When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Like Fordman75 and YoGeorge said... Work on freshening it up and enjoy driving it like it is for now. Depending on your style of driving, you might like it.
What kine of off roading do you plan on doing with the van once you have it ready and the interior built into a camper?
My van has a 5.0, AOD, and 3.73 gears and does fine for my style of driving. I have had my van packed with camping equipment, 8 people, pulling a small loaded trailer, and traveled 50 to 60 miles on gravel roads in the N GA mountains and never had a problem getting around in it except for being careful not to overheat the brakes on the down hills. But my van is a E150 with smaller brakes then your van.
My son changes the oil for me and he has plenty of room under the van without jacking it up.
I also used a tow dolly to pull a 3,300 lb Buick from Johnsonville TN to my house in the N GA mountains, around 220 miles with no problems at all. So the little 5.0 may surprise you depending on your style of driving.
There is a big weight difference between a E150 and a E250. Especially when the E250 is a 4x4. I would say the E250 4x4 would be at least 2000 lbs. heavier then your E150. This is the only E250 I've ever seen with a 5.0L. Most that I see are either 4.9L or 5.8L with a few with a 460 or 6.9L/7.3L IDI diesel. I've seen quite a few light duty late 80's F250's with a 5.0L including the one I owned. But never the E250.
Fordman75, I agree GemNT's E250 should be a lot heavier then my E150 but according to the GVWR they is only 1,100 difference. I would think it should be a bigger difference. I have thought about possibly swapping to a 5.8 if my 5.0 goes out one day because it is a bit more peppy. It might even increase the fuel mileage being able to pull the van with less effort. As to the 7.5 (460), While I wold like the extra power if needed, It is a completely different animal from the 5.0 and 5.8 if much harder to work on since it fills up the engine bay area. Also the 460 requires a lot more emissions from what I have seen. I believe it uses 2 air injection pumps also. So being in California GemNT will have to do his homework on just what is allowable. I have only heard that everything has to be factory as far as the emissions goes. I wold guess that if he went with a 460, at minimum it would have to have all of the factory emissions parts connected and functioning.
I am going to quote GemNT's post with his decal and past mine below it to compare the differences in weight. The factory decal could be before the conversion.. My rear springs are not factory as I ordered new spring bushings and they did not fit. So something is different on my rear springs.
My 96 E250 5.8L powered van is a 2wd and weighs 7700lbs. And it's a gutted cargo van with 700 pounds of tools and supplies.
I would never suggest swapping a 460 into any van. I know there are people that love them. But I've owned one ( 79 E350 ) . It was miserable to work on. And having to pull one out of a van is a nightmare! I know because I had to do it. I will never own another one. The 460 is a great engine with lots of potential for increasing it's power/torque. But just not in a van. The 351W is bad enough to work on in a van. There's a reason I want to swap a built 300 into my E350 in place of the 351W.
The conversion decal is on the left. And the low GVWR is partly due to the engine. GVWR is different from curb weight.
My 96 E250 5.8L powered van is a 2wd and weighs 7700lbs. And it's a gutted cargo van with 700 pounds of tools and supplies.
I would never suggest swapping a 460 into any van. I know there are people that love them. But I've owned one ( 79 E350 ) . It was miserable to work on. And having to pull one out of a van is a nightmare! I know because I had to do it. I will never own another one. The 460 is a great engine with lots of potential for increasing it's power/torque. But just not in a van. The 351W is bad enough to work on in a van. There's a reason I want to swap a built 300 into my E350 in place of the 351W.
The conversion decal is on the left. And the low GVWR is partly due to the engine. GVWR is different from curb weight.
Im on my first full size van and the 460 is also new to me but I can say without a close second that my van is the easiest vehicle I have ever worked on. I've never had such access to every single angle of a motor/trans/TC as well as the complete undercarriage. With that being said my motor is completely desmogged and the AC has been deleted which opens it up considerably. It's registered as a vintage vehicle which requires no emissions test and a annual registration of $10 at 40 years old. I'd just rock your van as is for a while before making drastic changes
This doesn't mean you should not post here with your observations. A lot of us here would love to own your van and as a long time van guy I'm pretty near the front of the line
If you have a warranty on the engine, that's the last thing you want to lose by changing the engine or modifying it. Go after the safety and functional stuff first. I drove big vans for 30 years and never had to jack one up for an oil change.
I have a really clean '91 BMW 318is garage queen/hobby car that I've owned since 1994 in the garage, so I'm very aware of how time deteriorates seals and rubber parts.
That’s also on the list, the front driver and passenger window seals are completely destroyed, I’ll be shopping for those later today.
Like Fordman75 and YoGeorge said... Work on freshening it up and enjoy driving it like it is for now. Depending on your style of driving, you might like it.
What kine of off roading do you plan on doing with the van once you have it ready and the interior built into a camper?
My van has a 5.0, AOD, and 3.73 gears and does fine for my style of driving. I have had my van packed with camping equipment, 8 people, pulling a small loaded trailer, and traveled 50 to 60 miles on gravel roads in the N GA mountains and never had a problem getting around in it except for being careful not to overheat the brakes on the down hills. But my van is a E150 with smaller brakes then your van.
My son changes the oil for me and he has plenty of room under the van without jacking it up.
I also used a tow dolly to pull a 3,300 lb Buick from Johnsonville TN to my house in the N GA mountains, around 220 miles with no problems at all. So the little 5.0 may surprise you depending on your style of driving.
That’s good to know, even if the weights are different, I’m slowly starting to feel more confident in the 5L. Thanks for that!
I mainly plan on doing some road trips throughout the south-west, light off-roading, some uphill but I definitely don’t want to take it through any obstacles lol.
I’m also hoping to go to Baja to surf, which believe is fairly flat near the coast. There are some rough roads and soft spots down there, beaches, rocks, mud etc. Which this should handle well. I don’t plan on having more than 4 ppl total in the van, and definitely no towing, at least for now.
Here is some more miscellaneous information I came across since I was curious about the weight differences. It appears that in 1990 there were 3 different ratings used on the E250. The highest rating is the 11/12 passenger E250 cumming in at 8550 GVW. What I don't know is if the 11/12 passenger van was 138" wheel base or the extended van. I think the 138 wb van is long enough to be used as a 11/12 passenger van. Anyway they were all E250 vans but with different suspension ratings.
FORD CERTIFICATION PLATE DECODING https://my.hollandersolutions.com/do...fication+Plate
1990 Econoline PAGE 89
E21P Ford Van E250 Reg 11/12Pass Van 8550 GVW
E241 Ford Van E250 Reg Cargo Van,138” WB 7200 GVW
E242 Ford Van E250 Reg Cargo Van,138” WB 7900 GVW
This Hennessey Takes the Expedition Tremor's Off-Roading Capability to the Next Level
Slideshow: The VelociRaptor Expedition gains a lift, upgraded suspension, Brembo brakes, and trail-ready equipment while retaining the stock 440-horsepower EcoBoost V6.
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalyptic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Slideshow: Called the Fortress, the 850-horsepower pickup combines Raptor underpinnings with military-inspired features, survival equipment, and a starting price of $285,000.
