At first, Frank Navratil of Redondo Beach, California, didn't know that he wanted an International Scout, but ended up with this bio-rig nicknamed "Kermy" for its frog-green paint. He was looking for a 4x4 with a removable top and was hoping to find a diesel conversion so his wallet wouldn't be taking big-block abuse at the fuel pumps.
Diesel-Powered Scouts??
While searching online, Frank stumbled onto a '78 International Harvester Scout Traveler with a diesel engine. He wrote to the owner to find out about the engine swap and was surprised to learn that International sold diesel-powered Scouts from '77-'80. After learning that, Frank knew he'd found the platform for his 4x4. All Scouts and Travelers (a Scout with 18 extra inches of wheelbase) have removable hardtops, and he'd be able to buy a factory diesel so there would be no registration issues no matter what he did under the hood of the truck.
After searching online for his target vehicle, Frank found an '80 Scout Traveler diesel in Tennessee and got himself a plane ticket. He was surprised to find out the Tennessee definition of "some rust" is much different than the Southern California definition, but decided to buy the truck anyway (and later swapped in a new body tub to fix the problem). The Scout had everything he wanted: four-wheel drive, a removable hardtop, and a Nissan SD633T turbodiesel engine.
After Frank drove the Scout more than 2,000 miles home, he was ready for more power from the engine that was originally rated at about 100 hp and 170 lb-ft of torque. He tried a few tricks, but the stock 3.3L inline six-cylinder turbodiesel couldn't make the power needed to turn 35-inch tires while off-roading.
GM 6.5L Turbodiesel Swap
About the same time Frank was giving up on the Scout's stock diesel engine, he found a GM 6.5L V-8 for a really good price. He bought it with plans to swap the 6.5L into his '99 Suburban, but the Scout had become the driveway favorite, so the 'Burb would have to wait for another powerplant.
Chris Johnson at Rock Tech Off-Road in La Habra, California, was instrumental in swapping the 6.5L into the Scout and provided shop space for this uncommon installation. He performed most of the fabrication required, such as widening the front end to accept a larger four-core high efficiency radiator. Then, Frank brought the Scout home to finish the buildup.
He decided to use a stout GM 4L80E transmission behind the V-8 and mounted auxiliary engine oil and transmission fluid coolers under the front seats. The engine computer was reprogrammed by Westers' Garage to improve performance and so it would work without the extraneous GM electronics that were not swapped into the Scout. It all worked, but, unfortunately, the engine seller never mentioned the heads were damaged and the injection pump was shot-which became evident after some post-swap driving. No problem. Frank contacted Wayne Dorchester at Inland Kenworth in Fontana, California, who helped him perform a rebuild. Since the engine was out, they painted the Scout green to promote the biodiesel that would soon be running through its veins.