One of the most under-tuned V8s on the road

From the factory, the 70 Series V8 makes 151kW / 430Nm. That figure is set conservatively — emissions targets, varying global fuel quality and Toyota's own durability margins all pull it back well below what the 1VD-FTV is comfortable holding. For an Australian owner who tows, carries weight or covers serious distance, that leaves a genuine gap between how the 70 Series leaves the showroom and how it could drive.

It's the same robust, no-nonsense workhorse underneath — the 79 ute, the 78 Troopy, the 76 wagon. We just calibrate it to deliver the torque the platform was always capable of.

The gains

Across the range, the numbers are mammoth for a stock-hardware tune. Power climbs 45–50kW, and torque builds dramatically through the mid-range — around 90% stronger where you actually feel it: pulling away under load, holding a gear up a climb, sitting on the throttle with a van behind you.

• 45–50kW more power — taking the V8 to roughly 196–201kW
• ≈90% more torque through the mid-range — the part of the curve the factory holds back hardest
• Cleaner throttle response and easier overtakes under load, loaded or towing
• All comfortably within safe limits — torque-focused, not number-chasing

Why the clutch isn't optional

This is the part too many people skip. The factory clutch can only just hold the factory torque — there's almost no margin in it. The moment we lift torque, the standard clutch can no longer transfer it, and it slips. That's not a wear item you nurse along; it's a clutch operating beyond what it was built for.

So a clutch upgrade is part of the job, not an upsell. We fit NPC clutch kits, and for most 70 Series the 1300Nm kit — which includes a billet flywheel — is the right match. For high-power builds (turbo upgrades and the like) and owners towing heavy, we step up to the 1600Nm kit to keep a healthy margin under sustained load.

One day in the workshop

The tune and clutch fitment are completed within a day. You drop it off, we calibrate the ECU and fit the NPC kit, and you drive away with a 70 Series that pulls the way it always should have — backed by a driveline that can actually handle it.