has anyone on this site ever tried to swap in a 3208 cat into a ford pu.
i have couple lying around and thought it might be a intresting swap.

 

well, if they're just lying around and you want to see one installed, send one to me

 

these motors are heavy,they are also down on power compared to most light truck diesels.but i think it would look awsome to pop the hood on my 72 250 and see that yellow kittey purrin away.

 

you could pull a house off the foundation though. awhile back i saw a thread on diesels in our trucks and theyhad info an a company that did the conversion but it was pricey i think about 10 grand. im sure if you had the knowledge and the parts you could do it alot cheaper .

 

I don't know all that much about diesels, but if they are underpowered compared to most light truck diesels why would anyone want to do it? Seems that a bigger heavier engine with less power is not a good deal any way you look at it.

 

Oh LORDY.............you couldn't get enough spring under the nose of a pickup to hold that monster UP!!!! We're talkin several THOUSAND pounds there....not 500 lbs of big block Ford. Let alone a tranny too!!! I don't think you could FOLD the fenders around it enough to get it to fit either.

Yes, the 3208 is not a powerhouse(compared to motors today)....but way too much of a motor for a pickup. Some guys have put Cummins or such in these trucks...but a V8 Diesel (from a big rig) is a bit too much in my opinion.

BTW...most earlier 3208 were White in color.

 

the cat motor in question is out of a gmc/chevy topkick.its really not all that big.maybe i got the numbers wrong?this motor is nowere nere as big as lets say a 671 detroit.

 

Dave, A lot of big 6 wheelers used the 3208. Take a close look at the front axle & springs of the topkick, and then look at your pickup. If memory serves, most of those big trucks have leaf springs on the front that are larger than the rear ones on the pickup.

It might be cool to build a super pickup on a big truck chassis, but your pickup can't handle the big engine/tranny combo that you are looking at.

John

 

My buddy put a 3208 cat into a 70 International schoolbus that he's camperized. That thing is a TIGHT fit!! He uses it to pull his four wheeler and was pretty happy with the power. Then he pulled the injectors cause it was smoking a bit much and discovered 4 out of the 8 weren't even working! It should snort pretty good now.

 

i've seen one truck on ebay with one of these diesel motors in it. it was called the "momba" or some kind of snake name like that. it was a 76 ford f350 with the springs or a semi. the whole front end was filled up with motor. it sold for about 35k i don't know exactly what kind of diesel motor that was in it, but it was a monster!

 

I got the motors to put in my f700s,the 392 FTs are shot.I know they will fit ther no problem,my neighbor did the same with his 5 ton chevy.Maybe ill just paint my 428 cat yellow.Better yet ill paint my 428 cat yellow and put it in my old 76 gmc dually and see how long it takes the chevy guys to figure it out.

 

I kicked it around a few years ago when I picked one up at work, got it to the yard and relized how big that thing is. It will fit but everything else has to be big to go with it,trans,radiator,driveline,and so on. Every Cat I have ever seen has been yellow IH paints motors other colors from the factory never seen white though. It will be horribly loud, very heavy(like 900-1100lbs if I recall),worse fuel economy than anything,super stinky,and will hardly purr they kind of rumble, so having said all that go for it I would love to see it work you could laugh at all these "power pack" Duramax thingys and tiny 5.9 cummins guys!!

 

Seen a few KW's with ol' 3208's and they were white in color. Maybe it was owner's choice??

 

https://www.ford-trucks.com/classifi...ct=1759&cat=17

 

I don't even think you could order a 3208 in an over the road tractor; not any where near enough torque to start a load. Are you sure you weren't looking at a 3408 Cat? They are V8s, and they are big. 900+ cubic inches, and can crank out 500+ hp and 1800+ lb ft torque. Never saw a white Cat. Saw some beige Cummins, though.