I dont understand how you could say the 4.9l are the only good ones Obviously there both well built motors but as far as problems go that MOSTLY depends on maintenance you could have the best engine in the world but if you dont maintain it right its going to have issues. I dont think anyone hates the 4.9l its a good engine but obviously like i said before everyone knows these trucks are under powered no matter what motor you have. Stock for stock are the only way you could compare these motors cause theres nothing you can really do to the 4.9l without being all completely custom and even at that you wont ever see a 4.9l making 200+ rwhp with just bolt ons with factory tires like you will easily see with the 5.0s. If your even remotely thinking about modifying the engine there isn't a discussion its hands down the 5.0. Once again on the dependability it has alot more to do with how the people or person maintained much more then what engine it is.There is a very thin margin of difference of power for the 4.9l and 5.0l which from specs. is about 30-35hp which then comes down to what transmission and gears you have.

 

i have to say i have the same issue, butttt only when loaded. empty shes pretty good. but with a extra 600lbs+300+500ish on the front/back in the winter she gets pretty gutless and has to downshift ALOT i think some 4:56 gears would really help me verses my stock 4:10s.

 

The 4.10 is why your 5.0 does so well. That wasn't an option in half ton trucks. The best available was 3.55.

Just curious what size tires?

 

I agree to some extent that the hype may be a bit much. I don't really think that one is drastically better than the other all other things being equal.

You are right. With the right gearing the 302 is completely different. The problem I think with running 4.10s with 31 or smaller tires and a 302 is that fuel economy may significantly go down. I'm not sure though.

Some of these comparisions between trucks may not be fair since some may be in better or worse condition that other ones and most people don't know what gears each truck has.

My friends 95 300 5 speed will walk away from alot of newer trucks on the highway with out leaving 5th gear. He does have 3.55 and 31 inch tires.

I personally think that the 300 needs the 5 speed to be at its best.

 

yeah i was happy to findout i had 4:10s! somtimes i wish i had a 460 because it would prolly get better MPG considering the truck only does work. the 5.0 is in perfect running order and gets the job done. no speed racer but thats what my excursion is for lol

due to the large hills around me, most of the time driving in the winter she is in 2st or second screaming along at 4500+ rpms trying to get all that weight moving. but she will push snow! pop that baby in 4low and your only limited by your tires.

stock was 235/85 16. currently running 265/75 16's which are pretty much the same height just fatter. sooo whats that about 31.9" depending on the tire.

 

My F-150 and my 5.0 donor truck were both 5 speeds with 3.55 gears. My donor truck with it's crushed cab, and everything else resulting from the rollover, outran my F-150 in just about every situation.

My F-150 had 3.55's, 5 speed, 31" tires, and of course the 300 in it with 146k miles when I got it. The engine ran great. No issues. Had aftermarket exhaust, intake, tuning, etc. when I got it. It still wouldn't hold speed up hill. I figured maybe it's the aftermarket parts.. I pulled them off and put stock stuff back except the exhaust, had a touch less power than with the chip and intake.. So after that I said screw it. My donor truck had no issues accelerating uphill before it was rolled, so I bought it and obviously now I have a perfectly good 300 sitting here doing nothing b/c nobody wants it.

Fact is, the 302 has more torque and more importantly, more horsepower than the 4.9L. The 302 has a pretty nice power curve that can be made MUCH better through the extremely wide variety of aftermarket parts available. So, for those of us actually looking for a powerful truck that can also be reliable, the 4.9L is not a better engine for us. Period.

I guess it could be better if you just want to idle around or putt around a field somewhere, but some of us like horsepower and like to unleash it even more. Most of us who look to do a V8 swap are like this. I just think that some of you guys who comment on such threads should word things differently. Something like, in order to fully utilize the power of the 5.0L you should look into swapping to ____ gears in order to keep the engine in it's power band. Not this.... Keep the 4.9L, it's a better engine in a truck...

 

IMHO, for a DD, driving the speed limits, etc....A 300/5speed/3.55 or 3/73 gear is all you need.....

 

NEED is one thing..... WANT is a whole different story. Sorry brother, some of us enjoy having a good bit of power at our disposal whenever we feel like playing or when we might actually need it to get around someone or out of someones way. Around 400hp seems to be perfect for my driving style for a daily driver. Many people say that they don't care to drive a 400hp truck and quite a few of them are telling the truth, but I've seen quite a few people say that, then ride in my truck and start wanting to mod their trucks. haha.

Ya see, horsepower is addicting and once you've gotten used to having quite a bit of power at your disposal whenever you want it, you kinda don't want to drive anything less unless you have to. I know that's how I am anyways.

Just look at L. Ward's build... He probably doesn't NEED that 460 and all the go fast parts that are on it, but I guarantee that truck is going to be a really fun truck to drive with the amount of power it should make. I know it's not a 5.0, just an example that having power for some of us may not be a necessity, but it's a lot of fun. Especially in your daily driver.

 

Truth of the matter is that I DO need power around our farm for pulling trailers, farm implements, and various other things. The 4.9 in my truck is absolutely perfect for that. No, it won't move a load at 80mph for 100's of miles, but I don't need or want it to. It is happy lugging at low rpm's with a decent sized load behind it all day long, and I never have to worry about the engine, because it is a solid design that I know will not give up on me.
I need that power down low in the rpm's so I'm not constantly screaming my engine to move our equipment from our house to the field and vice-verse. Like I said before, my dad has a 302 in his pickup, and it will do the same tasks that my 4.9 will, just with a LOT more drama.
There is no question when it comes to moving a load at our place, we always use my truck, no questions asked. If the load is getting to be pretty heavy and we need more power, we use my 5.8l, NOT the wimpy 302.

 

Travis im with you 100% , i bought a 93 F 150 300 I6 new for work and to tow my boat , on trips to the keys the thing was just about dangerous , no power to pass or get out of anyones way , not my kind of driving style , i got rid of it and got the 95 302 , it worked good , same truck i have now with a built motor that i put in about 3 years ago and its fun , i have had alot of mussle cars all of my life so i guess i got use to the power , and when you don't have it , it sucks !! ... but maybe some don't need the power i guess ??.....Lew

 

Refer to my previous post..

 

Again, I'm sure this is true since you likely don't have the 302 geared properly. With proper gearing the 302 will do the same work as it will do now, MUCH easier and still go out on the highway and be much more fun to drive. With 4.10's your 300 would do that work much easier also, but on the highway it'd probably be wheezing.. Not so for a 302. For those of us using a truck out on the street, whether it be to tow or just as a DD, a properly geared 302 will run circles around a 300. It is in no way wimpy, just not geared correctly from the factory.

Like I've said before, I started this after seeing many people say the 4.9L is better in a truck when guys want to do a swap. I don't think this is correct, especially not knowing how someone will use it. In my scenario, the 302 is a much better platform as it will hold the power I'd like to make and do it reliably. On top of that, I may want to modify it farther down the road. I have that option now. With a 300 I was too limited in the power department.


Lew, that's what has happened to me. I am used to driving trucks with a pretty good amount of power. I know I can't compare my diesel to these gassers, but stock it was pretty gutless also. That's why I modded it. To make it fun. Everytime I drive a 4.9 now, I just end up getting mad b/c I cant make it to the top of most of these hills going the speed limit.

 

I guess the only time I really question this whole debate is when someone wants to pull out a running 300 and swap in aSTOCK 302 expecting it to be worth the effort and in my opinion, it's not. If you plan on power enhancements, re-gearing, etc, then that's a different story.

A lot of the comments in this debate refer to "if you install a cam, if you install an exhaust, if you re-gear" etc. That's all well and good but to yank a stock engine and replace it with a stock engine just isn't worth it.

But if you really wanted to swap out a running engine for more power/torque, why not go to a 351 or even a 460? Unless the 302 was free of course.

 

Gearing with the 302 is 3.55, same as my truck which is lifted and has taller tires. I'm not saying a 302 doesn't belong in a truck, but for towing a 4.9 is much more enjoyable, especially if your in a lot of stop-and-go.

 

I'm just glad I manage to muster 16-18MPG city/highway mix (about 50/50) with my 4.9/5spd/3.55