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I have always wanted a 78 or 79 truck and recently located a 1978 F-150. The ad said it had a V-8 but was not specific. Not specific on the tranny either. I talked to my dad about it and he said that the 70s F-250s were beasts but not to waste my money on a 150 from the same era. My question is how tough are these trucks? Would it be a step up from my 92 F-150? Keep in mind I do a lot of wheeling.
Well isn't that a tricky question
I like the D44's + 9" solid axles in the 78 150's
yes a 250 or 350 would be beefier and it all depends on the size of tire you plan to run?
I would not go over 35" tires on the 150
and it all depends on how hard you plan to wheel it
there are so many different variablesto this subject that it makes it hard to answer your very vague question
more info would be needed
I dont plan on anything bigger than 32 or 33 inch tires. I dont do any real extreme wheeling, just mud boggin and hill climbin. I guess what Im trying to find out is how much of an improvement it would be over my 92, 5-speed and a 302. How did the autos hold up in these trucks? I know the 4 speeds were tough as nails but havent heard much about the autos.
The Ford C-6 is a very durable transmission if maintained well
lots of aftermarket improvements can be done also to make it bullet proof
as far as your other question I cant really answer that
I think its more of a personal preference
but I have spoke to a lot of wheeler's that do a solid axle swap in their trucks like yours
I personally think you would be far better off with the 78
but I'm biased
Thanks. I would prefer the 78 because I hate the smaller engine compartment and all the emissions crap on my truck. And I would take a carb over fuel injection anyday. That 92 is one tough mother, though. I sincerely believe 96 was the last year for the truly tough Ford truck.
the truck more and likely has a 351M which is a torque monster
but it does have its down falls, they have a oiling problem which is easily fixed, some like them some dont, most do a 460 swap
you can find all kinds of info on the web
fullsizebronco.com is a good source of info for the 78 f150 4x4
just refer to it as a 78 bronco, they have all the same components
the Broncos just have a shorter wheel base
Are you planning on building it to wheel or just buying it and wheeling it?
there is a bunch you could do to it to make it better
they are a very popular wheeler
You can`t go wrong with a 78 or 79 ,nice drivetrains, inexpensive to mod,big engine compartment. The drawbacks are the 351 / 400m motors do not have many HP upgrades because nobody makes pistons or heads, thats why everybody swaps in 460s.The other is they tend to have big rust issues. Nothin a few dollars wont cure.
. The drawbacks are the 351 / 400m motors do not have many HP upgrades because nobody makes pistons or heads,
you might want to rethink that statement,
I just have to throw the B/S flag on that one
there is a lot you can do, I'm not digging up all the info or going to go into all that but its out there, you can build just about anything if you got the money to throw at it
Which statement would you like me to rethink? If you know anyone where you can get pistons or heads i will stand corrected.And i don`t mean custom made otherwise you might as well thow in a 460 and the sky is the limit for HP upgrades. I have owned 78 and 79 ford 4x4s for 25 yrs, broncos and pickups, but i could have missed something.
well like I said, I'm not going to go searching for the information again, I don't run that motor anymore
but off the top of my head
edelbrock makes a head for it if I remember correctly, there Aussie heads for it
the 351M/400 runs a Cleveland 2v head casting, there are a few place that you can get adapters to run all sorts of manifolds
I was looking into building a clevor and found all kinds of info on people building high out put M motors
I used to have all the info in my favorites but deleted it
so like I said " it can be done " so I have read
the 351M forum would be the place to look
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