What is it about the 4.9 that makes it so much better than other motors? We've established it is rock solid reliable and never quits, but what makes it a better option for towing or hauling than say a 302? or 351? Or any other motor.

Low end torque? iirc 262 ft/lbs at 2000 rpm on a 95 motor?

Certainly not HP with its measly 145hp.

What makes it better than newer motors? Or is it infact not better than newer motors and it's only better when talking about other motors built around it's time.

I've heard it said before than the 4.9 is better because it's an inline. What difference does it make than it's an inline as opposed to a v? What specifically makes the 4.9 so much better?

I owned an 88 4.9 5speed and now have a 95 4.9 5speed. Idk what it is about this motor that I like, but I do like it. I've driven 5.0 5speed and it's a pretty snappy truck, but I think I'd still take my 4.9.

Okay, I'm done blabbing. Can someone tell me specifically what it is about the 4.9 that makes it better than other motors for towing or hauling?

 

As ive heard and been told.. The 4.9 is a diesel engine run off gasoline. (not literally of course) Yes, it has low HP but the torque is pretty high. Roughly a 4" bore and 4" stroke. Its a solid engine. In my opinion it is easy to work on and lately it seems to be one of a kind with the in line build whereas most are 'V' styles with the exception of the 4 bangers and the few in line 6's left from other manufacturers.

Not all you were looking for but thats my opinion and knowledge.

 

Well, this is a dangerous subject. 300 guys and v8 guys dont get alot well and they both will show up.

its not a diesel ran on gas, its just heavy duty.

Anyways. The 300 is a very heavy duty engine made to run with high power output for long periods of time. It is way over built, its simple, the block is heavy. Its got 7 main bearing vs. a v8's 5. Its low revving. All of this combines to make a super strong and long lasting engine.

Power wise, it doesnt make much HP, but it makes tons of torque at low rpms. Low rpm torque is much more usable in a truck. The reason it doesnt make the HP is because Hp take into account the RPM that the engine produces its peak torque. And the 300's peak torque is about 2400rpm, the lower rmp means a lower HP rating.

As for the actual design of the engine being an inline 6. the inline design allows the he engine to use all the power produced by the combustion of each individual cylinder.

I can go into more detail if you want. But hopefully this topic wont get out of hand.

 

More detail would be good. You say tons of torque in the low rpm range. Stats say 262 ft/lbs at 2000 rpm iirc. Yes that's low, but thats certainly not a lot. I would say 800 ft/lbs at 2000 rpm to be a lot.

 

800 ft/lbs at 2000 rpm is well into big diesel territory(8+ liters, maybe a well built 5.9 cummins). But for a 4.9 liter, much less a gas engine 262ft/lbs is very impressive. 262 ft/lbs is maybe the peak for a carbed. But the efi trucks are about 285 ft/lbs at 2600 rpm. As well as producing tons of torque below 2000 rpm.

The 300 being a 6 cylinder, fires three cylinders each rotation(360 degrees). So each cylinder pushes the crank 120 degrees. So it uses the combustion of each cylinder more efficiently. Which means more power using and equal or less fuel. But it also means that its slower. Because it takes longer before the next cylinder fires. A v8 fires a cylinder every 90 degrees. That means the engine moves much more quickly, but utilizes less of the power each combustion produces.

Now, in general, larger cylinders means more torque but a slower revving engine. Same for both I6 and V8. For example a 460, a huge piston with a long stroke, and is slow, but not as slow because of the engine geometry above. The 300 has a similar huge piston and a long stroke as well. Meaning even more torque on top of the I6 geometry.

all this put together means that the 300 really does produce alot of low end pulling torque. Iv pull 5k boats uphill at 500 rpm with even a hint of a problem. iv never had a problem moving any load, or pulling anything.

As for reliability, i dont have many personal stories, other then never having to touch the engine in 130,000 miles. But i have heard several stories of guys who run them without oil for long periods of time(50-100 miles), fixed the hole in the oil pan, filled it up and kept driving. I heard about a truck with a 300 traded in under cash for clunkers, they drained the oil, it ran for 45 min, they drained the coolant, it ran till it seized, then they filled the cylinders with water, it broke 3 rods and pistons and kept running on the other 3. And i know of many people who had driven these things for years with borken pistons and blow engines. Yet they run well enough for them not to suspect a problem. Until they go to rebuild it. then they see the damage.

These engines are legendary. My grandfather has stories about having one when he was young and the crazy things hes done. Everyone who actually knows about truck, knows of the 300. It was installed in industrial applications such as ag pump, pumping 2000 g/min at 200psi, that alot of water. They were used in stationary generator and such. all because they are super reliable.

sorry for such the long post. It alot of info and i hope it answers some of your question. and if it doesnt let me know.

 

fordman nailed the torque subject, no stock gasser engine puts out 800lb-ft. of torque, as stated i dont any diesel pick up engines get 800 lb-ft. stock, that is a well built cummins turbo diesel to get that...the new f450 is rated at 350 HP and 650 LB-FT TQ, this truck has the highest tow rating of any pick up on the market i believe

the 300 efi produces the same if not more torque than a 302 efi, but it produces it at about half the rpm of the 302 with 2 less pistons to make it meaning it is a more efficient truck engine, because trucks are heavy they need the power at lower RPM to get moving, this is why the inline build is more practical in a truck

as stated the inline uses the combustion more efficiently plus is much stronger built than v8s are , they are also easier to work on/cheaper to maintain as a result of having 2 less of almost everything and the block takes up much less room

the reason the I6 pulls better than similar sized v8s, even if the v8 has higher torque and horse numbers, look at the output RPM of those numbers, v8s need to wind up pretty high to hit their efficient power band and make those numbers, who tows or even drives around at 3500RPM?, the v8 of similar size will produce much less hp and torque at 2600 RPM which is where the I6 peaks out, again why it is more suited to a work engine

as fordman mentioned, these engines were designed with industrial heavy duty work in mind, i live in farmland and i have NEVER seen a v8 pump engine, all inline 6, my buddys swather is powered by the ford 300, along with about 80% of the older farm machinery around this area and about 95% of big rig engines are inline 6 because of their strength and efficiency at low rpm make them more practical than v8s

 

The 4.9 does an impressive job for what it is but the 351 is THE motor to have in these trucks unless you're into really heavy hauling.. then it's the 460 or diesel. The 5.8 produces as much torque as the 300 in stock form and it's way too easy to get lots more TQ and HP out of it, so why not have your cake and eat it too.

 

True, the 351 is a much more popular engine, mainly because its a V8 and its fast, so its has much more aftermarket. And as the saying goes, there is no replacement for displacement, and 50cid is alot. Although i do think a well turbo'd 300 could give a built 351 a run for its money. It would be interesting to see.

But in stock form both engines tow very well.

 

a supercharged 300 carbd produces 450 hp at 9psi? i think it was...that would be fuuuun

then again a 351 running a supercharger a 9psi would be pretty insane haha

way i look at it, the 351 is a 302 + a 300 and beefed up a bit...low end torque numbers with high rpm horse output, very capable engine, and MUCH more aftermarket and way cheaper to build than an I6, but as long as your foot is on the throttle you are watching the gas gauge move

 

I share everyone's love for these 300/4.9 I drove a telephone truck with one of these and it was a good engine. Had a Telco Company E100 carbureted 4.9 with 3.00 rear gears , 2.90 to one manual tranny first gear, and couldnt get the clutch to last more than 20K miles in city driving and 5000 pounds of truck and load!

I have driven 4.9s with better rear gearing and they do pull from idle to 40MPH as good or better than the 5.0.

But what I dont understand is that Ford rates the 4.9 as less than the 5.0 as a trailer puller. Given any rear stock gear ratio-the 5.0 will pull more than the 4.9 in FORD rated trailer pounds!!!

And Ford had to give the 4.9 a special cam to pull 2.73 gears-apparently Ford didnt think that this 4.9 would pull 2.73 gears with the standard cam. And/or Ford was doing everything possible to get EPA ratings of 19MPH Highway out of a full size pickup. (Today's new pickups only do slightly better).

The horsepower/torque of the 4.9 is:

150hp@ 3400RPM /260TQ@2000RPM standard cam
145hp@3400RPM /265@TQ2000RPM economy cam w 2.73 rear ratio

The horsepower/torque of the 5.0 is:

185hp@3800RPM/270TQ@2400RPM pre'95
205hp@4000RPM/275TQ@3000RPM post'94

Looking at these figures-I find it hard to understand how the torque peaks alone explain how these two engines seem to drive so much different. There is just 400RPM difference in peak torque.

I suspect that the 4.9 torque is much higher off idle than the 5.0 and a full dyno test would show this at engine speeds lower than peak torque speeds.

But even with the higher off idle initial torque-why does Ford rate the trailering capability of the 5.0 higher than the 4.9? Because higher peak horsepower and higher peak torque wins out.

 

because people want to see big horse power numbers, lots of people who buy trucks have no clue about torque and efficiency, dealers have to attract buyers so they put up the biggest horse power numbers they can make and then they find the towing numbers through mathematics rather than real world testing, it produces better numbers that attract more buyers...people think because it has more cylinders it should pull more and mathematically this is probably correct, but once you factor in the lower friction, higher efficiency, and slower engine speeds to the 300 the towing numbers would get higher...

look at the MPG rating for a carbd 300, they rate it a 30 MPG, think you get that in the real world, no you dont, you get that on a truck treadmill in absolute PERFECT controlled operating conditions to get the highest number possible, its all about marketing

 

The reason it is rated so low is because it was most often coupled with the 5speed and they underrated those to keep the clutch problems down. And with an auto you cant just smash on the skinny pedal until its turning 4K, Suprisingly it wont kill it but it sure doesnt like it.

But remember, this engine was put in trucks rated for up to 24000lbs, maybe more. Im not sure what the rating of the medium duty trucks were. I know there is one at the community college near me. And iv seen several F-series with them

 

i like mine bette rcause im runnin 33's on a 96 and still get 20 mpg.

 

The EPA MPG ratings of the 70's and 80's were just hopeless. They were not based on reality-and I agree-many people were disappointed if they believed them.

But I dont think that Ford would rate their powertrains with marketing in mind more than warranty issues when they rated what a 4.9 and 5.0 could safely pull in the Ford trailering guide.

It all depends on the total torque curve from idle to torque peak. And apparently Ford thought that the torque curve of the 5.0 was better.

I have driven both-and I too would have thought that the 4.9 was better from low/middle engine speed. It sure wasnt increased displacement that caused Ford to rate the 5.0 higher .

 

And you did recalibrate your PSOM/speedometer for the tall tires???