Altough a petrol engine is cheap enought, Palawan tricycles would be more fun with a diesel engine. Maybe that 400cc single-cylinder Kubota used in tricycles in India could be a good match...

Replaced the turbo of an Isuzu Crosswind this afternoon. Throwing a twin-scroll with ceramic-coated hot carcass into something so old-school as the Crosswind might sound weird, but it reduced the visible smoke belching measured thru a Ringelmann chart at any RPM range, even before the injection pump tuning that followed it.

Disassembled a JDM LoveLife Corolla today, with the 3C engine, automatic transmission and 4WD. I felt pity for that car, because of its not so usual configuration, but its driveline and wiring harness are going to get a glorious future into a RAV-4 soon.

The only good thing I could get in Singapore this time were some brand-new Garrett twin-scroll turbochargers that might be a great upgrade for Toyota 2.5D-4D non-VGT engines. I might confess I'm more favorable to twin-scrolls wastegateds than single-scroll VGTs for the dependability.

Singapore is a beautiful place, but the anti-diesel mindset embraced by many people there is pointless. They are more expensive to purchase, but still worth more than a hybrid. People who claim about the environmental benefit of hybrids but dispose their cars when they're 10 year-old should remember that a hybrid has a higher manufacturing footprint.

I've recently took a ride in a multicab repowered with a surplus Kubota D900 engine out of a refrigerated box truck. I knew it was usual in Cambodia, but never seen that in the Philippines before.

Fitting a 4HF1, a turbocharger and a water-to-air intercooler into a surplus American Ford E-350 DRW ambulance is not so hard as trying to make a 6-cylinder to find its way there, but it's far from being an easy job.

Power-to-weight ratio in small stern-drive boats is not so exciting. I don't understand why those 2-cylinder Yanmar and its Chinese rip-offs are still used for that matter, they should be restricted for the stationary usage they were initially intended for. Might be still OK for a kuliglig but on boats the dead weight is even more problematic. The cheapest is not everytime the best, there are many 4-cylinder engines that are not so heavy compared to the 2-cylinder stationary Yanmars, even though in certain cases displacing the double of them. I've seen the TDI engines from Audi being also available for marine purposes in other places, and due to the modular engine designs from the Volkswagen Group it woldn't be so hard to get them made in China too.

All around the world, people been saying asbestos cause cancer. Canada forbids asbestos usage locally, altough exports a great amount of all the asbestos used worldwide alongside Russia. It's still the most cost-effective material for thermal insulation under extreme heat, being great fort gaskets in general. I'm not afraid to use it to make gaskets in general and using scraps to make EGR blank plates. Using dust-filtering mask when cutting the asbestos pieces decreases the risk of cancer, altough it's usually neglected. I always carry one, in spite of the jokes that I use it to hide my nose deformed after a jeepney crash. And that jeepney got lots of asbestos, at the clutch disc, brake pads, gaskets, and under the body to reduce exhaust heat radiation to the cab...

This week I've blanked the EGR of a Peugeot 5008 with that eHDi engine, and its fuel-efficiency bumped from 17kmpl to nearly 20.

I've once been in Brazil when I was younger, in 2001 when I was still 17 years-old. I spent a few days in Porto Alegre that time, and I still want to come back there someday. Today the people back there might be enjoying their chimarrão tea, affectionally also called matte, and eating inasal to celebrate one of the most beautiful holidays I've ever known. In September 20, an entire Southern province of Brazil, the Rio Grande del Sur, celebrate a day devoted to their rural traditions, which settled the local cultural base, and the most important aspect to note is the value they devote to family, friendship and faith in God. That's basically what the world needs today, that good feeling which bring people together and is very strong in Rio Grande del Sur.

EGR deletes are controversial, but they do enhance the engine reliability and fuel-efficiency. Cleaning a clogged intake manifold of an Audi TDI really sucks. It's hard to overcome the check-engine light without an ECM reflashing after a complete EGR delete, so I kept the EGR valve assembly there, just blanked it with asbestos.

Only in the Philippines we can find a Chevy Tahoe roaming around with a 4JB1 and a manual gearbox to replace a boat-anchor petrol V8 and a slushbox. No speed king anymore, but still runs good and the fuel cost is decreased without the safety harm of LPG.

Cummins: might it challenge Isuzu at a leadership position in the market?

Cummins is beloved by many guys who remember it as the Dodge Ram's engine, a maximum point of the Amerikano truck style, and also has some good market in Europe due to joint-ventures with Fiat S.p.A. to co-develop engines for Iveco medium-duty trucks and Case/FiatAllis tractors, and New Holland tractors too. But now, for the Asian markets, its joint-venture with Foton in China is a possibility to increase its regional market share. With the F-blocks, the 2.8L and 3.8L badged as ISF for vehicle applications, it covers a pretty wide power range for mid-power engines. Maybe only the sophistication of the electronic controls might still be a barrier to get it more widespread for other applications in the Philippines, altough there are already standalone QSF-series versions targeted primarily to stationary and industrial applications. The gear-driven valvetrain and OHV heads push for a compact layout, easy to fit into tighter engine bays, and weight-saving design features make it easy to use in a wide range of repowerings that other engines with suitable power ratings could be deemed a boat anchor. Isuzu is still well regarded in the Philippines, where almost every jeep is fitted with either a C240 or a 4JB1, but maybe in a short to mid time Cummins can challenge Isuzu. It might be time for Isuzu to bring the standalone versions of the 4JJ1-TC already available in the United States as a counter-challenge to Cummins.

Lunch time. With a George Foreman grill I collect the fat from the meats and can use it as a feedstock from homebrewed biodiesel. Animal fat-based biodiesel is usually thicker and with a higher energy content, with enhanced lube properties too, making it more suitable to the older engines.

It was a nice stay in South Africa, but it's time to go back to the Philippines. I might come back again, just not sure about when I'm gonna do it.

Big Cam, the engine, the legend

Today was a busy day, but working on a Cummins NTC350 is always a pleasure. It was mounted on a Ford Louisville bobtail with a 10-speed Eaton transmission. I'm not really skilled on how to shift gears in a big rig, but also maneuvered it in the lot. Had to replace its filters (air, oil and fuel) and to patch a leaky oil pan, which were the only items needing a major attention.

Just pulled a 5-cylinder VM Motori 3.1L engine out of a Jeep Grand Cherokee. Gotta be replaced with a freshly overhauled Isuzu 4BC2 for enhanced reliability. Altough lacks a turbocharger, one pulled out of a Komatsu engine is gonna be retrofitted into the Isuzu.

That was a busy week, the owner of that Lumina was really tired of feeding that V8 on petrol. Fuel efficiency increased with the 2.7L J2 replacing the 6.0L Chevy V8. If it couldn't keep 9kmpl on road traffic, now it does 12kmpl in city and around 14 on road. It was positively possible to keep the stock gauges and passive theft deterrent by converting mechanical input signal from the alternator pulley into electronic signal with emulators attached to the stock ECM so all the electronics work as they were supposed to do. Just the anti-lock brakes required some major work to get rid of the vacuum boost.

After disassembling a wrecked Kia Pregio yesterday, today is going to be a busy day. Even though I'm not really sure about the owner of a Chevrolet Lumina ute who claimed to be interested in the engine for a swap into his pickup, there's always a good demand for a recently-overhauled J2 engine anyway.

Isuzu C223 engines are nowadays pretty rare, altough a few ones can be still found in operating conditions. Well, now it's time to replace a timing belt, tensioner and pulleys of a C223 from a mobile electric power generator.

There was a long time since I messed with a petrol engine before. Replacing an ignition coil, spark cables and fitting a stator to replace the archaic distributor into a Ford 302W, but the good old 4-barrel carburator is going to be retained. The engine lays into the bay of a Mazda ambulance.

It's a very strange feeling to build a petrol engine for a bakkie originally diesel-powered, but that's what I'm gonna do right now. Just a few people can wholeheartedly tell they enjoy a Mazda R2 with its 64hp rating into a B2200, and even less ones would be confident to boost it when they want more power instead of trading it for something more powerful. Well, it was about time to get the tired unit out of a '93 Mazda overhauled after 20 years and some 600,000km of good services, but the owner turned out with a quite surprisingly idea to drop a Ford Cologne V6 with a freshly re-sleeved block, a pair of Weber 450cfm 2-bbl carburators with spring-activated 2nd stage instead of the vacuum-activated setup, and a distributorless electronic ignition. Crankcase breathers might be open instead of PCV-ported. I was expecting to just refurbish the old R2, but sometimes things go another way.

best engines for a vintage Ford full-size pickup repowering

American trucks have an unique style that is beloved by much people, but the engines are not the most fuel-saver ones. Having the engine replaced by a diesel unit may solve that matter, but finding the right engine for the vehicle is not so simple. Many options available, from 3-cylinder agricultural engines to V8 turbochargeds often larger than the petrol engine intended to be replaced.

Deutz 912w (indirect injection), 912 and 913 (direct injection) can be found in versions with 3, 4, 5 or 6 cylinders, with turbo available for the 4 and 6-cylinder units. These are still enjoyed because of the air cooling, saving space and weight from a radiator setup.

Perkins 4.203, 4.236 and 6.357 are old-school powerplants, but still well-known for a legendary reliability. On a sidenote, the 6.357 was designed to fit easily into the engine bay of any vehicle fitted with a stereotypical American V8 from the 50s, including passenger cars in spite of their tighter engine bays.

Mercedes-Benz has a wide variety, from the die-hard OM616 and its 5-cylinder OM617 version, which are still reasonable for the F-100/150, to many low-speed units which are still no overkill to the frame. OM904 is a good option for the F-250, still able to retain a honorable towing capacity.

From Nissan, TD-series and ZD-series are other options to consider. TD27 for the F-100/150, with the TD42 still able to move the F-250, benefitted from its size comparable to the MWM, a Brazilian engine which had been available for the '98-'05 RHD F-250 in Australia and Southern Africa. ZD30 can be found in naturally-aspirated and turbocharged versions, and in spite of its DOHC head it can fit easily even into tight spaces, making it easier to retain some comfort features such as a high-capacity aircon.

Isuzu is another strong player in the diesel field. Nearly any engine which was available for the NKR and NPR can be used in a Ford full-size pickup. Even the slow 4BA1, once the standard for jeepneys, or the 4JB1, are enought for the F-100/150, providing a satisfactory performance even for a brand-new F-150, and altough it's quite risky they also work into the F-250. If it can move an overloaded jeepney, might not be that hard to move the F-250 actually. Anyway, I would not recommend anything smaller than the 4BC2 for the F-250. 4HF1 is another great powerplant for a full-size Ford.

The Ford Fiera used an older carburator-fed version of the Endura-E 1.3 petrol engine that was used in the Ford Bantam bakkie, that also had the option for the Endura-D 1.8 diesel while the Fiera had an outsourced Isuzu C-240. Ford didn't invest so much on light diesel engines before as it does now. But a truck without a diesel engine can be at last a half-truck, not a real truck. Even an ego-hauler F-350 with a petrol V8 or that boat-anchor V10 that has less torque than nearly any 4-cylinder heavy-duty turbodiesels above 4-litre is less worth than a non-turboed Toyota Dyna.

It's always a pleasure to come back in Namibia. A nice place to perform experiences with fish-based fuels and lube oils, by the way. I have already seen some people stuffing differentials with raw fish livers, but they deteriorate quite quickly so I don't advocate for that, a better way is to extract the liver oil, filter it properly and then it can be used to lube gears, including older non-electronic automatic gearboxes, or as a feedstock for biodiesel. Some people might be thinking I gone crazy for being favorable to use it into automatic gearboxes, but the first ATF fluids were based on whale oil. Anyway, fish liver oils can also be directly blended with regular diesel fuel as I have done a few times.

Semi-bonnetted puller vans became quite an obsession to me, there was simply no rear-driven van to keep up with the Fiat Ducato on the open road. After watching what a Ducato can do with the smaller 2.3L engine, I don't understand why there are some American nationals skeptical about the 3.0L that goes in their local version, the Ram ProMaster. Maybe it's not amerikano enought as it would be with a Cummins or a Caterpillar under the bonnet, but the only feasible Cummins engines to bolt into that are made in China anyway, the ISF-series. Sure the Ducato is not a beauty contest winner with its froggy front fascia, but it sounds good enought to get the jobs done, and it's more comfortable than the average forward-controlled vans. Perfect match for the ambulance segment with its full-width body.

front-driven vans have a pleasurable ride

Took a ride in a Fiat Ducato semi-bonnetted van. That 2.3L Multijet turbodiesel really feels stout, could be a good replacement for nearly every petrol V6 altough its 120hp might be portrayed as underpowered at a first sight. Front wheel drive in a van might sound weird for many in the Philippines, but it doesn't perform so badly. Have also seen a handful of those Opel Vivaro mid-size vans available in Singapore, larger than the Zafira formerly available in the Philippines, seems like Southern Africans became more open-minded in regard of commercial vehicles and its drivelines. Even though their layout is not so smart regarding the overall vehicle extension as a forward-control van they get benefitted from the lower deck height, which in passenger vans increases the comfort and in cargo vans the cargo volume is higher due to the lower frame profile since there's no need to overcome driveshaft clearance. Car-like cornering is also possible due to the front wheel drive, enhancing stability. Our driver got a Volksie (as the T3 Volkswagen vans are affectionally called in South Africa) for his family use, which only advantage over the Ducato is still the ability to cope with rougher terrain in cross-country trips due to the weight balance and independent rear suspension, but wouldn't miss a chance to get its 5-cylinder petrol guzzler replaced by a Multijet...

EGR bypass in a Chevy Trailblazer today, 2WD with manual gearbox and 2.5 engine. A hose and clamps to bypass the cooler, then removed, with blanking plates around the EGR valve body which couldn't be took apart because of the signal input required by the ECU. Turbocharger spools up quicker now.

Keeping a Fiat Strada on the road

I've worked on a Fiat Strada for the first time yesterday. A nice little bakkie, as the locals refer to pickups in South Africa. Unfortunately we didn't have this one in the Philippines, but is a good 3/4-tonner which is slightly bigger than second-hand Japanese multicabs but more comfortable and stable, which would be a desirable feature to cope with hilly roads. The 1.7TD engine with 70hp feels more responsive than its power could suggest, and is related to the 1.3 naturally-aspirated which was available in the Fiat Uno once assembled in the Philippines.

Replacing and hooking up the glowplugs of the old Hilux was a must today, and now it fires up quickly. An upgrade to Cummins-styled grid-heater is not discarded, because it's deemed more reliable and longer-lasting.

This time the job could be performed quickly. The 4JB1 ended inside a '98 Jeep Grand Cherokee that originally had a 318cid V8. The automatic gearbox was too slippy, not deemed worth to keep, got replaced by a manual out of a rolled-over Isuzu Rodeo. There is still some wiring work left to be done, but it's gonna be arranged with signal converters that will allow the stock OBD-II controllers to give input for the electronics. Even the ABS brakes are fully-operational, but the vacuum booster was bypassed and now is gone.

It had been a long time ago since I've driven a Toyota Hilux with the 2L engine. I used to like the L-series Toyota engines because they fare well using waste cooking oil as fuel. Glowplugs on the one I driven were not hooked up, so cold start-up required some sort of lighting fluid to pre-heat it. I was scared as hell, but it worked.

Dismantling an old skidsteer tractor last night I got a good surprise to find out it had a 4JB1. This little jewel of the Japanese crown might find its way into a Jeep as usual, but this time a Grand Cherokee instead of a Wrangler.

EGR bypass in a Corolla with the 2.0D-4D turbodiesel, not related to the old 2C. Just bypassed the cooling fluid lines and blanked the valve body, but didn't delete it. Had to clean the intake manifold which had lots of soot deposits starting to clog. A water+meth injection is still considered to come, and might still keep NOx in standard levels or even reduce them more than the EGR could ever do. Plus, the combustion will get enhanced not just due to the absence of EGR but because of the water+meth too.

Finally figured out to get functional gauges for the Explorer. Replaced the mechanism of all the gauges with mechanical ones, just retained the original gauges for appearance with the current setup behind it. The fuel level was the hardest to figure out, but a mechanical level meter out of a rusty old tractor was the best solution readily available.

repowering a Ford Explorer again after a long time

Been replacing the engine and gearbox of a '97 Ford Explorer in order to run on diesel. Last time I did it was in '07 with an older model. This time a Kia J2 engine was chosen, out of a Kia K2700 alongside the starter and powe steering pump mounting brackets. The alternator came out of a Toyota Hiace. Initial plans were to retain the automatic gearbox, but due to electronic controls input required for it to work properly it was soon pulled out of the project and been replaced by a 4-speed manual transmission which had been laying around the garage of the house of the rig's owner, from a Chevrolet Ranger 2500, which was probably the source for the brake master-cylinder too, since the OEM vacuum-assisted from the Explorer wouldn't receive any vacuum input from the diesel engine. A different pedal assembly to accomodate the clutch was still easier than messing with the electronics of the automatic transmission, and the non-assisted master-cylinder is still lighter than the OEM, and doesn't either decrease reliability of the brakes or take power from the engine as an auxiliary vacuum pump would. The only problem was the anti-lock feature, which couldn't work anymore without the electronic input, but this problem was solved replacing all those sensors with some hydraulic pressure relief valves I bought in China. Positively, being the RHD version of the Explorer which was aimed at Australia, United Kingdom and South Africa, with a central console holding a parking brake lever and the shifter instead of using the pedal-actuated parking brake and steering-mounted shifter from the LHD, it was easier to assemble the manual shifter. It runs, but the instrument cluster needs to be converted for mechanical input, and a new assembly is required for the aircon compressor.

Change of plans, dealing with the electronic gearbox controllers was never so close to the ease I were expecting, altough the torque converter stall is the biggest problem. Might get a manual gearbox swapped along the J2 into the Explorer. This is not so bad at all, because reliability will be enhanced due to the absence of electronics to keep it running. The control knobs for the glowplugs and the killer pin are now bolted to the dashboard, to be definitely hooked up once the engine and the new gearbox are there. Well, the gearbox will not be exactly a brand new unit. The most probable unit will be a 4-speed already laying around because we did not bring the 5-speed from the Kia K2700 donor truck.

On a sidenote, almost got wounded while disassembling the aircon pipes, the R134 gas is dangerous and can lead to freezing burns. People, be very careful when dealing with aircons.

Quite anxious to go to the next work. Something makes me feel like I got a good deal in some sets of M-ABS valves while I went to China in April, since the vehicle which is going to get a diesel repower is a '97 Ford Explorer, 2WD, automatic. That will be the first time I'll have to deal with an electronically-controlled gearbox, and I might admit it scares me a bit. I have already assembled automatic boxes already coupled to their diesel engines, pero this time it's a different deal, and even tough we can overcome any electronic malfunction torque converter stall ay difficult sa set up properly mo talaga.

Dumping egg whites at a leaky radiator is not the best solution, but sometimes the most unusual solutions are what have to be done. At least it's sealed for a while and can be properly repaired soon.

Dismantling a Kia K2700 and having to de-couple the engine from the gearbox got me wondering where is the engine gonna be thrown into. A hand-operated killer pin was also retrofitted at the pump to replace the electric cut-off solenoid, more reliable for extreme environmental conditions. After getting some chicken braai, corn, baked potato and a rooibos tea, we will do a quick test with waste cooking oil in the engine.

disassembling a rusty Toyota ambulance for an overhaul

The medical compartment was easily removed to be refurbished, which is going to take a bit longer, since it's going to get an aircon unit and being upgraded to advanced life support unit. The driving cab required to be entirely dismantled, sandblasted, some dents were cut off, then it was all primed before we could finally patch all the de-rusted body panels with Araldite glue and sheetmetal recycled from beer cans. The interior trim was not so bad, but it's going to be upgraded to improve the driver's comfort. 22R engine was pulled off and will be replaced by a Ford 3.0 V6 petrol. I would still rather get a diesel drivetrain, but it was not the preference of the patrons. What I was worrying about is the frame, altough it's not so badly damaged by all the years of service as I was afraid. I won't be able to follow the rest of the job getting done, since I'm going on the road again soon.

Cold-starting a Kia Pregio to be driven on waste frying oil is a hard task with worn-out glowplugs that need to be replaced soon. It's not even recommended to do that WD-40 trick (spraying WD-40 over the engine head and ignite it with a cigarette lighter) because the fumes would remain on the inside of the cab and the risk of it to caught fire. Our crazy driver shows me his alternative solution, a charcoal-fed beer-can stove.at the intake, just like a homemade equivalent to the Lucas ThermoStart pre-heater from the old Perkins 4.203 engines. Took a few minutes until it was hot enought, had to keep the key turned for other long 20 seconds or so, but it was then alive. With the cab heater bypassed due to a leaking heater core, some stout beer to help dealing with the cold weather left some more cans to be "recycled" in other "alternative" auto repairs.

South Africa

South Africa used to have a higher market share for large petrol engines, which now are pretty much outdated not just due to fuel consumption but also due to the lower reliability. V8 Land Rovers were more usual and still have some cult-following, but for sure they're now quite a shadow. I have even seen one which got the Rover 3.5 V8 replaced by a naturally-aspirated Isuzu 4JA1 from a wrecked Isuzu KB-250 (D-Max). Volkswagen Transporter vans were also popular, no wonder the rear-engined T3 lasted until 2002 with a 5-cylinder 2.6i engine unique to that market. No diesel for them, but the current front-engined Transporter is more usually found with the TDI. Old RHD Ford F-250 American CBU versions with the 4.9 straight-6 and 351W V8 are easier to find than a diesel version from the same vintage, but the '98-'05 ones made in Brazil got only a turbodiesel which looks like a TD42 from Nissan at a first sight, but has direct injection and overhead cam instead of the indirect injection with cam in block. I have heard about that engine in Australia, but haven't seen before. Next time I go to Brazil I might take a closer look at those engines.