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Hi everyone. New to the forum here. I am wanting to swap a Brazilian 7.8 into a Ford Super Duty truck and am looking for info regarding parts availability and performance upgrades. I have heard parts are hard to find so please let me know if im better off going with a DT 360 International or something. Im also curious if 5-600 HP is attainable with the 7.8? I am quite certain the engine itself can handle that its just the question of how to achieve that. I know the pump can be turned up but that probably isnt going to satisfy my hunger for sheer diesel power lol. Thanks in advance for any input. Marcus
Not sure you're going to meet that HP level with either engine, but the 7.8 has a limited following compared to IH motor, or the Powerstroke engines, or especially a Cummins.
Most of the threads here are regarding just keeping them running. This one has a link in post 2 that might be of interest. But unless you already have a good engine to start with, I would start with something else:
I always liked the Ford New Holland diesels, but they were large, heavy, underpowered boat anchors. About the most they were good for was 250 h.p. in a Ford truck. Not sure how much more you could expect to get out of one. Mounting one in a Super Duty pickup would be tough. I think it would be too heavy and you would have to do a lot of cutting to the firewall to make it fit. What would you use for a transmission? An International DT would present similar problems, though I know there are folks out there who have been able to turn those up a bit. A 5.9L Cummins would by far be a better choice and through the aftermarket it's practically a bolt in deal. Make as much power as you got the coin to buy.
It’s hard enough to find original equipment Ford 7.8 parts much less performance parts. Everything you do will have to be cobbling together custom parts. It can be done if you have bottomless pockets that motor has been used in tractor pulling I’m sure we’ll north of 500hp. There is YouTube videos of a guy with a 7.8 in a superduty called the twisted Brazilian. The 5.9 Cummins is the small block Chevy of Diesel engines, they are cheap, plentiful and you can order everything you need online right now to make that kind of power. The 7.8 could be had from the factory at 275hp though they are very rare to find one. The 215, 240, and 275 hp models all use a Bosch p7100 pump that is easy to play with so I would think you could get nearly 300hp by playing with the pump and the timing. The 7.8 was set up from the factory to be good on fuel and last 100’s of thousands of miles so yes they are sluggish in original form. 5-600 hp will be a very expensive game of trial and error.
The best overall swap is go with a Cummins, a 5.9 makes good power and the 6.7 can be converted to mechanical pump at a cost
Although the Ford and IH engines are used in tractor pulling and will make big power, finding adapter plates and conversion components to swap them into a pickup chassis is very limited and engine compartment space will become a issue.
The Ford 6.6 and 7.8 along with IH DT360 and DT466 are longer, taller and heavier than the Cummins, I have a 5.9 in my Super Duty and can tell you there's not much room for a longer engine without cutting and remaking the firewall.
Don't get caught up in the hp bug unless you just want a race truck or limited daily usage truck, any kind of heavy towing with a single turbo about 350 hp from a 5.9 12 valve will get you 600 - 700 lb ft torque and maintainable EGT's, with compound turbo's you can add another 50-75 hp and 100+ lb ft before EGT's get out of control.
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Ford 7.8 Questions
