Just throwin this out there... would this ever be a practical idea?...how hard would this be compared with the LS2 swaps a few people did in their 350z's? I know it obviously it wouldn't return the same gains, but would this be something to consider maybe 2 years from now?
Only reason I'm saying this is cause I love the body of the 350z I think it's going to go as something that will always be aesthetically pleasing to the eyes.

I just remembered the transmission is totally different...probably not worth the money for such minimal gains

 

it's not even cost effective to swap a revup into a non; this would be a nightmare of epic proportions, with miniscule upside

 

fi cheaper with better results

 

You really think so...I mean a potential 330+whp NA engine from what I've seen...obviously mating would be a PITA...I would consider it if I had an 03 paid off and cash money laying around...

 

might as well trade the 350 in for a 370, probably end up costing the same as doing a swap.

 

Im with him ^

 

Maybe a decade from now when both cars have plenty of junkers and donors. It also depends if the aftermarket is strong for the 3.7

For now, not worth it unless you're a shop trying to flex your industry muscle by being different.

 

Much like the LS7 4th Gen F-Body swap, this is a stupid idea that going to cost far too much for too little gains.

 

If your a DIY'er it would be cost effective. I watchin the salvage auction for one to try.

 

Turbo, call it good.

 

anything can be done when money is involved

 

To be honest most people aren't really going to know... their opinions are based on theories... since no one has tried this yet there's no real answer... if you have an 05 and you were going to try and do it I would suggest you just get the vq37 motor and tranny and try putting the DE heads and timing cover on it and see if that'll work or fabricate to make it work and go from there, the DE heads should bolt up, Jim Wolf uses HR headgaskets on DE builds... I think the timing cover might be an issue, a DE cover might bolt up but if not and you have both timing covers in your possession, you would be able to use the bottom half of the hr timing cover and cut the top off and weld up the DE top half... you probably wouldn't be making the 330 hp but you would have a 3.7l DE, with a stronger bottom end that you could throw a Vortech on or your APS Single Turbo...

seems like it could be cost effective, if it can be made to work... instead of buying a 4k+ stroker kit and then having to pay to install that.... Nissan reliability with a 3.7l... I'd be willing to give it a shot, if I can find the bottom end off a vq37... I have some spare DE motors I can play with

 

Having just completed a VQ35HR swap into the Nissan Sport Project T2 350Z racecar, I have some real world experience to speak from. While the mechanical differences between the Z33 and Z34 can be overcome, a VQ37VHR swap still wouldn't make much sense. Nissan's latest electronic architecture is continuing to evolve and is the biggest obstacle to such a swap. The level of sophistication between the two models means "easy" and "DIY" are not accurate descriptions of what this project really takes to pull off.

Every computer in the car (ECM, BCM, ABS, etc) interacts and communicates with their respective sensors and each other. Rewiring and making the systems work in complete harmony is a very difficult task. Mistakes cost both time and money, believe me, I know!
Even making the swap (VQ35DE for the HR) in my '06 Z involved way more than what most people would believe. Let's hope it's worth the effort on the racetrack. I can't say too much more about this, but we'll have more details on this project in the upcoming issue of Nissan Sport Magazine!

David Muramoto
Editor-in-chief
Nissan Sport Magazine

 

agreed doing a complete swap would be a difficult task... but if you were to break the motors down and remove all the new head technology that nissan added... continue using your DE heads and DE sensors and DE ecm. I believe it can be done without to much fabrication, rewiring, retaping... of course the motor wont be at its full potential as it sits in a 370z but it could be a dramatic improvement for the DE/HR motors... specially if the 3.7l bottom end can be mated with the DE's heads, you would still be able to use the majority of the aftermarket support for the DE

Doing a complete swap would be an extreme... but finding a way to make DE motors mate to the 3.7l can have it's own benefits, with even just the aftermarket support alone...

 

DE heads will work on it but the block has a taller deck height then DE, The HR is built like a VQ40. DE cover wont fit on a VQ35hr/vq37hr/vq40de

 

yea I already took that into consideration.... but if you have access to both timing covers. there really isn't much too them, it would be simple to cut, measure and re-weld the timing covers to work together... using the bottom half of the hr cover and welding the top half of the DE cover.... or if the vq40 timing cover is the same deck height it might be easier to work with that one...

although why end there... I bet you can just swap a vq40de in the 03-05 model Z's and use the cams out of the vq35de and the transmission off the vq35hr... after all the vq40de and vq35de have a lot of similarities including similar factory rev limiters... only main issue is the deck height and bell housing design are the same as the vq35hr.... the vq40 even has a stronger bottom end and better cooling designs than the vq35de's, similar to that of the HR's... although the cams aren't as aggressive in the vq40 so trade them for the vq35 along with the plenum and than all you would really need is a new hood and transmission from the vq35hr's

 

OP has left the room?

 

long time ago...but thankyou for your input...

 

pic of a vq40de.... timing covers are looking pretty similar to that of the vq35de... lol....

 

What would it take to convert a VQ35HR to a VQ37VHR?