Okay, before I get jumped on I know that this is a cost-prohibitive thing to do. The situation I have is a little different, though...

A few years ago, I bought a 2004 F250 Super Duty 2wd, 5.4, regular cab. It has around 42k miles on it, great paint, great body, flawless Knapheide service bed, bedlined, and is an awesome truck.

I drove it for exactly 4 months before I got a job and moved to Canada, and left it behind. I'm settling permanently in the great white north soon, and I need a 4wd work truck. The truck I have is PERFECT for what I need, except for the 4x4 situation.

If I sell the truck, it looks like I'm going to have to put in another $15-20k to get something comparable. I work in the mountains, on mine sites, and I need a truck that can chew through 2ft of snow and not get beat to death on the rocks, and I need solid 4wd.

So, that considered, has anyone considered or seen a project like this? I've followed a lot of SAS and 4wd conversions on older vehicles, and on Pirate4x4, but can't find anything real specific.

I do know what's needed for the solid axle swap. The frames are the same, and donors are plentiful. I know the difficulty lies in the transmission. I'm not a fan of the stock 4x4 trans, so I'm open to the idea of swapping to a stronger trans and transfer case, with the expectation that I'll breathe some more power into the engine at some point later.

Given a budget of around $15k, is this still a project that's out of the realm of possibility? I can do little but parts sourcing and minor work, so I'll need to bank on finding a shop with the ability to do it, too.

 

Hi Danny, and welcome to FTE!

Sounds like you've done your homework on the matter, there are a few around here who have done this swap. From what I understand it's not bad if you have a donor truck to source parts from, and your budget should easily provide for one of those.

 

I'll go ahead and say it, put that 15k into a truck that better fits your needs, for that price you should be able to find something pretty decent, and no worries that the swap work was done right, but its your $

 

Have you seen the exchange rate. Buy a truck in Canada.

 

I may be completely skewed, but as I see it, the problem with putting the $15k into another truck is, even with an overly generous trade-in value of $10k, there is not a lot of good in the $25k used truck range.

I am going to need to lift and re-tire anything I get anyway. And find a utility bed, there's not a lot of 4x4 service trucks out there that aren't beat to death. I'm not really even looking for a stock 4x4 conversion... I'd like a truck that performs pretty healthy offroad.

Have definitely seen the exchange rate, ha, that's part of this . I get a huge tax break importing my existing truck, and labor and parts for the build are cheap in Canada. Lots of rusted or crashed out donor trucks with good drivetrains... but buying a newer truck in Canada is absolutely insane, even with that nice little 25% forex incentive. The salt gets a lot of the used ones.

I need to work the search engine magic a little more, and figure out some options. Ideally, I'd find a shop that has experience with something like this, because I agree with gfl in that finding the right shop is key or I'll end up regretting it.

 

Not sure where you are from but stigerstrucks.com in Frankfort Kentucky has a lot of utility trucks.

 

If I may throw a suggestion out there....

You need to lift it and you want some that can handle the offroad. You have a very healthy budget to perform this swap.

1. I'd look into a Full Traction Suspension system. This replaces everything up front with coil overs. The ride would be sublime off road compared to leaf springs. I'd give them a call if you have questions. https://full-traction.com/detail.php...0&t=1&p=1528#n

2. I'd buy a rusted out body 99-04 regular cab w/ NV271 mechanical shift t-case. If you can find gears that match you current rear end, even better. Now you have a front axle and t-case as well as dashboard indicators, wiring, drive shafts, so on and so forth. Everything need for a factory install minus the rusted out truck body. Plus, you'll have all the extra parts you could want. Sell the rest of the parts and scrap the remainder and you'll be able to get a nice chunk of cash back if not break even or make a few $$$ depending on the deal.

3. Take the time and undercoat the nice non-rusted truck. Use Chassis Saver or POR15 and then paint over it with spray on bed liner. I even spray bar and chain oil over that as an extra layer of protection. Spray inside the doors to prevent the bottoms from rusting out.

4. Look at what needs repaired.
> Rebuilt front axle w/ new u-joints, ball joints, seals, bearings, unit bearings, and tie rod ends. Clean up and paint the housing.
> Replace all drive shaft u-joints. Clean up and paint the shafts.
> New bearings, seals, and chain in t-case.

5. Now look at what you want to upgrade with the remainder of the budget. Things that come to my mind....
> Lower gears (either in the axles or w/ gear vendors under/over drive unit)
> Nice set of wheels and tires
> Posi or Lockers (Detroit Tru0Trac or Locker front and/or rear)
> Upgraded front hubs
> Protection... Bigger front and rear bumpers, rock sliders, winch
> Light... LED light bars, work lights, headlights, fog lights


Personally, I'd have a field day doing a project like this. I enjoy getting to build exactly what I want. Hope I could give you a few ideas. I'd love to see the build on this. Its a reasonable budget and you could have one hell of a rig when it is all said and done

 

Here is the review of the full traction system: Ford Super Duty Coilover Conversion - Four Wheeler

 

I'm in the camp for doing the conversion as well. As stated if you have the time, a donor, and a little $$$ why not just make what you already have work. Good luck and post up a build thread if you choose this route.

 

If it were my truck I'd convert it. I'm not familiar with the style of coil springs/buckets used in the 2wd SD but I would compare them to 04 4wd SD coil springs/buckets. And use the factory axle. It aughta be big enough to tolerate 37" tires indefinitely. Tires that large would be tough on stock balljoints but there are other options out there. And tougher on stock steering components.
As for transmission. I'm not familiar with 5.4 options but I'm sure there is options for both automatic and manual options.There is always aftermarket build up options.
I know in the earlier f series the cabs(floors) were the same no matter what option and only had sheet metal bolted in around the holes. Superdutys may be the same but I haven't been that far into mine yet.
Also the TTB and TIB shared the same brackets and locations on the frame in the early model F series , exact match in conversion aspects. If you are willing to settle for a D50 axle that may also be another option. Nearly as strong as the D60. Leafsprung SD f250s have a D50 solid axle/leaf sprung set up.
Alot of conversions have problems with differentials making contact with the crossmember. With a large enough lift it's correctable, but my question is. How tall do you want your work truck to be?
I can attest that the d50 is a pretty rugged and reputable axle in both model trucks. I've personally beat the snot out of a TTB with 36" tsls and added weight on the front end. Never had a problem. Even drove a good ways out of the woods with a flat in the front and the differential held up with out a fuss.

 

Whoa, excellent info, thanks all. That front suspension kit actually solves most of the concerns about the front end of this project, that's fantastic.

I am starting to source donor vehicles now also... but, the previous-gen trucks are going to be D50 on the SRW, and D60 on the DRW though, aren't they?

I guess I need to look into bulletproofing the 4R100 and E4OD. It doesn't seem that easy to slide the 5R110 under there, the PCM/harness issues look a little prohibitive.

I've about decided this is the route I'm going, so I'll start a build thread when things start rolling in. I even have the wife on board, why rock the boat...

Edit: Ha, thanks slampig5spd, that answers me questions about the D50. I know of the D50s, but not much. It looks like it would hold up fine, and 35-37" tires are the max I'd want to run. But then, if I'm going to do it right the first time... I'll have to do some reading. I mean, if I had my way I'd put a built kingpin D60 under it, and be done. But those are like gold now, and kind of kills the bolt-up options.

I am not a fan of tall trucks at all, I had a too-tall trail rig on 44" TSLs at one point, and I learned my damn lesson and didn't repeat it again, ha. Just looking to lift enough to articulate and stuff a larger tire without much rubbing. We have to add a 2" lift to the half ton trucks in our fleet before service, or they start floating on unplowed roads. Like you said, it's a work truck, so the reliability needs to be there.

 

Personally, I would find a decent 4x4 truck that's already lifted (hardly adds anything to selling price, but would cost you a lot to do on your own) and put your utility body on it. Way fewer headaches in the long run.

 

I did think about that option, but I don't trust anyone else's mods, and I won't buy a daily driver that has been someone's offroad toy. Plus, what I'm looking for is pretty picky , would be hard to find many one ton 4x4 regular cab solid front axle SWB gassers with under 50k on the odo, utility bed or not. Will also have to end up re-painting, and that'll sink the cost in a heartbeat.

The truck I already own has less than 50k on it, and I have maintenance records back to new. It's in almost-new shape inside and out. I already really like the truck, and I figure I'll like it even more with 4wd and a 4-linked solid front axle and an e-locker, ha.

I already have a pretty cushy daily driver (2011 F150 FX4 LWB SuperCrew), and my wife has a new car. We're not really pressed for a vehicle, so I don't mind a little headache for a project with a good ending.

 

I'm interested in seeing the build progress

 

Let me clear something up. Some trucks D50 and some had D60. There are some rules to follow when look. Someone correct me if I am wrong...

99-01 diesel had D60 (DRW and SRW), gassers may have had it
02-04 all trucks had D60

There is a very easy way to check, but you have to crawl underneath.... There is a number cast into the diff housing on the back of the diff case. if you see a 248 you have a D60. If you see 229, it is a D50.



Here is some more info on the D50 and D60: Ford Superduty Dana 60/50 specs - Page 2

I am not too sure about the transmission. I know of valve body upgrades from Transgo (HD2 and HD2 Tugger), but it seems like a lot of the mods are for the diesel guys.

TransGo E4OD/4R100

Looks like you just need the output shaft and the extension housing from a 4x4 transmission and you can keep the one you have in the truck now.

Converting 4R100 4x2 to 4x4? - Diesel Forum - TheDieselStop.com

One set of upgrades that would probably be worth it now before it becomes an issue is the exhaust. Shorty headers, SPD Y-pipe, and a stainless cat back. That way you can deal with the probably rotted manifold studs that break and cause exhaust leaks. You can always look into 5 Star Tuning as well. http://www.fivestartuning.com

Hope this helps