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how hard would it be to swap my 1976 f250 2wd to 4wd. i have 4 speed trans.with 400 motor. Also thinking about putting a non intercooled cummins motor in it with 5 speed.
Generally it is not worth the hassle. You'd be WAY better off selling the truck and buying one that is already 4x4. The only reason to convert to 4x4 is if the truck has very strong sentimental value and money is less of a concern. Even then, it's easier to body swap.
If you want the Cummins, etc. I would just buy the donor Dodge and swap the body onto it... then it's easy to find parts for the drive train in the future.
Not hard if you have lots of $, can weld like no other and can fabricate with your eyes closed.
So in all reality X2 on just what Fordcrzymike said. Get a doner 4x4 chassis with all the running gear and do a body swap in a weekend with a few friends, and be back on the road in no time.
Yes for the most part, front clip and cab easy, but a 73-77 Highboy F250 truck has a narrower rear frame section. So depending on what application bed you have you either drill new holes in the bed or weld some frame brackets to use the original 76 HB bed holes. Does that make sense?
Alright so I bought a 79 f250 4x4 with divorced transfer case. I'm going to do a body swap is there any modifications I would have to do? The body is a 76 single cab long bed same at the 79.
Alright so I bought a 79 f250 4x4 with divorced transfer case. I'm going to do a body swap is there any modifications I would have to do? The body is a 76 single cab long bed same at the 79.
As Shane already stated; no 79 would have a divorced transfercase. Other indications of a highboy would be the low front-most crossmember, ram assist steering, thick front leaf pack (I want to say seven leafs?), 4" narrower rear frame section, 2.5" wide rear leaf springs, in cab fuel tank, and obviously the divorced transfercase. If it is a highboy frame, mounting the bed should be the only tricky part. the rest should be fairly straight-forward. Personally I think Highboys are over-rated. I would rather have a "lowboy" with true power steering, and a married transfercase. Post some pictures of the truck and we will be able to tell you real quick where or not it's actually a 79 frame.
As Shane already stated; no 79 would have a divorced transfercase. Other indications of a highboy would be the low front-most crossmember, ram assist steering, thick front leaf pack (I want to say seven leafs?), 4" narrower rear frame section, 2.5" wide rear leaf springs, in cab fuel tank, and obviously the divorced transfercase
. If it is a highboy frame, mounting the bed should be the only tricky part. the rest should be fairly straight-forward. Personally I think Highboys are over-rated. I would rather have a "lowboy" with true power steering, and a married transfercase. Post some pictures of the truck and we will be able to tell you real quick where or not it's actually a 79 frame.
Alright so I bought a 79 f250 4x4 with divorced transfer case. I'm going to do a body swap is there any modifications I would have to do? The body is a 76 single cab long bed same at the 79.
Would it be easier to swap everything under the Frame or do a body swap?
You can't just swap the running gear. For one, the 4x4s use a leaf spring front suspension while the 2wds are coils, so you'll have to fabricate all the hangers, shackles, crossmembers, linkages, modify the steering, etc. So unless you are a GREAT fabricator this is way more work than it's worth. It is NOT a bolt in swap! As we've said several times now, it will be MUCH easier to swap over the body. Bodies should swap with very minimal fabricating. All you might need to do is modify the trans tunnel. The rest is essentially bolting everything together. You'll probably want to have a torch. There is sure to be a bunch of rusty bolts that will give you trouble.
