My 97 4x4 4.6L has 225k miles on it now and it is still running like a champ ... but it has started to develop a leak ... it hasn't left any drips in the drive way and its no leaking bad... I just noticed it when I changed the oil yesterday.

I am fixing to graduate from college and have been thinking about some performance mods for the engine. I would be getting it all done through a local performance shop, I'm not that mechanically inclined. I was just wondering if I would be better off having them install something like this

Ford Racing Performance Parts [M-6007-A463NA*]

instead of basically rebuilding my old engine with performance parts (ie super or turbo charging)


BTW my truck has a 4R70W tranny that was "new" (sold by ford as a "new / used" b/c it was entirely rebuilt from the ground up to factory specs) and the factory never been opened, Open 3.55 rearend ... Would my tranny & rearend just completely die w/ that much power or do you think they would last a decent while?

 

$7000 motor , $1300 wiring harness, then a rebuilt trans since yours has 225 000 and couldnt take the abuse, A heavy duty radiator, some exhaust work, plus whatever it takes to make your truck tight since probably is loose at 225 000 , steering, brakes, plus the labor to do it all. Are you ready to invest in excess of $13000 in a 97 truck with 225000 miles on it? Would you be better selling the truck and buying something quicker such as a lightning? Probably would be less money and have more value. Just running some numbers and thoughts to think about first. Do you want to own the truck another 100,000 miles from now? Whats the body , paint interior and glass like? cream puff?

 

As of now everything on the truck is perfect... I wouldn't be suprised if it makes it another 100k without touching a thing... Steering is dead on perfect, brakes are magnificent just spent 400 bucks on them a few months ago, tranny is rock solid (only has about 50 k on it) rearend hasn't given me any reason to doubt it... Body & frame is amazing no rust or quivers or anything... interior is beautiful everything works...

I do plan on keeping this truck forever although I have no clue how long I will use it as a daily driver... never know when a good deal is coming along...

 

A more wallet friendly idea would be to grab a good shape/lower mileage Lightning engine and a 4R100 4x4 trans from an F250 (I think). Bolt that together with the ECU/wiring harness/cluster, etc etc from a wrecked Lightning, and go from there with Lightning bolt on's. Not sure of the whole specifics list to complete the "Lightning Swap" but I think that's the general idea; it's been done.

I know you love your truck, but spending half of the $$$$ and getting an engine with more power sounds like a better idea to me. Makes me laugh, Ford charging $7000 for an engine that puts out 350 hp; completely asinine.

You have any pics of the '97?

 

I have to agree... you could probably spend a whole lot less and get a really stout rebuild of your motor than buying a crate engine. It sounds like the truck is awesome, so if it was me, I would rebuild the engine in there, do some good machine work to the heads, and put in some additional performance parts to quicken it up a bit. No messing with electrical harnesses (a possible nightmare in my mind), no concerns about fitment, and in the end a nice power plant.

I guess the real question is, how fast do you want/need the truck to go? If you just want a good performance engine and don't plan on being on Pinks, then I would dump in tons of money for minimal return. If you are going to retire it from the street and start drag racing, then that is another issue.

Just my .02

 

Can blowing $8350 just for the motor & wire harness before shipping/tax, or 2002 F350V10's estimated total "in excess of $13000 in a 97 truck with 225000 miles on it" make it better than "perfect"?

In the middle of a worldwide recession, some say depression & w/the uncertainties of just "fixing to graduate from college" perhaps this old advice still has some validity: If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

If you've got money burning a hole in your pocket, in this market you can buy an awful lot of truck for that kind of cash.

 

I'm another old guy who is going to suggest that this is foolish in terms of any kind of return. First, the engine is a Mustang engine, meaning it will only make power at higher RPM's, and makes little sense in a truck.

This might be a time in your life when you would do well to sock away some money for a house, your next car or a second toy car, your wedding, your retirement, a rainy day when you're unemployed, medical bills, etc.

This kind of modification will cost you in excess of $10,000, and when you're done, you will have a $5000 truck on the resale market. If gas shoots up to $4 again, and it probably will, the truck will be worth even less than that.

If you want to go fast, buy a used Mustang GT for a few grand and play with that. All you're gonna be able to do with your truck is give yourself a few cheap thrills and impress some high school students when you can burn rubber. And chances are that you're going to have a bunch of niggling problems that will take years to sort out and ultimately make the truck less dependable than it now is. Is that worth $10k to you?

George

 

Guys I appreciate the financial advice, but that's not really what I am asking for here... Don't worry yourselves about my financial future that is my deal...

mjunk1 I don't want to drag race my truck, but the factory I just want it to be quicker, the 300 - 350 hp range would be all I'm looking for.

I'm just trying to figure out what seems to make the most since before I start talking to anyone at the local auto performance shops. What would be involved in building up the 4.6 that's already in my truck? Surely before dumping any money into performance parts, I would expect they would want to tear it apart and rebuild it? I wouldn't want to bore or stroke it I'd like to leave that alone. Higher performance heads? Possibly a blower? How much power can be squeezed out of this engine without going too crazy?

 

I would look contact gofastparts.com- they are located in Redlands, Ca have just about every crate engine known and I have yet to find anyone who has beat their prices- everyone I have recommended to them is happy with their service as well...from a cost standpoint, it might be a good thing to look into!

 

Trucks need torque, not high end horsepower. You would be better off with a 5.4 as a starting point, either transplanting into your truck or just starting with a different truck.

A 4.6, at 281 cubic inches, is really a small engine by any standard for a full size truck and souping it up will require that you spin it faster to enjoy more power. The only exception might be some kind of blower that is optimized for low RPM boost.

Or just get a healthy rebuilt 4.6 going and put a nice nitrous shot on it for that occasional kick

Even assuming you have plenty of money, I'd question putting big bucks into your existing truck just to get it to run in the 15's in the quarter mile or something. Especially if you have to pay someone else to do the work on it. Man hours=cubic money.

Of course, I myself way waaay smarter when I was 21 than I am now at <choke> 56. But in my 20's, I was able to enjoy some serious muscle cars (including two Chrysler hemi cars, a couple Corvettes, etc.). But these were cheaper back then, and I'd buy them, invest very little money in them except for what was needed, and was able to generally recover my investment. I remember buying a built Hemi Cuda that had $8-10k invested in it by the rich kid who built it--I paid $2400. Played with it for a summer, and flipped it for 4 grand, invested only enough to keep it going and clean it up a tad.

Pickup trucks are just not performance vehicles, with very few exceptions.

Good luck,
George

 

im afraid i am Georges age and agree with him 100%. been there, dont that.

 

+1 on this post!....Im an old fart myself

 

I'm a youngin' at 19, in college, and I agree with the "more experienced"
people on here.

Although I'm in the same boat as you I want to get the most out of my truck, I'm at 120k right now and I'm constantly wanting to do stuff to it, but then I tell myself just keep it alive it's running fine the way it is, except for the annoying ticking.

Here's my suggestion if you wanted to do a swap and are willing to drop some serious coin, wait till, if it ever comes out at all, for that new 4.4 dieselfor the f150 and drop it into your 97 f150.

You'll then have a "trucker's truck" (chevy commercial sorry).

Just spitting some game on here, I know it's not what you're looking for but I personally do not like mustangs, more for mopar and gm for a car.

nice to hear that your truck has 225k on it and is still running and looking good however.

--------------TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION THOUGH:----------------

IF MONEY IS NO PROBLEM, YOU LOVE THE TRUCK, AND SOMEONE ELSE, A PROFESSIONAL, IS DOING THE WORK THEN THIS WOULD BE RELATIVELY EASY IF YOU COULD GO A COUPLE WEEKS, OR MONTHS IF THEY CAN'T GET IT TO RUN RIGHT, WITHOUT YOUR TRUCK.

 

Have you thought about regearing? Maybe go to like 4.56s, you will notice a big difference in torque and it would only cost you like $1200 to have someone install them.

 

Hey there young fella, I don't care how much cash you plan on "dumping" to make your 12 YO 225K F150 into a Go Fast pickup. My advice was to help you get the Most Bang For Your Buck. If you want to brighten your local Speed Shop's "financial future" that's your "deal".

Why not pay to put in the $8350 worth of FORD Racing stuff AND have your local performance shop modify it by adding "super or turbo charging"? That should go a long way towards answering your Q "How much power can be squeezed out of this engine without going too crazy?" I promise, I won't "worry" how much money you'll be "dumping" into it. As for your Q "Would my tranny & rearend just completely die w/ that much power or do you think they would last a decent while?" that's impossible to A since you "have no clue how long (you) will use it as a daily driver... never know when a good deal is coming along" & we don't have Crystal *****. Good luck figuring "out what seems to make the most since" & what's "going too crazy". Its always tough to improve something that's already "perfect" & you "plan on keeping....forever".

As for your original Q "How complicated would this be?" considering you're not concerned about "financial" practicality, "not that mechanically inclined" & intend to have the performance shop do everything, all you need to do is write the checks. "How complicated" is that?