I was just flipping through the Spring '18 issue of Alloy+Grit and there was a pretty nice article in it about a fairly new engine swap available for our beloved D2s. From what I read it seems Cummins is working on the R2.8 crate engine program that was supposed to being last year. It looks like they worked with a company called Heritage Driven to get one transplanted into a 99 D1. I don't thing there would be much difference to have one moved into a D2. The R2.8 supposedly delivers 161hp and 267 lb ft torque, and managed 22mpg in that D1 test vehicle.

It seemed the biggest problem was the new transmission programming and the steering box. Some other parts had to be relocated. Since the R2.8 came with it's own ECU they lost traction control and cruise control right off the bat, but are supposedly working on a fix for the cruise control. Heck mine doesn't even work now as it is.

Just wanted to get some people's thoughts/comments.

 

No traction control is a bad thing for D2 owners. That's the bread and butter of our 4wd system. It shouldn't be hard to run traction, ABS and HDC off separate programming since they don't work in conjunction with the engine anyways. They're problem seems to be getting the reluctor rings to talk with the engine computer and trans computer to relay wheel speed and vehicle speed for the cruise control. That shouldn't be too hard for them to reprogram.

But yeah, I would want my cruise, traction control, ABS and HDC to all work as intended after an engine swap

 

My guess is it's not easier or more difficult than lots of engine swap options available for the D2's. You need converters for the tranny and reprogramming of the ECU and a lot of the sensors aren't compatible, etc, leading to perpetual check engine lights and the like. Just my thoughts on it, i'm skeptical.

 

Well the 2.8 came with its own ECU, and they used one type of converter for the tach.

Since it's own ECU you do lose a lot of original functionality.

 

Yea I understand it's not easier or more difficult than most swaps, but it seemed more supported to me.

It's better than a TDi swap as it's a newer, quieter, cleaner diesel engine. It had the Cummins Crate engine program backing it. 22mpg!! At least 1 shop working on swaps now, hopefully more to come.

For me, when I'm getting close to 180k I'm starting to consider future options. I've thought about a Turner V8, and I've thought about moving on to an LR3 or LR4. To me this seems like one of the best options out there for extending the life of my D2. I'm not normally an optimistic person, but I was excited about this option.

 

If they did that swap for a reasonable price, and work out most of the kinks, I would definitely be game. The problem is I know it won't be a reasonable price. I am thinking spending at most $10K for the full swap start to finish all inclusive. Which probably isn't realistic. I will be super jealous though, a diesel would be a godsend for these trucks - here in california I would love one.

 

There's dude over on the expedition portal site, "Tinker", that l've been chatting with...and he's doing the Cummins swap. Not sure where he's at in the transplant, but I believe he's close to finishing. He's here in Michigan, so l'm hoping to catch up with him in person soon.

Also, he has all kinds of u tube videos out there on his rig.

Brian.

 

Ahh I found his video:
Looks like he's doing a Cummins 4BT swap as opposed to the R2.8 crate swap. It's a little bigger; 3.9L vs the 2.8L.

 

Bigger's, always better.