TWeatherford
Full Access Member
How not to do an engine swap
I bought a 1997 F-350 a few weeks ago because I got a good deal on it. I’ve been looking into doing an inline six diesel swap into a Ford for a while now, and after budgeting I found several already swapped trucks for less than my entire swap cost, without figuring in the cash back from selling my current truck.
I bought this one because, though a little rough around the edges, it ran great and had no glaring issues that I noticed. It is about everything I want in a truck. Crew cab, 4x4, flatbed, inline 6 diesel, manual transmission (ZF5), solid front axle (Dana 60), don’t really care for the dual rear wheels but it gives more space on the flatbed. Upon disassembly, I’ve found plenty of issues and some really leave me scratching my head – why would anyone think this was a good idea?
As I re-do this truck, I’m going to use this as a build thread and place to showcase some of the insane things done to this truck. I hope some people will have some ideas for me to help me along as well – I have some things that I want to do, but don’t know how feasible it is. And hopefully I’ll show some ways to do things right. I don’t necessarily have to have a factory look, but I want it to look tidy and well thought out, and be reliable and fairly easy to work on.
A few pictures of the truck the night I brought it home
He said it had a vibration from the front passenger side, and he was right. I noticed this was jacked before I bought it, and figured it would get me home since he drove it that way from ND to AZ. Hub centered Dodge wheel, on a Ford hub that doesn’t fit, with conical lugnuts for a lug centered wheel.
I bought a 1997 F-350 a few weeks ago because I got a good deal on it. I’ve been looking into doing an inline six diesel swap into a Ford for a while now, and after budgeting I found several already swapped trucks for less than my entire swap cost, without figuring in the cash back from selling my current truck.
I bought this one because, though a little rough around the edges, it ran great and had no glaring issues that I noticed. It is about everything I want in a truck. Crew cab, 4x4, flatbed, inline 6 diesel, manual transmission (ZF5), solid front axle (Dana 60), don’t really care for the dual rear wheels but it gives more space on the flatbed. Upon disassembly, I’ve found plenty of issues and some really leave me scratching my head – why would anyone think this was a good idea?
As I re-do this truck, I’m going to use this as a build thread and place to showcase some of the insane things done to this truck. I hope some people will have some ideas for me to help me along as well – I have some things that I want to do, but don’t know how feasible it is. And hopefully I’ll show some ways to do things right. I don’t necessarily have to have a factory look, but I want it to look tidy and well thought out, and be reliable and fairly easy to work on.
A few pictures of the truck the night I brought it home
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He said it had a vibration from the front passenger side, and he was right. I noticed this was jacked before I bought it, and figured it would get me home since he drove it that way from ND to AZ. Hub centered Dodge wheel, on a Ford hub that doesn’t fit, with conical lugnuts for a lug centered wheel.
You must be registered for see images attach