Alright so I have an 86 f-250 302 with a 4 speed behind it. I love this truck but the motor needs some help. Other than the junk yard engine that's in it, it's a beautiful truck.
On the other hand I have a 94 f350
Dually 4x4 cab and chassis with a 7.3 idi non turbo that runs great. This truck is on the other end of the spectrum. It runs great and the engine looks great. But, the overdrive light is blinking, drivers side cab corner is gone, tranny fluid looks like someone did a number 1 in it, spring mounts are shot, straps on both tanks are shot, it just blew a brake line....the truck doesn't look as bad as it sounds but I'm afraid ill have a lot of money in it.
So my thoughts are leading to putting the diesel in my 86. 5 speed tranny behind it and swap the solid axle over. Am I crazy?

 

nothing crazy about that. you have a good truck that needs a motor, and a bad truck that has a motor.

youre lucky to have a clean bullnose anyway, misewell do it some justice and get rid of that awful 302.

I'd turbo the idi, but the costs of the kits in relation to the gains make that pill tough to swallow. the cost is certainly not worth the gains relative to other motor swaptions. but, its the only way to make the right pedal of the idi feel like its not broken.

you can piece a turbo setup together for maybe 1/2 the price of a kit, if you can find a good used turbo for cheap.

 

sounds like that cab n chassis just needs a good weekend with a few wrenches,some clean fluids and a code scanner.i wouldn't give up on that rig and part it out for a light duty f250 302 truck.way less work fixing your diesel truck than trying to swap the diesel into that f250.there's a lot more to swap than just engines.sorry,but iv got to call ya crazy on this one.

 

ive never seen a truck that has a cab corner "gone", but is otherwise pristine. sounds like a rust bucket to me. . .which is waaaaaay more work to fix/combat than a motor swap.

the light duty 250 is plenty strong enough for a 7.3. idi, especially if he plans to swap a zf5 (which hes indicated). he also already has a d60 to put under the anchor if need be.

 

I've seen quite a few trucks with gone cab corners, and mint condition cabs....I have one my self.


Water leaks in by the back window seal, or the rain gutters, ends up inside in the cab corners, and rots them out from the inside.


Seen that happen sooo many times on Fords.

 

how about the rest of the truck? i may stand corrected (pristine with rotted cab corners can be interpreted differently, my definition is flawless except for rotten cab corners...if that's the case then i stand corrected), but he did say his spring mounts, tank straps (and prob gas tanks), and brake lines are rotted. sounds to me like a rust bucket. anything can be fixed (ive saved some rust buckets before, may not do another because of it), but if its better for him to scrap it than fix it then so be is a plenty feasible swap.

 

My gas tank and straps looks clean to. All the brake lines were redone on my truck by previous owner.

And for some odd reason, my box is rotted the hell out on the sides. Frame, axles, cab are all clean though, even box floor is really clean.

 

(On the 94)Well the seat is falling to pieces on the drivers side too. And ok the corners not gone but you can open the door and the last foot from the corner has some holes you can see daylight through. And I'm just looking at what's going to cost more. The swap or fixing the other truck up. Especially if the E4OD has more issues than I know about

 

And will the dash work with the wiring harness and comp out of the 94?
Will I need a comp from a truck with a manual trans if I do the swap?