4Runner Again! 2008 4.7L V8 Limited 4wd

Hey 4runner section,

Finally back in a 4runner after my '91 was totaled back in 2011... I was happy to purchase this built 4runner off of a member of the t4r forum who got this thing off to a good start! I'm in the process of adding some doug thorley long tube headers, armor and maybe a supercharger??? This thing came with a full lift kit, disc kit, cold air intake and catback exhaust.

 

Nice....

 

Cherry rig man!

 

Thanks! You guys can check the full build here from the t4r member - I'm going to make updates here and on that forum too on the progress. Hefty Fabworks alluminum front bumper is getting powder coated right now and set to be installed along with a winch/offroad lights in once the bumper comes back.

 

Supercharger probably won't work, the later model 4.7's had weaker rods, I think 2003 was the changeover. Congrats on the '08, nice to have the VSC Off button.

 

Apparently the rods were not the source of the issue and it was the ECU not liking the supercharger causing the engine to work against itself. Thus rods were breaking in the 4.7L supercharged engines and the superchargers were discontinued for the engine. Since then, URD (TRD for this gen) has developed an ECU management tool that corrects for stock ECU misinterpreting the supercharger and the ECU will think everything is fine and not destroy the engine.

https://www.urdusa.com/urd-mk3-supercharger-kit-for-2005-2009-toyota-4runner-v8/

I have also read that all 4.7L rods were forged and are the same with no definitive proof of a difference between the japanese vs american made engines rods. The other information is that the rods were forged after 2003 and the prior to 2003 rods were the weaker of the two... I guess there's just a lot of conflicting information out there on the forums is all I'm saying.

I called over to URD and they said they haven't had anyone with one of their superchargers come back to them with broken rods. They also shared that the 4runner which the supercharger was developed on is still kicking on stock rods and being handed down to the owner's son. There are a serious lack of reviews out there for this kit so information has been tough to come by. URD was extremely helpful and knowledgeable and I could tell they certainly are experts on this platform particularly regarding overcoming the ECU challenge.

It's pretty pricey to add the supercharger and I may end up destroying the engine but if that happens I guess I'll just have to get a built 4.7 with beefed up forged rods and internals!!! This build has escalated quickly.... lol

 

Good info, thanks. Your info seems much more accurate than the rumors I read in years past.

 

We'll see how accurate that info ends up being after driving 30,000 miles on the supercharger haha.

Still a ways off from pulling this off but if/when I do maybe I'll do a nice write up of my experience. There just isn't a whole lot out there for the V8 supercharger kit in terms of reviews (yet).

 

Yah, kinda thin info about the superchargers, I was relying on tundras.com where people were saying "there are problems with the later 4.7's with vvt-i". I guess that would be the ECU problem you mentioned above.

 

Yeah the TRD superchargers that were offered as options on Tundras/Sequoia 4.7L 2UZ-FE engines didn't vibe well with the ECU breaking rods left and right. It looks like URD also has some components for 4.7L Tundra supercharging but not a full kit like the 4.7L 4Runner. I'm guessing the 4.7L Tundra aftermarket availability is overshadowed by the 5.7L aftermarket because they don't have as many problems supercharging the 5.7.

I looked into putting a 5.7 into a 4th gen but it sounds like it's quite the ordeal and not worth it as the 4.7L is already a super tight fit for the 4runner and the 5.7L exhaust system simply will not fit without extreme modifications to allow enough space for the exhaust manifolds.

 

I've been happy with the 4.7's stock in the Tundra and the 4Runners. I just wanted to tow better, that's why I moved on from the 4.0. 4.7 does tow better, and really, the engine note of the V8 at any time towing or no is nice.

Yah, it's a tight fit for the 4.7 in the 4Runner. Will you be putting the slyfox75 SAIP bypass on it?

 

Ah yes, Formidable's 4runner, Glad to see it went to an awesome owner! Looking forward to see what else you do to this 4runner! Formidable definitely added some great upgrades to this thing!

 

Sorry for the late reply. I ended up putting the Hewitt bypass on and so far so good.

 

I think an SAIP bypass be it Hewitt or slyfox75 is a must, good move.