Siena:

Any chance of some pictures of the engine bay? And perhaps a short video clip of the engine bay, with the engine running? As well as satisfying our curiousity, you'll be doing your super mechanic a favour, by advertising his expertise.

As for the "speed" at the slightest touch of the gas pedal, that's gross exaggeration.

obamat: @Sienna,

I witnessed such conversion my mechanic did here in portharcourt sometimes last year, infact it was superb but he used the 1999 camry engine complete with gear and ECU with some small construction and up till today the owner is using the car.
The owner works in bayelsa and lives in portharcourt and the car has been doing very fine
So I am a living withness of what Hilltop is saying.
I dont have the picture of that stuff if not I would have posted it here for you guys to see.

obamat: @Sienna,

I witnessed such conversion my mechanic did here in portharcourt sometimes last year, infact it was superb but he used the 1999 camry engine complete with gear and ECU with some small construction and up till today the owner is using the car.
The owner works in bayelsa and lives in portharcourt and the car has been doing very fine
So I am a living withness of what Hilltop is saying.
I dont have the picture of that stuff if not I would have posted it here for you guys to see.

Ikenna351:

You must not have to prove what you have witnessed with any picture, because its not an impossible thing. Some of us simply refused to believe because the conversion was done in Nigeria, by a Nigerian. After all, nothing as good as this comes out from Nigeria. But it wouldnt have been a difficult thing to believe if this conversion took place in the western world. After all, they know better than us. So if they cant do it, who are we to even give it a trial?! Smh!...

Before i left East in 2008, most mechanics & welders were modifying and swapping in Renault drive shafts into Japanese cars. They claimed the Renault drive shafts were better designed to last longer and they really do, they claimed. Many Japs owners started converting theirs and at a point, Renault drive shaft became a scarce commodity. When i came to Abuja, i realised that no one knew about such conversions. This goes a long way to tell one how creative and good Nigerians can be: formal education or not.

It could take some of us years of training to learn a particular skill. But for few, all they need to do is to look at it, get to work and the work will be done in few hours, without any training on that job or skill. Though, the gifted fellow still need to develop his talent. We are all gifted. Its left for us to put our gifts into use. A gifted fellow in auto mechanics wont find it difficult to get a job done, which a trained one might find it difficult to accomplish or complete in time, irrespective of level of formal education or exposure. If we have problem with that, turn to God and ask him "Why?". The only difference between the two individuals is that the gifted one without any formal training will have the finished job look untidy or will be poorly packaged, while the reverse will be the case for the fellow with formal training.

If I were to do the conversion myself, i would swap in an EFI engine, a V6 one. Because, i can be able to interprete the wiring diagram and transplant the engine harness, ECU(s) and other EFI components, modify and connect them to work as factory or close to factory. But i guess that would be a problem for those mechanics, hence, they opted for fuel carburreted engine. But there is nothing wrong with a well tuned carburetor engine. A well tuned one can give more than 27 mpg, depending on the load its carrying. But how many of EFI vehicles in Nigeria still average more than 20 mpg? As soon as they cross and enter our shores, their engine management will be abused, such that carburetor engines will get better mpg than them. Honestly, if you ask me, i will tell you Nigeria doesnt deserve EFI cars. We are better off with carburetor, sorry to say this. Because any quack mechanic can easily fix one. But then, this section maynot exist. Because most of us are here because we need solutions to the nightmares our EFI vehicles are giving us after been abused or when our mechanics cant figured out the culprits causing the issues. But, there is nothing wrong with EFI either. It just that we are yet to appreciate the goodies of EFI, hence, the OBD & DIY.

Am not the Op, but am not sure i would post any photo here anymore to convince anyone or prove my point,if i was him. I take pictures whenever am working on my car, and usually post them if necessary. But in this case, i wouldnt. Its upto Op to decide, its his thread. But then, "Blessed are those who didnt see, but believed!" . You can read your Bible, if you are interested in knowing the source.

Ikenna.

swaggerkid: you an chk dis owt http://saldanha.olx.co.za/freelander-engine-gearbox-problems-iid-455258518

tpacalipse: But why are people still arguing on this? I have seen two freelanders converted to camry 1999 engine in Ado Ekiti. Come to opposite Teaching Hospital and ask for Paty. He is a mechanic. He did one in my presence when I took my car to him for gear wahala. I even followed the freelander to a place where they wanted to adjust and construct something for the Engine seat. I followed because I was just currious. I later asked one of the mechs for who did the electronics or electricals, and the guy said, the man who did it will do anything. I think more people are converting freelander now to camry. I don't know why the preference for the camry engine.

Siena:

And an AWD SUV became FWD, right? LMAO. Next will be having Hummers retro-fitted with 1.8 I4 Honda Accord engines.

If you can post pictures, that would be great. Otherwise, I'm still sceptical. I just find it hard to believe any mechanic would do such a conversion (albeit a downgrade) yet fail to document it in pictures.