460 to 300 I6
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Elder User
Joined: Mar 2006
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From: North-Eastern, Ohio
460 to 300 I6
Hello
This is my first post and i was wondering what it takes to swap a 7.5 (460) with a 4.9l (300). The truck i might do the swap in is a 1989 f-250 (EFI) 4x4 5-speed.
Im im high-school and my dad said i couldn't drive the truck when it gets 10 mpg
. I chose the 4.9 b/c i'll get better mileage, but still get the power i need cause i haul bales & stuff.
I just want to know how hard of a swap this'll be? (ex: wiring the cruise control, guages, etc. and hookin up the tranny)
Also...will the bell housing bolt on to the 4.9?
Any replies will be very helpful
P.S- i did try to find out how to do this, but i couldnt find it.
Thanks
This is my first post and i was wondering what it takes to swap a 7.5 (460) with a 4.9l (300). The truck i might do the swap in is a 1989 f-250 (EFI) 4x4 5-speed.
Im im high-school and my dad said i couldn't drive the truck when it gets 10 mpg
. I chose the 4.9 b/c i'll get better mileage, but still get the power i need cause i haul bales & stuff.I just want to know how hard of a swap this'll be? (ex: wiring the cruise control, guages, etc. and hookin up the tranny)
Also...will the bell housing bolt on to the 4.9?
Any replies will be very helpful
P.S- i did try to find out how to do this, but i couldnt find it.
Thanks
Posting Guru
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,978
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From: Alvin, Texas.
Stop right there.
A 4.9L in that heavy of a 4x4 won't get any better MPGs. No Ford truck engine of that era is a fuel sipper outside of the 2.3L, but in a truck, it gets worse.
You can buy a lot of gas for the cost of that swap.
A 4.9L in that heavy of a 4x4 won't get any better MPGs. No Ford truck engine of that era is a fuel sipper outside of the 2.3L, but in a truck, it gets worse.
You can buy a lot of gas for the cost of that swap.
Laughing Gas
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 910
Likes: 8
From: West-Central New York
Your best bet is to find a complete donor truck. You'll need the wiring harness, computer, motor mounts, clutch, bellhousing, exhaust header, and pipes. That's just a rough estimate though. The most difficult part will be the electronics and you'll need a serious repair manual to figure that all out. The mechanicals should match up fairly easily, I believe.
I'm not really sure all that work will be worth the actual mileage gain but I could be wrong.
What worked with my dad is to figure out the relative costs of the intended idea and then show the cost of staying the same. I was actually able to prove that the 300 in my '83 f100 2wd was in such poor shape that an upgrade to a 351 made sense and would cost the same as the rebuild and repairs of the 300 by a shop. Had to do it all myself but had a sweet street racer for a few years. Now the truck is rusted away and the engine is sitting in the garage under a tarp.
I'm not really sure all that work will be worth the actual mileage gain but I could be wrong.
What worked with my dad is to figure out the relative costs of the intended idea and then show the cost of staying the same. I was actually able to prove that the 300 in my '83 f100 2wd was in such poor shape that an upgrade to a 351 made sense and would cost the same as the rebuild and repairs of the 300 by a shop. Had to do it all myself but had a sweet street racer for a few years. Now the truck is rusted away and the engine is sitting in the garage under a tarp.
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Elder User
Joined: Mar 2006
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From: North-Eastern, Ohio
O.K Alfred, I'm tired of people like you that put down ideas like this. I know plenty of F-250/350s that have the 300 in it and get better than 11mpg (which im getting right now).
You're only saying that because you have a wee little ranger that prolly gets over 20mpg.
I'm not lookin for a work truck that gets over 20, but better than 10-11.
I've been thinkin this over for a while now and I would like to know if any body -besides the put-down people-will support this?
No Ford truck engine of that era is a fuel sipper outside of the 2.3L
I'm not lookin for a work truck that gets over 20, but better than 10-11.
I've been thinkin this over for a while now and I would like to know if any body -besides the put-down people-will support this?
Postmaster
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,587
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From: Virginia Beach
There's a VAC member with an F-150, 4x4 and M5OD in a stepside truck getting about 15 mpg. . .and his motor is running a little poor right now. It is possible to get better mpg, but not much. On the same token, it is possible to get better than 10-11 mpg with a 460.
Back to the swap. You need a 300/351w ZF 5 speed tranny since it is an integral bellhousing. Ofcourse a 300, and the ENTIRE fuel managment system AND exhuast. Motor mounts, air cleaner, AC stuff if you have it, radiator (unless there are hoses that will fit universally), starter, small hoses and vaccum stuff, clutch shtuff like mentioned above, and misc stuff. It would probably be easier and cheaper to just buy another truck, but it is possible. Or a donor vehicle like mentioned above, or tune up your 460
Back to the swap. You need a 300/351w ZF 5 speed tranny since it is an integral bellhousing. Ofcourse a 300, and the ENTIRE fuel managment system AND exhuast. Motor mounts, air cleaner, AC stuff if you have it, radiator (unless there are hoses that will fit universally), starter, small hoses and vaccum stuff, clutch shtuff like mentioned above, and misc stuff. It would probably be easier and cheaper to just buy another truck, but it is possible. Or a donor vehicle like mentioned above, or tune up your 460
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 1,603
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From: St Louis
My father had a 1990 F250 with the 5.8L mated to a ZF 5-speed. I remember it got 17 to 18 mpg consistantly even when his lead foot. To go from a 460 to a 300 you will need the transmission as well because 460's do not share the windsor's bolt pattern that a 300 I-6 uses.
Senior User
Joined: Apr 2006
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From: In a small Canadian town
Theres not much point in putting an engine like that in a 250 is there? I would stay with the 460 and save up for a cheap diesel. Theres what you should have for hauling and fuel milage is decent to. My 1990 7.3 used to get great milage.
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Posting Guru
Joined: Jan 2005
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From: the beaches of florida
Before you jump to conclusions maybe you should read up on the inline six forum. Im not so sure your gonna be happy with that swap. My 300 six deffinatly gets pretty good gas milage, and it will pulll anything behind it sure enough, but its seriously slow. True, its because of the gearing, but thats also why it pulls anything behind it. On the inline six forum there are plenty of people complaining that they arnt finding the infamous 300 torque.
Im not trying to discourage you cause im used to the way it drives and its fine with me and the thing will take one hell of a beating. I guess what im trying to say is make sure you really want the 300.
oh yeah, 79ford said not to put it into the f250 cause theres no point? they used to come stock in f250s
Im not trying to discourage you cause im used to the way it drives and its fine with me and the thing will take one hell of a beating. I guess what im trying to say is make sure you really want the 300.
oh yeah, 79ford said not to put it into the f250 cause theres no point? they used to come stock in f250s
Last edited by I6power; May 25, 2006 at 09:54 PM.
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Senior User
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 285
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From: In a small Canadian town
I'm not saying the engine won't perform (IMHO the best engine out there is an I6 Cummins) but he says he's not going for a high performance rig. I'm sure it'll haul ever thing (I6 = great low end power) but if fuel milage is what he's basing this swap off it seems like a waste of time. A smaller engine in a bigger truck won't help.
Elder User
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 742
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From: Eastern Iowa
A few things to consider:
The 300 is NOT I repeat, NOT an effecient engine. It just isn't. It may be a 6 cyl, but it still displaces 300 cubic inches. Much more than many modern v-8's! You are not going to see big enough gains in fuel economy to warrant the swap. And you will be dissapointed with the power. A 300 may have decent low end torque, but a 351 has a lot more low end torque. And a 460 has a lot, LOT more low end torque. I say tune up your 460, put a free-flowing exhaust system on that truck, and run it. If you are looking for people to encourage you to rip out your big-block in favor of a straight six......good luck finding them on this site. Many of us are much more apt to do the opposite! And I currently own a '94 with a 300 six. And have owned many other 300's over the years.
The 300 is NOT I repeat, NOT an effecient engine. It just isn't. It may be a 6 cyl, but it still displaces 300 cubic inches. Much more than many modern v-8's! You are not going to see big enough gains in fuel economy to warrant the swap. And you will be dissapointed with the power. A 300 may have decent low end torque, but a 351 has a lot more low end torque. And a 460 has a lot, LOT more low end torque. I say tune up your 460, put a free-flowing exhaust system on that truck, and run it. If you are looking for people to encourage you to rip out your big-block in favor of a straight six......good luck finding them on this site. Many of us are much more apt to do the opposite! And I currently own a '94 with a 300 six. And have owned many other 300's over the years.
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Elder User
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From: North-Eastern, Ohio
I6power, I have a I6 in my '91 F-150 and I am used to the driving habits of it. I'll go with armorer and tune it up and hope it helps with the mileage. Thanks for all the replies.
New User
Joined: May 2010
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idk if it will help you but i put 35 inch all terrains on my 460 and now on the high way i get 14 or 15...still 9 or 10 in city.like i said idk if that helps cuz people usually say bigger tire means worse gas mileage.might be a good excuse to get bigger tires
Freshman User
Joined: Dec 2008
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Point is with bigger tires youre going to raise your gear ratio, which means better mileage, to a point. As long as your engine dont have to work hard to get it moving it wont waste the fuel. Just as well, if it dont have to rev way up to get goin it will help too. So a happy medium between luggin the engine and hitting the rev limiter would be the ticket.
I gotta agree with most, I love my 300s but I also chose a 460 over a 300 to pull my f350 crew cab. I dont need the power, but it just seems to be more fitting for what it is.
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