idi to powerstroke swap info

[fordf350man]

ok first off letting everyone know i love the idi, think its a great engine, but i came across a great deal on a powestroke and i am taking it, to much money needed to go onto the idi to make it compare like a powerstroke, i know there are some out there that do, but i am not looking for a race truck, i want a truck that is a daily driver and can tow when i need to,

anyhow i came across a complete powerstroke engine, its a 1997 7.3 with a 2wd transmission and is complete with only 107,000 miles, harness and turbo and all, only thing missing is the control modules and i am getting it for $550.00, so now i am gong to be putting a zf 5 speed but that is no my concern, i was doing some reading and seen that the instrument panel harness is needed for this swap, why couldnt wires be spliced into the existing harness? before i get to far ahead here just to let everyone know i have a 1997 f350 4x4, it was a original 7.5l(460) and was converted to a 7.3 n/a idi, why i dont know, but the gas harness is all still there, the guy just put in what was needed for the idi, so what electrical would need to be done? the engine has the mounts on it so i am not worried about that, and i already have the cross member for the zf transmission, and i know i will need driveshafts, i guess that the pedals are also different for the powerstroke compared to the gas engine, is this true?

 

[79jasper]

It'll work without the cluster.
It just won't activate the alternator. Which is easily fixed.
Take a look here→ http://powerstrokenation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=229609&referrerid=34786

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[fordf350man]

thanks, i saved that thread, its nice build thread, i will probably get the cluster because i want to see my rpms i just don't see why i cant add in the wires that are needing instead of switching out the whole harness, wiring is no problem for me, i enjoy it, i am going to get the wiring diagrams for both and see what i need to do, no sense in buying a harness if i don't have to

 

[94f450sd]

Get the dash harness and do it right! Nothing ****** me off more than working on a vehicle somebody hacked together.the problem is always in the hacked up spliced wiring.

Want reliability?do it right.youre not messing with an old car you cant get parts for.

 

[fordf350man]

Get the dash harness and do it right! Nothing ****** me off more than working on a vehicle somebody hacked together.the problem is always in the hacked up spliced wiring.

Want reliability?do it right.youre not messing with an old car you cant get parts for.

hey, when i do wiring i dont hack up anything, if i dont need to spend the money on a harness then i wont, especially if its only a few wires that are different, when i do my wiring you could not tell if it was factory or not, i worked in the dealership i know how to do professional repairs and make then not even noticeable, i find no sense in buying a harness and pulling an instrument panel out to swap a harness when i can run a few extra wires and make it work exactly the same way, i understand you may have worked on hacked vehicles but dont come on here and say i am going to hack it together, no need for that, you dont even know my work nor have seen it

 

[79jasper]

Don't forget the data/obd port.

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[94f450sd]

Well this ought to be good

 

[fordf350man]

Don't forget the data/obd port.

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i wont, this swap isn't happening yet, but i already have every wiring diagrams for the truck for the gas engine and the diesel, i am going to get the cluster for it and use that, but all the other wiring looks straight forward, shouldn't be bad at all

 

[fordf350man]

Well this ought to be good

hey maybe your afraid of wiring or are just not able to make good repairs so you would get the whole harness, either way i am going to do what is easier and cheaper for me because that makes sense, keep your bs of of this thread, you automatically assume i am going to screw this up and thats not what i am asking on here, i am asking for information about doing the swap what your personal opinion because you think you are master mechanic

 

[Leeland]

Pretty dead forum on OB.
I'm in the same boat but with two differences:
1- I have a 93, so I'm also swapping in electric rear door windows and third brake light
2- After what I had to do just to repair my idi dash wiring, Fawk going through it to make changes, I put that idea to bed quick and just went and got the correct dash harness since it was available with the engine.
Plug and play is much easier then staring at a wiring diagram and probing/tracing wires to make changes. Your going to have to pull the dash out any way to get full access to the harness, might as well just swap in the correct harness IMO.
But if you really feel the need to run through all that wiring, have fun with that.

 

[mohavewolfpup]

hey maybe your afraid of wiring or are just not able to make good repairs so you would get the whole harness, either way i am going to do what is easier and cheaper for me because that makes sense, keep your bs of of this thread, you automatically assume i am going to screw this up and thats not what i am asking on here, i am asking for information about doing the swap what your personal opinion because you think you are master mechanic

Everyone is different. More power to you and neat that you can do such a good job with the wiring. I'd take the wiring harness swap route, because my background always involves projects that turn out to be half arsed due to missing equipment needed or just general aggravation. I'm sure if I had your training as a example, i'd tackle it. But I don't, so the other becomes a better option. Good luck on your wiring. How's the project going?

 

[fordf350man]

haven't started the project yet, got to gather everything and make sure i have it all first, and i would completely understand swapping the harness if i was starting with an older idi, but my idi is actually a 1997 truck that had a 7.5l gas engine, i have already pulled the wiring diagrams for the powerstroke diesel to the gas and they are incredibly identical, they even use the same connectors for everything all i would need to do is add terminals in to the connectors and its just like a factory set up, if i end up finding a harness for a cheap price then i will go with that route maybe but the cheapest i found was $200.00 and i can make it work with wiring in my garage for hardly any money, that build that 79jasper posted above is actually very nicely detailed and he proves good points, i watched the hole 20 minute video and he is right about it all, only takes a few extra wires to make it all work, my truck because it was a Gasser already has the DLC connector, all i really need to add in for my truck is the throttle pedal and wait to start light, the check engine light is the same as the gas engine so its already there, everything else is all through the pcm witch is with the engine i am getting, so it shouldn't be that difficult at all, another bonus is that my truck has already been fit for a diesel engine so i shouldn't have to do much of anything to put the powerstroke in, when it comes time i will post up pictures of the progress and see how it goes, maybe ill eat my words and regret not doing the harness swap, we will see, but either way i am looking forward to getting it done, might be buying a little beater car this summer as this truck is my daily driver and making time to swap an engine isnt easy to do when i need it to go to work

 

[Leeland]

Best of luck, hopefully it works out good for you.

 

[79jasper]

If you see any signs of soot from the up pipes, fix it now while the engine is out.
Fuel pump is easy.
But pulling the turbo is a pain.
I would probably do the oil cooler too. Though mine was way easy to get out in-frame.


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[fordf350man]

thanks, first i need to beef up my engine stand or get another to support it, thing is heavy, i was going to pull the turbo and rebuild it now just so i know its done and the kit isn't too expensive, didn't know about the soot so ill check that when i get the turbo off, thanks for the heads up, are the oil coolers a common part to fail? i planned on replacing it anyway while it was out but i would still like to know