Hey y'all,
This is my first posting on this site about my rig. I currently drive a white, short bed, regular cab, '95 Ford 1/2 ton XLT pickup. The motor is a 4.9L straight six. She has a solid stock manual 4 speed with an overdrive (5 speed) tranny, brand new 331 gears in the rear differential with posi track. I'm 23 and have been saving up for years in order to drop in a new 4.9L straight six, equipped with an adequate turbocharger for increased HP and torque.
In march this will all be taking place. I was wondering if any of you could recommend a suitable turbocharger for the motor and if you all might have any tips to increase engine performance and longevity while the truck is stripped down.
This truck will be in my family line till the last damn drop of oil is consumed and this is the best time to ensure a great new engine/performance overhaul for another 250,000+ miles. The family member who gave me my rig is no longer with me and this truck has more sentamental value to me than anything I'll ever own.
I appreciate all your time spent reading this, thanks for your help.

 

See if you can find the book by Corky Bell, I believe that it is called Maximum Boost. That should help with turbo sizing and give you an idea of what kind of tuning is going to be involved as well.

 

Just currious, why a turbo. Why not go with a 302 or 351 for more torque. I know the I6 is a good motor but its hard to beat an ol' V8.

 

I would do the turbo to if I had time to do the research just cause it is different. If you maintain the current fuel injection with turbo, the speed denisity system may not be up the task of dealing with the new forced air. I would also suggest fordfuelinjection.com to research some of the past fuel injection systems employed with turbo by ford, i.e. T-bird turbo coupe and mustang SVO's. I am not sure if the supercharger systems will educate you or not but it would not hurt to research how ford dealt with it in the past concerning the forced induction systems with the fuel injection.

 

imagine one of the fastest cars out there are the 3.0 inline six supras... imagine a well built ford 4.9 turbo OMG! killer

 

Yes since a 4.9 six is so much like the DOHC supra six...

not to take away anything from the 4.9 because it's a great engine, just don't expect a rocketship like a supra or bmw or anything like that. The 4.9 has a non-crossflow head, a large stroke, and 12 pushrods working against it in the high performance department. Still turbocharging one would make for one awesome stump puller.

 

Agreed, a turbocharger on a 300 I6 is an interesting concept. I've heard it kicked around before but never seen it actually applied. I know there are turbo kits for 5.0's I think your looking at alot of custom work and tuning to make that I6 fly with a Turbo though, Good luck

 

I like the higher torque rating of a staight six and I don't have the money to potentially change the transmission if I put in a V8.

 

you should ask this ?on the inlinesix engine forum down the page also if you havnt yet. would be intresting if you do it and get good results
I6s are the best motor ford made... to bad they still dont have them

 

If you were to upgrade to a 302 or 351 W you could use the same transmission...however flywheels and clutch would need to be swapped out...but the trannies are the same..I like the idea....."Supra Killer"

JR

 

what kind of boost pressures are you thinking of running? That is a major player in a turbo setup. It will decide what your motor internals will need to be and also what you will need to be doing about fuel delivery. A stock 300 six should be able to hold 7-9 psi if the fuel system can keep up, and the injectors you can get higher flowing injectors for a fairly cheap price, then that brings you to fuel pressure. I would assume you could get a better pressure regulator and that the stock fuel pump would probably hold the necessary pressures. If not you can always go with an after market pump for less that 250 dollars there. I will look around to see if i can find my cheat sheet for figuring out fuel demands versus amount of boost and air volume consumption. Another thing to think about is the mass air flow sensor... That will need some pretty hefty working with, or elimination. Maybe consider a standalone fuel and air management program to make the headache a little less stressing... LOL. Either way, you will have some hefty work coming your way if you decide to go this route, allthough i think it may be easier than some would think.

 

Thanks, that was some good info. that will steer me in the right direction.

 

Thanks bud, good to know. I'm just figuring out the basics of this site so I hope you get this reply the way your supposed to. Hey, do you know how to put quotes and info. so everytime I have a thread the same info. about the basics of my truck appear directly below my message?

 

Agreed, I'm more looking for the increase in torque for pulling and towing than rice rocket acceleration.