GS400 2JZGTE Build in the Mitten State by solaradude

8 minute(s) of a 197 minute read

I haven't gotten around to the fuel system work yet since I have been so busy with rebuilding the engine, but I will definitely document it and post some photos when the time comes!

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I'm a little behind on my update for last week, but I knew that I had a three day weekend for Father's Day and was hoping to get some work done on the car during that time, so I decided to hold off on posting an update until today. I didn't get as far as I had hoped, but things always take longer than I think they will. So with that being said, I'm happy with my progress!

After checking out the bottom end a bit, I decided to proceed with reassembly without getting into pistons, rods, etc. I took the same approach with my SR20DET and was happy with the results, so fingers crossed that I'll end up in the same place with the 2JZ.

The first order of business was to remove the timing gear from the front of the engine, allowing me to swap the old oil pump out for the new unit. I had to purchase a gear puller from Auto Zone since my typical two-jaw puller wouldn't work with this type of pulley. The included bolts were too large and standard thread pitch, so I had to make a trip to the hardware store for some new bolts. Once I had those in place, the puller made quick work of removing the gear.

With the gear out of the way, I was able to pull the oil pump. I needed to press the new front crank seal into the new oil pump, but was having a hard time finding something to press the seal in evenly with. I read that a piece of PVC pipe worked well, but it was about 1 AM at the time, so all of the local hardware stores were closed. I ended up removing a piece of PVC pipe from the side of my house that I had repaired at one time (something to do with my washing machine) and it was the perfect diameter! A redneck solution? Yes. But it got the job done! I promptly reinstalled it before my wife noticed I ripped the house apart

Here's a shot of the old oil pump and front crank seal with the new OEM Toyota unit:

I also replaced the three o-rings on the engine block- two of which are situated behind the oil pump. Seemed like a good time to get these freshened up:

With those seals installed, I was able to bolt the fresh oil pump into place. Much better:

I also took the time to replace the rear main seal. I didn't have any reason to believe it was bad, but this is a nasty one to get into once the engine is in the car. Might as well, right?

Next up was the upper oil pan, oil baffle plate, and a new oil strainer & gasket:

And finally, the lower oil pan. Here's how the engine sits today:

I got the head back from the machine shop late last week, freshly decked and with new OEM intake and exhaust valve stem seals installed. I was hoping to have the head, head gasket, and ARP head studs installed by this morning, but the surface of the block still needs to be cleaned up quite a bit before I am able to complete that work. Hopefully by the next update it'll be back together.

So, on to the items that arrived since last time. I had great luck with my Apexi head gasket in the SR, so I decided to grab one for this engine build as well. The OEM gasket would have been a little cheaper, but hey, bonus points for my mod list. Thanks to Mike at Evasive Motorsports for helping me out with getting this quickly!

I've been meaning to order Bride seat rails for a while now, but drivetrain components have taken priority. I spent some time translating Bride's website to find the rails I need, but just hadn't pulled the trigger yet. Fortunately, I just happened to find a fellow in Chicago selling the driver's side seat rail I was after for a great price. Not to mention the fact that next day shipping is essentially a guarantee from Chicago to my house. Really excited to have the seat rail here so quickly without a long wait from Japan:

I sat it in the car, but got distracted before I bolted it down. It was fun to actually sit in the car since the factory seats were removed when I got it and I hadn't bothered to bolt the black leather OEM seats into the car previously.

And hey, here's an out-of-focus photo of the seat:

Speaking of long waits from Japan, I finally got a nice box from the motherland early last week after waiting about two months. Inside I found a really clean Bride Ergo that I picked up from Juicey on Zilvia for an awesome price. This was an impulse buy that resulted in me picking up the Zeta II to match, but I am really glad I did:

I also grabbed a Nardi Classic 350mm steering wheel to complete the package. I'm really excited about this setup since it is so similar to my S13 interior that I miss immensely:

I just need to pick up a Works Bell hub and a Bride rail for the passenger side and then the interior should be very close to complete. I'm sure a set of red checkered mats from Japan for the Aristo will be the icing on the cake. I'm still considering installing red Bride fabric on the door panels, but I almost prefer the subtle black leather look with the contrasting red seats in this car.

Alicia was kind enough to give me some more time in the garage last night after our Father's Day festivities to reset things a bit and get organized. The garage was completely out of control and I was worried about losing critical engine components, so it was great to be able to get a handle on it to stay organized.

I'm looking forward to getting the drivetrain assembled and into the car soon. This might happen before my turbo setup is all sorted out and installed, but I am guessing it will be much easier to install a single turbo with the engine in the car than it would be to install the twins. I have a lot of research to do before the turbo setup will be here and ready to go, but I pretty much have everything to get the rest of the engine and transmission together and in the car. I always seem to under estimate how long these things take, but here's to hoping I'll be dropping it in within the next month or so.