What do I need to know?
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Joined: Dec 2003
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From: Centerville, Iowa
What do I need to know?
I would like to start out by saying this appears to be a good, well laid-out forum, and like my other forum I'm a part of (a MN-12 forum), contains a number of knowledgable people.
This thread is going to be my request about what I need to know about these trucks. I'm going to soon be the owner of a F150 Standard Cab-Long box with the 300 Ci L6 and 5-Speed transmission. It's a 2x4, which is my only dissapointment. I'm buying it from my grandfather who has used it for the last 6 or 7 years as his daily driver 70+ miles to work, and occasionally to haul something (he had a F250 for that usually though). I believe he said it was an 88, but I can't be certain of that. What I was hoping to get from you all here is some general information on the components of these trucks. I know that the 300 Ci is bulletproof (a longtime friend of mine's dad has basically the same truck). I suppose that I will list out my questions about the truck. However, I would request that, after reading my question list, if there is some glaring fault that I haven't asked about, please make mention of it for me? I plan on becoming a knoweldgable person about F150's as I am with MN12's, Fox's, and some other Ford's.
Of note: the truck has not been getting driven much lately because my grandfather retired, and this being his transportation truck...that's why I'm getting it for a grand =).
Being a 2WD F150 with the 300Ci & 5-Speed what is the name of the transmission? Is there anything in particular that is weak? What should I do to beef it up besides an auxiliary Stack-type MTX fluid cooler?
The 300Ci is a reliable engine, I know this because a friend of mine has praised it for years about never breaking down and for being able to unload great amounts of torque off idle. Is there anything that goes wrong with it, though? Any emissions equipment that faults, or maybe fuel injectors...anything? Also, what are the maintenance cycles for this engine? I don't know how often plugs and all those other "tuneup" items require changing compared with a car. Is there anything I can do to "bulletproof" the engine by removing the weak spot(s).
What gearing do these have in the rear end usually? Should the rear end gear be changed in these? 3.73's? 4.10's? It already has 31" tires on it already that are less than a year old. On the subject of gearing and rear ends, what rear end do these have? I'm only familiar with the 7.5 and 8.8...do these have some other type of rear?
If a donor truck were available, how hard would it be to convert this one over to 4WD? The front axle & suspension, transfer case, and the like? What modifications would be required? How much torching would be done? Also a 4WD would have different expectancies, so would the rear end be any different? Stiffer springs or the like?
What are some modifications that can be done to bring the 300 up in power? I'm a High School Senior so I'm not going to be going and getting the heads done any sooner, but what are the smaller things you all do? Air Filter, Ignition, Plugs (range, manufacturer, etc), Wires, Distributor, TB, MAF (Do these have MAF's or are they Speed-Density?), and the like? Should I get a chip for it? Will that help, or will I only need a chip if I were to do a gear swap eventually?
What are some good websites that feature alot of products for these trucks? Exterior, Interior, Engine, Driveline, etc. I have not been able to really find a good site for these - and the whole range of different trucks and the small differences doesn't help.
One of the first things I want to do is the exhaust along with an intake. What do you all know sounds good on the 300 Six? I'd imagine having .8/Cylinder would give it a pretty throaty sound...but the inline setup and the fact it has just 6 cylinders, does this make it sound more on the whiny side? If it does, what can be done to null that some? I have a friend who will do a full custom exhaust job for me on it...what should I get for him to throw on? He has all he equipment for mandrel bending and the like at his workplace (Musco) and I'm not going to have a Cataylitc Converter when I get done with it...so what needs to be done? Should I run it back from the manifold with a resonator or high-flow muffler before the Split of the Y-Pipe, or what? Also, who makes decent mid-size headers for these? I just want to know what works. What size of tips should I get for it, as well. I want it loud, but not obnoxious. I guess that's more of a relative/subjective idea so...ya know =P.
I'm going to certainly go through and read many of the articles on this forum - hopefully I'll be able to quickly become relatively knoweldgable with your help. I know it bugs me on my other forum when people do these types of posts, but these are essential questions for me and I didn't see much that helped me with specifics on the first two pages of threads in this forum.
As to this truck I'm getting. It's two-toned blue and silver I believe, with some rust over the rear wheels and under one of the doors. Also he said the hood needed repainted...and he recently found the driver-side door window motor had gone. He's selling me the truck for 1000 dollars which I think is a pretty damn good price. It gets great mileage like it always has, and the clutch is still strong. I'm really happy about this, and I'll be even happier once I know a bit more.
For those of you who read all of this and help me out - thank you very much. Later...
This thread is going to be my request about what I need to know about these trucks. I'm going to soon be the owner of a F150 Standard Cab-Long box with the 300 Ci L6 and 5-Speed transmission. It's a 2x4, which is my only dissapointment. I'm buying it from my grandfather who has used it for the last 6 or 7 years as his daily driver 70+ miles to work, and occasionally to haul something (he had a F250 for that usually though). I believe he said it was an 88, but I can't be certain of that. What I was hoping to get from you all here is some general information on the components of these trucks. I know that the 300 Ci is bulletproof (a longtime friend of mine's dad has basically the same truck). I suppose that I will list out my questions about the truck. However, I would request that, after reading my question list, if there is some glaring fault that I haven't asked about, please make mention of it for me? I plan on becoming a knoweldgable person about F150's as I am with MN12's, Fox's, and some other Ford's.
Of note: the truck has not been getting driven much lately because my grandfather retired, and this being his transportation truck...that's why I'm getting it for a grand =).
Being a 2WD F150 with the 300Ci & 5-Speed what is the name of the transmission? Is there anything in particular that is weak? What should I do to beef it up besides an auxiliary Stack-type MTX fluid cooler?
The 300Ci is a reliable engine, I know this because a friend of mine has praised it for years about never breaking down and for being able to unload great amounts of torque off idle. Is there anything that goes wrong with it, though? Any emissions equipment that faults, or maybe fuel injectors...anything? Also, what are the maintenance cycles for this engine? I don't know how often plugs and all those other "tuneup" items require changing compared with a car. Is there anything I can do to "bulletproof" the engine by removing the weak spot(s).
What gearing do these have in the rear end usually? Should the rear end gear be changed in these? 3.73's? 4.10's? It already has 31" tires on it already that are less than a year old. On the subject of gearing and rear ends, what rear end do these have? I'm only familiar with the 7.5 and 8.8...do these have some other type of rear?
If a donor truck were available, how hard would it be to convert this one over to 4WD? The front axle & suspension, transfer case, and the like? What modifications would be required? How much torching would be done? Also a 4WD would have different expectancies, so would the rear end be any different? Stiffer springs or the like?
What are some modifications that can be done to bring the 300 up in power? I'm a High School Senior so I'm not going to be going and getting the heads done any sooner, but what are the smaller things you all do? Air Filter, Ignition, Plugs (range, manufacturer, etc), Wires, Distributor, TB, MAF (Do these have MAF's or are they Speed-Density?), and the like? Should I get a chip for it? Will that help, or will I only need a chip if I were to do a gear swap eventually?
What are some good websites that feature alot of products for these trucks? Exterior, Interior, Engine, Driveline, etc. I have not been able to really find a good site for these - and the whole range of different trucks and the small differences doesn't help.
One of the first things I want to do is the exhaust along with an intake. What do you all know sounds good on the 300 Six? I'd imagine having .8/Cylinder would give it a pretty throaty sound...but the inline setup and the fact it has just 6 cylinders, does this make it sound more on the whiny side? If it does, what can be done to null that some? I have a friend who will do a full custom exhaust job for me on it...what should I get for him to throw on? He has all he equipment for mandrel bending and the like at his workplace (Musco) and I'm not going to have a Cataylitc Converter when I get done with it...so what needs to be done? Should I run it back from the manifold with a resonator or high-flow muffler before the Split of the Y-Pipe, or what? Also, who makes decent mid-size headers for these? I just want to know what works. What size of tips should I get for it, as well. I want it loud, but not obnoxious. I guess that's more of a relative/subjective idea so...ya know =P.
I'm going to certainly go through and read many of the articles on this forum - hopefully I'll be able to quickly become relatively knoweldgable with your help. I know it bugs me on my other forum when people do these types of posts, but these are essential questions for me and I didn't see much that helped me with specifics on the first two pages of threads in this forum.
As to this truck I'm getting. It's two-toned blue and silver I believe, with some rust over the rear wheels and under one of the doors. Also he said the hood needed repainted...and he recently found the driver-side door window motor had gone. He's selling me the truck for 1000 dollars which I think is a pretty damn good price. It gets great mileage like it always has, and the clutch is still strong. I'm really happy about this, and I'll be even happier once I know a bit more.
For those of you who read all of this and help me out - thank you very much. Later...
