Bronco conversion help?
 

I've got an1982(?) full size Bronco, (the guy I got it from said it was an 82 but his kid swears its an 84) Its not only my first truck but my first vehicle. I. Love. It! I try to be pretty Earth friendly so I decided I wanted to convert my Bronc to biodiesel. I have to convert her to Diesel first though. What kind of engine would be a good idea?

In that year, you could conceivably do a swap to a 6.9L or 7.3L Navistar engine with all factory Ford parts...like buy a donor '83-'86 Ford truck with a 6.9L and start exchanging things; or look around for the donor truck and use everything but the engine, then find a 7.3L someplace else.

I would steer away from a "Powerstroke" swap as the electronics will complicate things.

A 4 cylinder Cummins B series is a likely candidate, but keep in mind the conversion will be more time consuming and the "baby B" has a vibration issue many don't realize the severity of until after it's too late. They are lighter weight and fit easily under the hood. Conversion kits are readily available for some Ford transmissions but I'm not sure which trans your Bronco has.

A 6 cylinder Cummins B series would work as well but will require more extensive modifications to fit in between the firewall and core support, as well as the other obvious issues like custom fuel systems, cooling systems, drivetrain adaption, etc.


A couple weekends of labor and a $1500 '86 F-250 4x4 diesel will have everything you need. It won't be the fastest or "best" diesel truck but the older IDI Navistars run pretty good on biofuel.

Keep in mind the front axle on the Bronco is a Dana 44TTB with 1/2 ton coil springs, and the rear axle is either a Ford 9" or 8.8".....none of which is well suited to a diesel's weight or torque. May end up swapping the entire drivetrain into the Bronco, which other than the rear driveshaft length might just be a bolt in deal but I can't verify that with absolute certainty.

I would like to see people do swaps with more modern efficient engines. And since the broncos weren't soled here with diesels, I think it doesn't matter what brand of engine it is. The powerstrokes are made by international. the dodges are made by cummins, so why not a mercedes. The OM 612 weighs much less then a 4bt has plenty of torque and horsepower, want vibrate like the 4bt, and is not as tall so it will fit better. I know allot of people do the OM616 swaps but that engine is far less efficient then the OM612, which come from the last gen Sprinter vans.

Another option would be the OM603 with improved heads, since that engine doesn't require any electronics, if that's what you want. There are enthusiast getting massive amounts of HP and Torque from that engine.

Also if you wanted to stay with they ford powerstroke them, you could go with this.

VT275

A variant off the VT365 is the VT275 4.5 L V-6, which is basically a 6.0 L V-8 with two cylinders chopped off. However, it uses a sequential twin-turbocharger system, instead of the single variable-geometry turbocharger used in the VT365. It is used in the 2006 Ford LCF (Low Cab Forward) and International CF (Cab Forward) (later CityStar) series trucks. It produces 200 hp (150 kW) and 440 lb·ft (597 N·m) of torque and is backed by a Ford TorqShift 5 speed automatic.

For the 2007 model year, the VT275 was brought up to 2007 EPA emissions standards and renamed the MaxxForce 5.

It has since been discontinued for the 2010 model year.


I am sure it weighs less the the V8 and can be found on ebay with tranny.

2003 DODGE SPRINTER 2.7L 5 CYL TURBO DIESEL ENGINE | eBay

another option....this engine is actually made by ford

land rover diesel engine-300tdi-V8 conversion kit | eBay