Hey everyone!

Been around the FTE forums for a while but never registered. I'd like to get some different opinions on a project I have going.

My dad has a 2006 F-250 5.4 3v that spun a rod bearing at 107,383 miles. He's never been thrilled with the performance of it (told him he should have gotten the 6.0 when he bought the truck new, but why listen to a 15 yr old ). We've been throwing around a couple different ideas for engine swaps since the 5.4 is dead. We scored a 5.4 2V Lightning engine, but after trying to figure out transmission controllers or if we'd be able to tune the stock PCM for the 2v, we've put the project on hold.

Recently, I've been trying to convince him to do a diesel swap over the L-motor. I have a friend selling a cheap 99 7.3 with trans, PCM, harness, intercooler, piping and other misc stuff. Would that harness generally be plug and play with the body of the 06? Would it be more worthwhile to try to find a 6.0 from 05-07 and swap everything over?

I've also been considering a Cummins swap, although I haven't gone much past looking at complete engines on eBay and Craigslist. Would this be the better route, and just get a standalone controller for the 5R110?

So I'm looking for other's opinions. Should we go 7.3, 6.0 or Cummins? Should we stick with gas over diesel? Try to make the Lightning motor work? Or just go back with a stock 5.4 3V? I should say, he won't sell the truck for whatever reason, so he's not worried about resale or anything. We're in Michigan, so we don't have to worry about emissions. And we're fairly mechanically inclined, so I'm not too worried about doing the swaps, however my knowledge on diesels is limited.

Any help would be appreciated!

 

Sorry, can't really answer, but having a donor truck, or getting a kit with all the parts required (I think there IS a Cummins kit available) IS THE way to go.

The 05+ dash/electronics are NOT interoperable with pre-'05 engines/trans/electronics. The 7.3 only was available through 2003.5
The 05+ 5.4 had the 5R110 trans, while the 7.3 came with the 4r100.

The electronics is the "problem", nothing is "compatible" - hence swapping "everything", or having a KIT with the correct electronics is the way to go.
Sticking with GAS lets you reuse your fuel tank and plumbing, otherwise they TO need to be replaced, the electronics also controls the transmission, so you'll need to swap the trans PLUS electronics as well.

 

I'll be the first to say it this time. You're best off fixing the truck and selling it (or just selling it) and buying the truck you want. It's awful hard to make the time, effort, and money balance on such a project.

 

How bout a V10(&deep gears)? You'll get the HP and keep some of yer stuff...

 

Thanks for the replies! Wanted to give an update to where I'm at.

I talked to my friend with the 7.3. The truck is complete still, and all they want off it is axles and a few body panels. Drivetrain, fuel system, and electronics are all in tact.

However, after looking into it a bit more, the CAN system is so integrated on the 06 that I don't really see a way around not using the stock PCM. Without that, we'd lose ABS, trailer brakes, possibly anti-theft/keyless entry, etc. So to save a lot of time, money, and headaches, we're going to rebuild the 5.4. Going to look into a stronger rotating assembly so we can add forced induction in the future to help with the lack of power.

Thanks for the help everyone!