To start off, is a 2wd to 4wd conversion even possible without spending lot of extra money? I'm looking to convert a 2wd f250 extended cab to a 4wd. It has a 400M and a C6 auto in it and a Dana 60 rear axle. I can get a Dana 44 front axle for pretty cheap. Is this all I need? If it is, would the bolt pattern for the wheels be the same (8 bolt rear 8 bolt front)? Thanks for your help I'm still new to this.

 

This comes up every couple weeks. You should search this forum to find out way more than you care to, but here's a quick rundown on my experience with a 4wd conversion:

It is quite possible, and the actual method is up to you. To use your existing frame, however, there's some obstacles. First, the steering is behind the axle on the 2wd and in front on the 4wd. Second, the engine crossmember hangs down, so you will need significant lift to clear the axle.

Now for my experience. When you tear into an old truck, things that work fine before you rip into it suddenly don't want to work anymore, so to answer your question, no, it isn't really cheap to convert to 4wd

 

ok thanks that's all I needed to know because I'm looking at a super cab for $800 but it's only a 2wd. I was looking for a solid 4x4 for winter so was hoping it would be cheap to do a conversion.

 

I also looked into this for my 77 2wd. As Ted said, your biggest obstacle will be the crossmember under the engine. It would be a pretty large undertaking and a lot of fab work. And Ted said it perfectly about good parts that stop working!

 

man I would echo what the others have said-I have a 2wd supercab F250, and a 4wd F350 and 4wd F250 and am currently figuring out the easiest way to make a 4wd supercab. But I do not need the trucks up and running anytime soon. I'd probably just find a 4wd. I got the supercab in a trade for some work so its just a project deal. Good Luck

 

The 2WD frame and the 4WD frames are different. The easiest (which happens to be the cheapest way) is to buy a 4WD truck. For the record you can do anything you want with a vehicle. All it takes is money.

 

I found an article at 4Wheel & Offroad. The basic recipe is a divorced NP205 out of a Dodge, Dana 44 from a Chevy, Ford hubs and rotors, fabricated links and Heims, driveshafts, a rear lift, and King shocks. Take a look at that suspension travel. The article also includes a tools, parts, and materials list.

1979 Ford F-150 4x4 & Off Road Project Truck - 4Wheel & Off-Road

Yes it takes money but careful parts buying can not only get ya 4WD but a capable suspension as well.

 

Don't bother...way too many fiddly things to change...and get right. I'd just shop for a 4wd. I guarantee you'll be much happier.

 

If you found a wrecked or rotted truck, you could swap the body on to a 4wd chassis. I bought a chassis from a friend on here for $300. (frame, trans, transfer, axles, suspension, etc.) I sold my 2wd chassis to a guy building a rat rod for $250. Is $50 cheap enough?

Everybody keeps saying the vin goes with the frame, not the body. There are two prominent ID tags on the body. I searched for two days with a wire wheel and flash light on a bare frame with no body or engine and never found ANY vin stamped in the frame. I guess my chassis slipped through without getting stamped.

 

There are 2 stamped spots in the frame. From all the trucks I've looked at (8-10) they seem to be stamped pretty light though and I could see how in the rust belt the numbers could easily go away with even surface rust.

Here in CA though it's typically pretty easy to find the #'s with our clean frames.

 

I'm not in the rust belt.



I didn't see it. I looked very hard for a long time. It's not there.

I could clearly see the ink stamp on the trans, but the stamped vin in the frame wasn't ever there. The whole passenger side frame rail was clean and smooth. It was never stamped.

 

Did you look for the 2nd one????

 

It was my understanding that there's one by the alternator on the passenger side frame rail, and one under the cab on the passenger side frame rail. It wouldn't matter. As I said, After I spent days cleaning the frame, I walked, crawled and climbed all over that frame with a flashlight searching for any vin stamp. It wasn't stamped. If you can find a vin on the frame, I'll give you a dollar.

 

A dollar after covering all the traveling expenses???

If you can't find it you can't find it, but if it's not stamped then it was most likely ground or rusted off.


As for the 2 locations:
They are both on the pass side.

1 is typically between the front cab mount and shock mount/coil bucket, but I've also seen them between the coil bucket & core support mount.

The 2nd is about under where the passengers butt would be if sitting in the seat. Although I've seen them up as far as the foot area.

 

Did you have any luck with your conversion? I'm in the same boat myself and was looking for some help.

Mike