I have a 1988 F-150 302 V8, sittin on rockwells and 50"s. I have been throwing around motor swap ideas for some time now and im still torn between what I want, 5.9 or 7.3psd, and whats cheap, 460bbf. I have already swapped in a ZF-5 in place of the lil M5od. The 302 smallblock just doesnt seem big enough at this point. Just throwin it out there, and im interested to hear any oppinions or bright ideas!

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Heres the truck.
http://i676.photobucket.com/albums/vv121/FarmDiesel/IMG_0258.jpg

 

Ive located a 97 with decent miles as well as a manual trans with 4x4. Would it be better to use the entire dodge drivetrain, or adapt to my ZF5? I was leaning towards the NV4500, just wondering how many people have done that so far, and if its the better option. Thanks

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P.S. The donor truck's radiator is shot, due to a front end collision. I have 3 radiators sitting around my shop; 351w from a f250, 7.3 from a 93, and the existing radiator, out of a 302. Would any of these be good options, or would it be best to buy any aftermarket, performance radiator, or locate a better option?

 

I'd use the NV4500 and 241 from the Dodge, for sure. As for cooling, I'd stick that big honkin 7.3 radiator from the 93 in it....if you have the core support, or just mod the 150's core support to fit it. I run the stock 93 7.3IDI radiator in my Fummins, and it keeps the ol 5.9 super cool

 

Im not going to be running a condenser, but with the intercooler and radiator, will space be a problem?

 

I run the '93 7.3 radiator (stock location), stock condenser, and a '99 Powerstroke intercooler in front of the condenser and it all fits fine. I did have to replace the vertical channel for the hood latch support with a piece of flat stock, and bent the hood latch handle a little for clearance around the IC, but it was pretty straightforward and fits beautifully.





You may have minor clearance issues with the grille on the '88, but the core support should be the same as my '93, or close enough that it should work too. Keep in mind, the gasser core support isn't as deep as the Diesel support, so you'll either have to mod it for the 7.3 radiator or use a diesel-spec support.

Also, I left my Cummins far enough forward (and didn't molest the firewall) so I could get the #6 valve cover on and off easily...being so, I had to use electric fans because the clutch fan simply would not fit. Keep that in mind if you would like to run mechanical fan...you may have to kiss the firewall a bit or run a thinner radiator setup.

 

What electric fans did you end up using? I beleive somewhere I read something about using fans from a taurus or something... I thing D-elcamino did alot of looking into them. What motor mounts would you reccomend using? I have a torch and a welder, so im not afraid to make something work

Thanks for the info so far!

 

I just have a pair of O'Reillys universal fans stuck on there for now, until I can get around to making a fancy shroud with some better fans (I gather that Taurus fans are pretty popular as well). I used one of the universal controllers they had as well, with two fan outputs, and the second fan only ever comes on if it's really hot out and I idle too long.

As for the motor mounts, if you get a whole donor truck, I'd just try to adapt the 2nd Gen crossmember and "slot mounts" into the Ford...assuming the 2nd Gen motor mounts are still in good shape. I made my own mounts with poly bushings and butchered the stock Ford crossmember up for the deep Cummins pan...but I'm not really happy with it and will probably go back in at some point and make a removeable crossmember while utilizing 1st Gen "pad" style motor mounts, unless my bushing style mounts look like they are holding up well.

Here are some shots of my mounts and butchered crossmember





I ended up cutting holes and welding ears to the removable 7.3IDI motor mount plates for my custom bushing mounts. It was tricky getting everything in there and bolted up (would have been easier to slot the top of the ears so the mount/bolt could drop in rather than fight lining it up, kind of like the 2nd Gen Dodges). The engine barely moves though, and vibration seems minimal, so I'm fairly pleased.

 

I'm getting a whole donor truck, would it be possible to use the dodge x member?
Or motor mount plate, I should say.

 

If you don't mind the fab work, I see no reason why not, other than perhaps difference in frame rail widths...