Every week somebody phones us and says “I need an engine for a 2016 Hilux”. That sounds specific. It is not. Toyota built several different engines into that shape of Hilux, with different injectors, different looms and different mounting points, and two of them will bolt to your gearbox while only one of them will actually work with your wiring and your ECU.
The number stamped on the block settles it in ten seconds. Here is where to look on the bakkies we get asked about most in Durban.
Toyota Hilux and Fortuner
On the 2.8 GD-6 (1GD-FTV) and the 2.5 and 3.0 D-4D (2KD-FTV and 1KD-FTV), the engine number is stamped on a machined flat pad on the block, on the driver side, roughly level with the oil filter and slightly behind it. You will usually need to wipe years of road film off it with a rag and some brake cleaner before it is readable. On the petrol 2.7 (2TR-FE) it is on the same side, closer to the bellhousing.
The number starts with the engine family code, so you are looking for something that reads 1GD, 2KD, 1KD or 2TR followed by a serial. The family code is the part that matters to us.
Isuzu KB and D-Max
On the 4JJ1 and 4JH1 D-Teq engines the number sits on a pad on the passenger side of the block, below the exhaust manifold and above the sump line. It is an awkward reach and a torch helps. If your arms will not fit, photograph it with your phone held upside down and read the picture.
Isuzu also stamps the code on a plate in the engine bay on some model years, which is much easier, but always trust the block over the plate. Plates get swapped, blocks do not.
Ford Ranger and Mazda BT-50
On the 2.2 and 3.2 Duratorq engines the number is on the block behind the alternator, on a flat machined face. On some builds it is partly hidden by the air conditioning compressor bracket. There is also a sticker under the bonnet on the slam panel that carries the engine code, and on the Ranger that sticker is usually accurate, but again, the block wins if the two disagree.
Nissan NP200 and NP300
On the NP200 with the K7M petrol, the number is stamped on the front face of the block near the gearbox, low down. On the NP300 and Navara with the YD25DDTi it is on the driver side of the block below the intake manifold.
What to do if you cannot find it
Send us the VIN instead. On a South African vehicle the VIN is on the licence disc, on the plate at the base of the windscreen and stamped on the firewall or the chassis rail. From the VIN we can usually work out which engine family the vehicle left the factory with, and then confirm the rest by asking you two or three questions about the injectors and the loom.
Failing that, take a photo of the whole engine bay from above and send it on WhatsApp. We have been looking at these things long enough that the shape of the intake and the position of the turbo often tells us what it is.
Why we insist on this
Because we would rather spend ten minutes with you now than have a 200kg crate come back from Ladysmith in three weeks. The code check is free, it is fast, and it is the difference between a fitment and a fight.
Send yours to 063 576 3538 and we will tell you straight whether we have a match on the floor.