I've been looking for a utilitarian truck for about 8 months, and after dealing with two flaky sellers, I finally got one. A 1995 F-350, 351W, 4x4, MT. My only disappointment so far is that it's a king cab, but when you are unwilling to own anything with an automatic transmission, you sometimes have to compromise on other specs (or wait for a very long time).

I got a great deal on the truck because the clutch hydraulics were totally shot, so I had it taken directly to the shop to get a full clutch job. Now that that's done, I wonder if folks could give me some tips on small tasks that don't cost much in terms of time or money but help increase performance or reliability. I've never owned a Ford product before, and only one 'Murrican car out of 15 previous vehicles.

• Notoriously failure-prone components to inspect/replace/upgrade immediately?

• Cool/rare parts I should keep my eye out for during my weekly junkyard strolls?

• Useless or power-robbing crap (e.g., emissions & safety) I can remove?

• Aftermarket mods that have become almost standard practice to perform because they correct some stupid engineering compromise made at the factory?

Thanks!

 

Nice score! See, I compromised the other way, I got an AT truck because it was low mileage. As far as all of the questions go, I have no real idea, but do post pictures.

 

Take a poke through this recent thread
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...old-truck.html

 

For what it's worth, "King Cab" is a name specific to Datsun mini trucks (it might have carried over to when Datsun became Nissan). So yours is either a SuperCab (the Ford name for what Datsun called a King Cab, a small back seat and only 2 doors) or a crew cab (a full size back seat and 4 doors). I think I've heard that there were no F-350 SuperCabs with single rear wheels, and that there were no factory F-350 duallies with 4WD, which makes me guess your's is a crew cab with single rear wheels.

As to the scarcity of manual trannies, I hear ya. I looked for a gas-powered crew cab with a manual for 3 years. Finally compromised on an auto and found one in 1 month.

Personally I don't think that either emissions or safety is useless (I like being able to breath without a dust mask like you so often see in pictures of people in big Chinese cities, and living to drive another day is always a good thing in my book). Also I don't think any of the emissions or safety stuff on these trucks robs much, if any, power. The exceptions would be worn out stuff that needs servicing. A plugged plugged cat will hurt, but a high-flow aftermarket cat will keep the emissions intact without hurting power. And a seized air pump will cause drag, but unless it is seized it probably isn't hurting much.

The only way I can see to help power by deleting safety stuff would be to remove the bumpers to cut weight, but I really don't see that as a good idea.

 

Already read it before posting, but thanks. That one mostly contained generic tasks that apply to just about any vehicle over 15-20 years old. I was kind of hoping to solicit highly year/model-specific tips that most enthusiast forums tend to accumulate. Fictitious example: "If you have the throttle body built in Kalamazoo from 1992-1994, which is identified by stamped code "XYZ", you will want to replace it because it doesn't open a full 90 degrees and has a defective return spring. Use the throttle body off a 1989-1992 Econoline van with the 385 motor; or for the best bolt-on improvement, the TB off the 1985 Opel Manta. Only the red Mantas with grey interior had the correct TB to fit the F-350 manifold." I don't know if this is the kind of forum where folks are obsessive restomodders and junkyard scavengers, but I sure am. When I own a vehicle, every part/nut/bolt either gets upgraded, rebuilt, or cleaned. I also get a kick out of finding those rare factory options in the junkyard that nobody ordered when new.

My truck is a single-wheel, 4-door variant. Don't get me wrong about the emissions/safety thing. I generally leave cats and O2 sensors in place, and I don't remove stuff unless it is going to make the car better. "Safer" and "cleaner" are not inherently better in my judgment, but they are tiebreakers when weighing two courses of action. Hence, if there is nothing to be gained by making a modification, but doing so will reduce safety/cleanliness, then I will leave it alone. Some safety-related things really **** me off, like clutch pedal interlocks on the starter, seatbelt and door reminder chimes, daytime running lights, gas tank anti-siphoning devices, and when the introduction of airbags caused some manufacturers to delete steering column adjustability in order to fit airbags in the middle of a model run.