I purchased an 89 F250 over the summer 5.0, 5spd, 4x4 for $350. I bought the truck knowing it had frame issues. So here when I get my tax return I'm thinking about pulling a parts truck out of a junk yard. That'll take care of my frame and bed issues.

My big thing is the motor. Im just not sure if the 302 will have enough for me. I work for a family owned construction business and I live on a farm so the truck will get WORKED. The 302 has an RV cam, port and polished heads, and a full rebuild with all new internals minus the crank. Personally I want something bigger like a 351 or IDI diesel so I can hook it to the gooseneck and still be able to afford to drive it.

I really haven't got to drive the truck a lot. I've noticed that it's a lot smoother than my 300. I'm just afraid it wont be enough for me.

Do you guys that have 302s in trucks like them?

 

its hard to say. For a work motor I would pick a 300 over a 302 any day.

If you do alot of pulling I would go with somthing even bigger than a 351.

Dont get me wrong I love ford small blocks. I own a 300, 302, 351C, and a 460 big block.

A 300 with low gears and a 5speed does great.

IDI Diesels are great. not alot of power but they have great reliability

ever think of a 12v cummins?

 

I was looking for an IDI because they're original to the truck, they sound badass, and they're obsolete. I like old stuff.

I will probably offend some people by saying this but, honestly, I don't care. It's just my opinion and you can take your little internet fights and go away, but anyhow. I would never desecrate a Ford by hopping on the Cummins bandwagon. It'd be different, but every douchebag around here has a Cummins.

 

get a 460 there easy to get your hands on, cheap, and has plenty of power if you need to tow anything heavy and by what you said hooking something to a goose neck i am guessing you will pulling a good amount. A 351 could do it but i would rather have a 460 if i had to pull anything. Also a good set of gears will help pulling alot. I have a 95 f150 ext. cab with the 351w (basically a light duty f250 ) and 3.55 gears and anything over 3500-4000 pounds i wouldnt even think about towing. The power rating is like 225hp and 325 tq so your 302 probably has mybe 180hp tops? Wont really be able to get that f250 moving muchless tow anything... Also with a few upgrades to that 460 (cam., headers, full exhaust for basics) you will be extremely happy when you start towing anything.

 

I know alot of people do a cummins swap. Its not like dodge owns cummin, they just contact out to them. Ford use to have a large amout of stock in Cummins.

I have drove a IDI 7.3, it felt sluggish, but it did work

Personally if your going to do that much work to a truck I would put a 12v in it.

But then again your project I dont have to work on it

 

I was thinking of a 460, but my big thing is still being able to afford to drive it. My half ton is going off the road here hopefully within the next month or two. Then after that, I'll have my choice of whatever goes in this truck or a 390 in a 77 F150. So I'm pretty much boned.

My uncle has a 95 F250 with a 351W auto 4x4 and we use it to pull the gooseneck. The trailer itself weighs a good 2500. then we either have the skid steer with is maybe 5 ton or 10 round bales that weigh about 1000 a piece. It pulls, granted it's slow as ****. But I was thinking maybe if I put a cam, headers and exhaust in/on a 351W if it would make enough difference and still be economical?

 

Honestly, I do like the Cummins motor. My dad had one in a Peterbilt and there wasn't **** that truck wouldn't pull (or pass, haha).

They're great motors. Reliable and a good bit of power. But like i said, every douchebag around here has one. And they all think they're special. Funny thing is, a lot of the kids that drive them have their parents pay for them, lol.

I would rather not be associated with them above. This is a pride over performance motor swap haha

 

economy and v8 should never go in the same sentence.

Adding power adders such as a cam will just cause you to burn more fuel.

If you want more torque dont polish the heads. All the pitting in the metal helps mix fuel and air, polished heads only work properly in high rpm/ high hp applications.

Long intake runners will accelorate the air building torque at lower rpm, but suffer hp at high rpm.

RV cam's dont open as much as a rpm cam, building more torque

Larger more efficent exsaust will allow the engine to breath easyer.

Lower gears will give you good grunt, also a close ratio tranny would help with pulling to.

But then again dont listen to me, Im only 19

 

It's cool because I am, too. haha. you know more about it than me.

 

lol,

its amazing when you work on your own stuff how much you can learn, Im doing a SAS on my truck: https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...ml#post9943161


to be honost any 460 after 1974 is trash. I have a 1969 460 D0VE-A block going in my 74 ranchero, stock was 365hp, we are building for 500+hp.

keep my posted on your build

 

The 302 is a bit small for a work truck.. though if it has gears(4.10s) you may be surprised at how well it does. Another thing is that RV cam may not be compatable with the stock EFI system, it needs a steady vacuum signal to operate smoothly so a cam you would select for a carbed setup won't work here. There are several cams available that will work however.. and deliver lots more power than stock, just don't expect any grunt below 2000rpm.

A 351 is probably the best overall engine for a part time work truck, it can make nearly as much power as a stock 460 with a few minor upgrades and get reasonable fuel milage when unloaded, it will bolt right in where the 302 was and use the exact same wiring harness, just need to plug in a 5.8 computer. I have had both motors in my truck and the 5.8 has a much better truck powerband with quite a bit more grunt from idle up.

 

My buddy's dad is the one that built the motor (i bought the truck off my buddy's uncle) and he's a good mechanic. Let's just say he builds drag cars. So I don't doubt his abilities a single bit. lol

Would I still get decent fuel economy if I dropped in a 351 and installed headers/exhausts and bolt on mods and regeared the truck to have 4.10s? Or does that idea totally not make sense? You'll have to pardon me. I'm a parts changer, not a mechanic, haha.

 

I towed a 5000 lb car from UT to PA with mine. It has 4.10 gearing and it pulled through the mountains of WY decently.

The wife blew a head gasket on it and Im replacing with another 5.0

 

I don't doubt that the engine is well put together, but a cam you would select for drag racing is NOT what you want in a work truck.. especially one with an undersized engine, and that is a completely seperate matter from making it compatable with the stock EFI system.

Generally the bigger the motor the more gas it will consume just driving around.. all else being equal. However it has been my experience that the 351 gets better milage than the 302 in these trucks.. because it doesn't have to work as hard(rev) to push that much weight around.

 

An F250 with a 300/6 and the right gearing would be great for a work horse and daily driving. A truck that is going to do towing needs low end torque more than high end horsepower. I realize you don't get the cool dual exhaust sound and all that stuff, but that 300/6 is the best all around work it/daily driver engine Ford made, in my opinion.