5.8 F250 to 7.3 swap thoughts and questions.

[94IDIT]

So I have an '89 F250 5.8 5 speed that's in great shape... My '90 IDI on the other hand, is pretty dang rough in comparison. I'm looking to do a "build" and a resto on one of these old Fords, but with as trashed as my '90 I just don't think it would be worth the work. I'm wondering how hard would it be to swap the IDI and ZF5 into the gasser and make everything (especially the cruise control) work. Has anybody done this type of swap before? Feedback is appreciated!

 

[dagreendeville]

depending on the time frame your trying to do it in lol its not too bad i pretty much did what your trying to do but i swapped the whole bodys and wiring harness

 

[bike-maker]

It should be a pretty bolt in affair. Major components are the engine/trans, and core support. Possibly fuel tanks? If the 89 is a light duty version, would it just be a matter of swapping in the Sterling rear off of the 90?
Having two whole running trucks to start with makes it pretty simple, just kind of labor intensive.
I parked my 89 donor right next to my 84, and just started unbolting parts from the 89 and bolting them on the 84. I was swapping between 2 body styles, and from auto to manual, and I didn't think it was too hard. Although my back might disagree.

 

['94IDITurbo7.3]

how do you plan on helping the 1/2 ton front suspension hold up the wieght of the diesel engine and its components?

 

[gunz]

how do you plan on helping the 1/2 ton front suspension hold up the wieght of the diesel engine and its components?

He said it was a F 250

 

['94IDITurbo7.3]

He said it was a F 250

oh my bad. i saw 5.8L and automaticaly thought f-150.

 

[94IDIT]

Yep, it's an F250 HD, so it already has a 4.10 Sterling in the rear (axle code 35). Thanks for the help Bike Maker... I didn't think it would be all that difficult, but ya just never know with these kinda things as far as a timeframe goes, once I started I could take my time with it. And I have also considered a body swap, but wouldn't that be harder?? Idk, maybe not. I've got a tractor so picking up the cab and such wouldn't be all that hard... Anyone know if that would maybe be and easier way to go?? I'm all for looking for the easiset way to do this

 

[bike-maker]

Never done a cab swap, but it might be easier. Someone with more experience will probably chime in.

 

[MUDKICKR]

if it was me what i would do is take the diesel truck and take it to bare frame, clean it up and start from there. paint the frame, replace all the fuel lines with metal and replace all the brake lines too, replace all the bushings in the suspension, and then add a 2" add-a-leaf, and go through the axles, only replacing what is needed. after all that is done id move to the engine, either go through it or at least re-seal it. install the engine and transmission and driveline and make sure everything is ready for the body. if the body on the 89 gasser is that good then i would use its body and replace its complete wiring harness with the diesel trk one. put body on and fix the rest as needed.

also, 4 people can safely pick up that cab, but id remove the seats and other stuff to make it easier. to give you an idea of how heavy a truck cab is, freebird and myself picked up one and loaded it on his trailer, and it was an ex-cab cab. the frt clip is a 2 man job and the bed, 2 man if short bed and 3 man if long bed. reason for 3 man on the long bed is not cause of weight, but to balance it better.

 

[riotwarrior]

MUDKICKR

you have basically said exactly what I am doing with my Bronco. In essense without knowing the vairiables of the two vehicles, It is more than likely easier to do it this way than pull the engines cause you gotta pull two...and swap all that driveline over.

Body swap is in essense much simpler and allows a much cleaner rebuild by doing the frame etc...

 

[redmondjp]

Yes, I agree on the above, if your frame on the diesel is OK you're probably better off doing the body/bed swap. The engine mount support brackets will have to be swapped over, and the one on the driver's side is riveted to the frame (at least it is on every truck I've seen) while the passenger side one is bolted on (YMMV). Not a big deal to swap over, but you'll have to do some cutting and grinding to get the rivets off.

There are lots of ways to skin this cat, so in the end it's really up to you as far as how comfortable and able you are to swap over the various components. You've got the best situation though, having both trucks sitting there side-by-side (trying to do a swap and having to go shopping for all of the various brackets, mounts, etc that you find out you're going to need is never fun and can really kill a lot of time).

 

[Agnem]

It's a very easy swap and can be done in a weekend. I've written up both of the conversions I have done (the Moosestang and the Night Moose) and both were a little more involved, due to me swapping the diesel into 1/2 ton chassis. There is no need to swap fuel tanks, and everything, even the cruise control will be plug and play. Just swap your gauge clusters over as well. Swapping the whole front clips would add to the ease with which you can do this project.

 

[towcat]

Never done a cab swap, but it might be easier. Someone with more experience will probably chime in.

if you have access to a twin post lift or a towtruck, cab swaps are mind numbingly simple.

 

[Diesel_brad]

I agree with mudkicker

 

[GOOSE]

I agree with mudkicker

I agree also. Having the good condition gasser to drive while you strip the diesel down to the frame and go over it is a win-win. This is just about a best case scenario if you ask me.