For the love of a tractor engine: The life and times of the 18R-G

[ProjectDrift]

how much you want to spend, and what condition do you want it in i have a couple that i dont need.


cheers

well i originaly wanted the engine to put into my ra60 but i have been informed by "old_school_jap1" that it will not be a bolt straight in proccess so im still tossing up theidea at the moment.

does anyone know what would need to be done to fit an 18rg into an ra60 celica and estimated number of labour hours (so i can work out an approximate cost)

much appreciated, nick

[roadkill]

hI,

i could be wrong here, so correct me if so. But didn't the ra63 GT come out with the 18RGUE standard? I couldn't see that it would be difficult to put one in at all. That and i thought the rule of thumb was the 18r/20r/21r/22r were all fairly interchangeable..... I would anticipate that it would take you a day or two to drop it in.

Awaiting responses......

bEn

[Willofan]

There are things to consider before attempting this, like steering rack, what cross member and swaybar used for the conversion etc. A front sump 18RGUE could be used if there is room.

[o_man_ra23]

Main issue with 18R-G into RA6x is the position of the engine mounts. The earlier 18R's only had one pair of engine mount bosses on the block, which are what you would use to fit into RA2x, RA40 etc. However, the later blocks, often found in 18R-GUE's had an extra mounting boss per side, which gives a second position that the engine mounts can be bolted to. If you have a block with that third row of engine mounting bosses, then fitment to an RA6x is simple. An RA65 throttle cable should even fit the EFI of an 18R-GUE without modification, as the throttle bodies are in approximately the same position (Throttle cable and EFI fuel tank from the RA65 or RT142 Corona can be used in the RA60 for this purpose).

Simple changeout if you use the right parts. Oh, you will need EFI fuel lines and filter etc from the RA65, and you will have to move the battery to the passenger side. Of course, all that isn't an issue if you downgrade to carbies, then your battery position, fuel tank, lines and throttle cable should all work (will more than likely need to make a throttle cable bracket for the carbs, but that is only a minor issue).

Good luck.

EDIT: as per Willofan's post, you will need the front sump setup. I believe these came from Hiaces and RA63's. They can be found, I sent one to Witzl about 6 years ago.

[old_school_jap1]

Main issue with 18R-G into RA6x is the position of the engine mounts. The earlier 18R's only had one pair of engine mount bosses on the block, which are what you would use to fit into RA2x, RA40 etc. However, the later blocks, often found in 18R-GUE's had an extra mounting boss per side, which gives a second position that the engine mounts can be bolted to.

That's exactly what I told him. Are the later blocks rare? I don't think I've seen one.

[o_man_ra23]

I have one in my car at the moment (albiet with broken pistons)

I also had another once, which was front sumped, but had sat with water in the bores and was seized. So they are around.

[roadkill]

Hi,

this what my initial thought was of "extending" the internals of an 18rc/g oil pump to creat a higher volume pump



Looks like someone in japland had the idea before me and is now listed on yahoo japan here! though i think that $500 is a bit rich.

bEn

[Omegaman]

Hi,

this what my initial thought was of "extending" the internals of an 18rc/g oil pump to creat a higher volume pump

Looks like someone in japland had the idea before me and is now listed on yahoo japan here! though i think that $500 is a bit rich.

bEn

Is it possible to add the extra extension? Though the rod would have to be extended.
Hmm i have a spare also.. might check it out.

[roadkill]

Hi,

my initial though was to probably not worry about extending the rod. Just get the the inner gear dowelled in four spots and have the "extender" bit pressed onto it. Downside is it would have to be pretty much exact for it to work. Not terribly hard to get right with the right tools. As for the outer gear it wouldn't even have to be joined at all because of how the pump works. Can't see it being all that difficult at all tbh. Just wish i was a machinist and had access to the right tools

bEn

[Omegaman]

If you counld have the spacer re made wider or weld and 2nd one together.
Then spot weld and file the gears together, might work. Place the inner gear inside the outer for it to line up...
This is a simplictic look at making one, don't shoot me...

[roadkill]

Hi,

when i first looked at it a thought as simplistic as possible, hence why i'm convinced it would work. I still wanna try it.

bEn

[Omegaman]

taking into account rod extention, the only other factor should be the length.
Will it be too long for the sump. Maybe change the p/up?

[roadkill]

Hi,

if i were to do it it would only be about 10mm longer than the 18rg pump, worst case you would just bash the pickup strainer in. Abosulte worst case bash the sump.

bEn

[Unda Presha]

Hi Guys,

I have read back from the end of last years posts and you guys are passionate about these "tractor engines". To be honest I dont know anything about them except they are a tough motor. As stated previously we did run an almost stock motor in our turbocharged 4cyl altered.

Recently we have a bad run of breakages which started off with a cracked piston (still run 8.75 @ 149) without the stock piston breaking in half. We believe the pistons cracked because it touched a valve from valve bouncing. We changed over those pistons with another set of new stock pistons but on the first meeting we spun number 3 big end which then had that piston slapping the bottom of the head. We replaced all big end bearings and the very first pass the top of the piston let go and well the rod just went wherever it wanted. This stock motor rev'd to 8100rpm all day (of course with some valve bounce). We would launch the car at 7200rpm with 32psi boost, change gears at 8000rpm and go over the line at 8100rpm with 38psi boost. All this on a stock head gasket sprayed with Copper Coat.

I have photos on my web site with all the carnage if you want to have a look.

We are currently building a new stroker motor which should come around around 2.3litre I understand. We have knive edged a 22R crank, had it nitrided, shorten the front snout, machined the 18R block centre bearing, FJ20 turbo 91mm forged pistons and custom Pauter rods.

The head has had the chambers welded in to increase the compression. The cams are Ivan Tighe cams. The cam gears have been modified so we can adjust the cam timing to suit our requirements. We will be using a custom cometic gasket from WA at a cost of $150 plus freight.

The new turbo is a T04S so we are hoping for 650 to 700HP. We have made our own exhaust manifold and intake manifolds.

I have begun to add photos to my web site of the stroker build and I will add more as I go along.

If all goes well with putting all this together, we should be on track early to mid May for testing. With the weight of the car and HP, we are hoping to put this 2 valve into the 7sec range.

Good luck to all with your tough builds and we might see you at the track....

**The previous turbo set up is all for sale if you interested...it was originally fitted to a Corona before the previous owner put it into a altered.**

[ra_28]

I remember when he was selling the Corona because i went and looked at it over near moggill ferry and he showed me what he had done with the 18rg. That would have been 6 years ago.

Few things i'm interested in knowing who's doing the head gasket for you as i'm interested in one or two maybe three also. How long ago did Ivan do the cams wounder if he used the same specs as i got? mines standard duration but with 500 thou of lift. What are the head studs from?

Nice choice on the turbo did look at that but ended up going with the Garrett GT35/82R .63rear housing.

Hopefully all should go well for the new motor and looking forward to seeing on the track when i return to Australia.

Alex