sure they are running IVECO's now. Cat runs its own engine for now but when Tier4 final hits they too will be using Kubota engines too. The thing about using an engine from a skid is the biggest skid out right now is the 299C Cat and its rated at 99hp. The Largest skid ever built was the 963 Bobcat and it came with either a Perkins or a John Deere rated at 105hp. I think you are going to want more power than that. I'm not going to argue that the 4bt is great engine, but it is also darn heavy for its power out put. People who have them also think they are worth a fortune. If you really wanted to go hog wild I've always thought it would be cool to drop a VT275 Navistar V6 into one. They aren't too hard to find and produce a ton of power. Its just a thought. I'm not trying to discourage you just putting some stuff out there

SoCal4Running

I was looking for one a while ago for a CUCV.

The best deals I could find were auctions on older bread delivery trucks.
Could get one for around 1500.00 then.

Team420

I've been thinking about a 4cyl mitsu diesel from a 24' box truck... they are pretty easy to find around here, at reasonable prices. Plenty of power for a 4runner, and would prolly get decent mpg's as well

SoCal4Running

Talked to our mechanic today.
He said all the Cummins have to be destroyed.
They actually have to take a torch and damage (cut a hole in it) the block to where it can not be fixed then call a State Emissions Inspector to come out and sign off on it.

I am at a loss for words why the state would do this? I understand that they might not be the most green engine but why cant we use them in our trucks. It would double or triple our fuel economy!

technojunkie

It has to be the same madness that was behind cash for clunkers.... completely gut the availability on the secondary market. The greenies love it, the manufacturers love it, the banks love it... it's just us poor schlubs that could actually put this stuff to use that are left in the cold.

SoCal4Running

Agree 100%

My small company is turning in about 25 Cummins 4BT's with each less than 5,000 hours on them.

I am almost to the point of being mad about this.