hello
i am new to this site and was reading a lot of your forms . what i want to know is what i need to convert my f-150 4.6 Triton to a 4cyl diesel this truck has 241000 miles on it now ,but it is in good shape i know i need a cummins 4 cyl diesel but what else , do i have to change the trans,etc etc?i need to know if anyone has done this swap before ? how difficult is it? and what is the cost ,i have access to a shop because i am a auto mechanic , any help in this matter i would be very grateful thanks again and keep on trucking.

 

I don't know what tranny you are working with but if you intend to keep your tranny you may find the adapter at Advanced Adapters. i just changed over to an NV4500 5 sp manual. The only pita there was inserting a clutch brake pedal ***'y from a manual tranny truck.
Also, you are ahead if you already have hydroboost brakes. I had to convert because I was not satified with vacuum assist from the diaphram type Ford belt driven vacuum generator I installed. The vehicle will stop much better with hydroboost brakes.
I would definately intercool the 4bt to a 4bta. when you turn up the fuel settings you can get your egt's up to damaging levels (> 1300-1400 f). The intercooler drops your egt's about 200 F. I pull about 7,000# (cab-over camp and 5,000# boat) and get my egt's up to 1,300 F if I really push it up hills. The amount you turn up your fuel setting will affect this as well as the injection timing you set to. I have my engine and Dodge W150 running at 181 hp and 383 lb. ft at the wheels with it turned up. You can go much higher than that if you run twin turbos. Guys are hitting 300 hp with twins.
Try to get a 4bt with the P7100 pump. They are more efficient than the Bosch VE. You can also find one with the heater grid installed in the intake horn. I didn't see where you are living but here in Ohio the heater grid is great for temps below 25 F. If you don't see temps below 32F you should not need the heater grid. I installed a 6BT heater grid and intake horn from a 2001 DODGE Cummins.
I installed an HY35W turbo that came from a 2001 Dodge Cummins automatic and really like the early spoolup. Others say that the original H1C turbo that comes with the 4bt is fine for what they use their vehicles for. I like mine because I feel it works great for my towing requirements. My truck really comes alive when towing when the boost gets up into the 15-17 psi range. You can figure about 3-5 h.p. increase for each psi of boost.
Now to taming the engine. The 4bt runs naturally rough. I added a 6bt fluidic harmonic balancer out front and designed my engien mounts from 1st generation 6bt mounts. I drilled 15 1/4 holes through each rubber mount to soften the mount and respond to a lighter engine than the 6bt. Think about the angle of the mounts when you construct them. Mine are at about 45 deg and tame the engine vibrations nicely.
These engines are also noisey. sound insulation matting inside the cab helps alot. You can use the what I feel is overly priced Dyno mat type stuff or go economical with roofing shingles glued in upside down with urethane construction adhesive like I did. You can lay your carpet back over the top of this after it's in place.
As far as pricing. Others have gone to auctions selling the P30 sten vans. These trucks can be had very cheap ( ~$1,500) if you want to tow one that has a bad tranny. I just bought my engine from Adelmans here in Ohio for $2,500. The tranny is the next pricey item. if you buy a manual the NV4500 is a nice option for about $750. I made my own adapter to convert the GM bellhousing over to the Dodge NV4500. You can buy adapters from Advanced adapters. Others have mated up automatics cheaply.
If you are changing to hydroboost figure about $500 for that if you go with all new parts like I did. For the hydroboost you just T off of your power steering pump output. The 4bt PS pump should have two inlets to pick up the extra return hose like mine did.
A 4" stainless exhaust will run about $3-400. I refitted one by cutting out wedge sections and rewelding to change turning point angles.
Intercoolers can go for about $100-200 ranging from new aftermarket like Rice burner ones or used Dodge, Ford or Chevy ones from the junk yard or e-bay.
You should be able to do this pretty easily since you are a auto mechanic and can get many items cheaper than most of us. I am not a mechanic but do have my own welding and cutting equipment. Any questions I had on how to do my conversion were answered easily by the others that have gone before me on 4bt conversions.
I will be more than glad to pass on my experiences as others have done for me. I started my conversion as a member of the TDR site and also the 4btswaps.com site. My truck and build pics are at the 4btswaps site under the Builds catagory and "1985 Dodge Ram Prospector". My engine mount construction and truck pics are there. I am "Driverswanted" on that site.
Good lucck Diesel Smoke. When done you should be able to get about 25-28 mpg from your truck. I can also help with those interested in making bio-diesel. I have built the "appleseed" reactor from a hosue hot water heater and can make 30-60 gallon batches at this time.

 

As he said, not so much money, but lots and lots of time involved.

 

you best bet would be to use the complete drivetrain from a dodge with a hydraulic tranny.......47RH.......or the NV4500.........my mom has a 2001 F150 with almost 200K on the clock and its a 5 speed and im thinking of having Woodruff Diesel do the swap since he already helped with the tuning on the yellow ranger in Diesel Power Mag (plus he is a good friend and the only one i trust to do any major work).......whats nice is that your factory t-case is driverside drop......the same as the dodge one.........only difference is that i probably wont keep the IFS and go straight to a Dana 44 High Pinion from a late 70's ford..........

 

Ohh Yes. I definately agree on the hydraulic clutch. That made things so much easier than having to bend up a set of mechanical linkages. Converting over to a diesel rated pressure plate is a good idea too. I slipped a Duramax clutch into my GM 4bt belhousing with minor mods along with a synthetic pilot bushing.