Need some brand X advice

[Duke5A]

Posting in general since it's a Ford.

Twenty years ago my grandfather gave me his 1992 F-150. Nothing special as it's just a two wheel drive , extend cab, 300 I6, E4OD, 8.8 rear stripper truck. I've kept it though and it has a considerable amount of sentimental value. With the Fifth Avenue nearing completion I'm eyeballing the next project and I'm thinking about this truck.

I'm torn though...I really want to start getting into newer motors, but doing an engine swap on this truck seems like I'd be ripping its soul out. My grandfather was a big fan of the 300 I6. I guess I could hop the I6 up, but I've built a 258 Jeep six before, and to blunt, they suck. I just don't think I'll be all that impressed with this motor and it certainly won't satisfy the itch of working on new motor designs.

Getting another car is out of the question because of space.

Advice?

 

[Oldiron440]

The new 5.0 mustang fits you can huff it up to 8 or 900hp. Hell put a gen 3 in it.

 

[Aspen500]

The 4.9L (300ci) I6 is kind of like a slant six, indestructable. The 300 is great for low rpm torque but they run out of breath very quick. The EFI ones were better but they are still what they are, a great truck engine, not a hot rod.
What engine depends on your budget and how much work you want to do. A new 5.0 with all the harnesses, PCM, etc would be excellent but pricey. An engine from a wrecked Mustang would work with a stand alone PCM. The one from the donor car requires input from the rest of the cars systems to function, along with being programmed with the VIN, etc..........Without all that, the engine would never even crank over, much less start and run.

Using a pushrod 5.0 out of an older Mustang would be much, much easier and plus, it'd darn near be a bolt in and, the aftermarket for them is never ending.

 

[Duke5A]

As far as options go if I was to forsake the 4.9L I would pick up a DOHC 4.6L V8 mod motor. They're all aluminum and will make 350HP with almost nothing done to them. I wouldn't be looking to turn this truck into a money pit like my 5A. The goal is just to have something modern and mild to play with.

I can't help but feel like the truck will lose a significant amount of its sentimental value if I do toss the motor. An I6 though won't do anything for me, even in hopped up form.

Bleh...I don't know what direction to take.

 

[Poly]

Something like this ? The Mark8 4.6 ? $100

Lincoln Mark 8 parts car

 

[Aspen500]

The Mk 8 4.6L is DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder. In an F-series, you'd have plenty of room under the hood. Those engines are huge, especially the width.

 

[Poly]

The rack n pinion from the panther series bolted up to the 67-72 F-series when adding a couple of plain brackets. The Mercury had it too, the Parklane or Turnpike, forgot the name.

 

[Poly]

To line up with the rack and pinion, flip the axel...and shazaam...lol

 

[Oldiron440]

Its encouraging there are knowledgable Ford people here. There is a large aftermarket for the 4.6 and 5.4 but they have been dropped by the fast guys for the 5.0. This means there is used 4.6 and 5.4 hotrod parts out there waiting to be picked up for a good deal.

 

[Aspen500]

I was a Ford dealer tech from 1986-2007 (when the dealer closed) and haven't forgotten everything! lol

We've got a 2013 F-150 behind the shop with a 5.0,,,,,,,,,,,,missing one of the timing chains and chain guides on the right bank. Can see it through the oil filler hole. Funny thing is, it still runs sort of. Yes, it's going to be an expensive repair and yes, they are "crash" engines. Yes, I am not looking forward to tearing into it..............................How bad can it be?

 

[old yellow 78]

I'm not going to give any "advice" as you ask for, because I think you have an entirely different idea about what you want to do with your truck. But, my experience with Ford trucks is this:

My friend had an '81 F100 two wheel drive standard cab that we drove all over the country and Canada back in the '80's. It was a fantastically reliable truck that you could fix with pliers and a screwdriver. It rusted into oblivion by the '90's but was still running strong at over 250k miles. It had the straight 300 six and four speed. He was going to junk it, but somebody bought it to fix up amazingly.

Then my friend bought a four year old '96 F150. Same thing basically. Straight six with four speed, two wheel drive and standard cab. Another even more wonderful truck that made it to 200k miles. It also went all over the country everywhere with us camping. NO problems with it except RUST! The underside and suspension basically disintegrated and there were rust holes throughout the body and bed. Still running strong though when it got "clunkered" in 2010. We still miss that one, it was a beautiful truck when he first got it.

Several years ago, I bought a 2000 F150 XLT. It was hard to find because I wanted a two wheel drive and a standard cab. It has basically been just "ok". RUST in places I didn't think it could (how can the vertical radiator support get giant rust holes in it?) Leaks like a sieve. Electrical system sucks. It has the Triton V8 which is fast, but likes to fry spark plug coils, and I wouldn't dare touch the spark plugs myself for fear of stripping the one or two threads they are held in with. Slop-o-matic transmission. I only use it for hauling mulch and junk from Lowes now. An "ok", but essentially disappointing truck. These pics are from Kansas when I drove it out to strip the black Volare Premier parts wagon in Oklahoma.

So, my point is, if I was fortunate enough to have your truck, I wouldn't change a thing. Those 300ci sixes are great engines and with the four speed, they will run forever if the body lasts. I would love to find one of them to replace mine. I know that you are interested in swapping out engines and such, but just thought I would post a very different view.

 

[Oldiron440]

I gave ideas I line with what you were asking but I agree one hundred percent with the last pòst about the 300 six.!

 

[Oldiron440]

I found this by accident tonight.

I think I would put à turbo on your 300, the Ford six has a very strong bottom end and can easily handle 400 hp.

 

[Poly]

I was a Ford dealer tech from 1986-2007 (when the dealer closed) and haven't forgotten everything! lol

Wayyyy before your time...maybe lol

 

[Duke5A]

Thanks for all the conversation guys. I'm glad not to be excommunicated here for this.

This truck won't see daily driver duty anymore or at least an duty where it is depended upon. It's a street friendly toy from here on out. Absolutely, if it needed to be depended on I would never entertain removing the I6.

I thought about boosting it, but it has such a narrow RPM window I don't know if I would like how it turns out. I've watched turbo builds on the engine and they're typically all done by 4500 RPM. Lots of torque but abysmal HP numbers. Might as well build a diesel.

Kind of leaning towards a 4.6 mod motor right now. I can find the aluminum block DOHC models in the local pick and pull too.

 

[Aspen500]

I'm starting to wonder about the new 5.0 now. Just got to going on a 2013 F-150 that lost one of the timing chains (I think it's the one that goes between the intake and exhaust cam, not apart yet) and,,,,,,,,,,,,yesterday another one got towed in. Also a 2013 F-150 5.0 and it has the exact same problem on the same bank. I see a trend forming. Probably not but it is odd to have 2 in one week.

Anyways, you should be able to find a 4.6 (2 valve) and matching 4R70E trans easily and probably not TOO expensive. The newer 3 valve would be a bit more. You know, the ones (built before 2009) with those STUPID POS spark plugs. When changing them it isn't a matter of IF they'll break off in the head, it's a matter of how many will break. Stupid things................... At least they don't launch out of the hole randomly, while driving down the road, like the 2 valve 4.6/5.4. Aluminum heads with abut 4 threads for the plugs. What were they thinking??????????? Sorry, just venting.

 

[Duke5A]

By all do means, vent! I know particular model years had issue and I want to take that into consideration when grabbing a motor. This project most certainly won't see a newer 5.0 motor anyhow - too new. I'm not looking to dump a stupid amount of money into this. The plan is to just get something more modern and run an aftermarket controller for the FI. I was thinking of possible a Mega Squirt or a something from FAST.

I got lots of time to put this plan together. Dad still has to get his pole barn setup and I've got some more stuff to finish on the 5A first.

 

[Aspen500]

Guess I shouldn't really vent about stuff like that because it is my job to repair those types of things. It's like back at the Ford dealership (where we worked on flat-rape) and the 6.0 Powerstroke. We complained about them, and they suck to work on but,,,,,,we also called them "job security". Stuck variable turbo vanes, bad injectors, leaking EGR coolers, plugged oil coolers (which cause the EGR cooler problem), leaking head gaskets and blowing coolant out the cap, cam and crank sensor failure, injector driver modules frying, cracked oil pickup tubes, bad IPR valves (injection pressure regulator), etc, etc, etc, on and on. LOL, there I go, venting again!

 

[Jonnyuma]

I have a similar truck, 93 F150 regular cab, short bed, 2wd, 300 l6, 5-sp. It was my daily driver up until I bought my Ram last year.

Getting ahold of a Mustang GT parts car seems to be the most cost-effective way of getting toward Lightning greatness.

I personally like the turbo or supercharger on the l6 idea. After some internet research I learned that the F150 Lightning was an almost completely different animal from my workaday F150 w the vinyl bench seat and manual windows... they can be made to look the same or similar, but it'd be cheaper to just buy the Lighning by the time you figure-in suspension and chassis mods.

My approach was going to be to take a different path... KISS principal. Follow what police and military do w their vehicles, ie: add beef, boost, and badassedness w/out fluff. Keep it businesslike w steel wheels (Lightnings use 17x9 with 4.75" bs) and bench seat, but lowered a bit for attitude. Just make it an interesting DD. The body on this thing is just too good to not be used for something... 0 rust or dings. The plasticky-plastic 90s interior has 0 cracks... a real time machine, I could scuff-and-shoot today if I wanted to change the color.

My 93 will be up for sale soon, my newer Ram has taken precedence and dominates the minimal time and money I have to dedicate to unnecessary vehicular modifications. Not ironically, my bare-bones Ram is taking on a similar "customization" arc as the Ford was on.

 

[AJ/FormS]

Just stuff more air into it and see what happens, it is after all 300 cubes/4.92 liters. You can double the power pretty quick. And inline sixes are soooooooo smooth.