Best engine for dd/ reliablity?
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Laughing Gas
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 896
Likes: 6
Best engine for dd/ reliablity?
If you could swap any motor into your bumpside, what would it be? Leaving out the hassle of the swap itself, and excluding exotic or ultra- unrealistic motors what would you go with?
FE- a stock choice, easy. Lots of power not so great on mileage, harder to find cheap parts.
SB- Huge aftermarket, decent mpg ok power for a dd cheap to build, kind of boring.
Straight Six- dead reliable, easy to build, ok for dd not tons of power or great mpg.
335 series- a little different, pretty good power, not awesome mpg.
385- tons of power, a little wow factor slightly more modern design again, not fantastic mileage.
Something else?
FE- a stock choice, easy. Lots of power not so great on mileage, harder to find cheap parts.
SB- Huge aftermarket, decent mpg ok power for a dd cheap to build, kind of boring.
Straight Six- dead reliable, easy to build, ok for dd not tons of power or great mpg.
335 series- a little different, pretty good power, not awesome mpg.
385- tons of power, a little wow factor slightly more modern design again, not fantastic mileage.
Something else?
Senior User
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 262
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From: Upstate South Carolina
You said DD and reliability.
300 strait six. Will get as good a mileage as any of them other than SB and you can put a fast rear axle ration in there and do just fine.
Assuming 4X2 of course.
You will drive the rest of the truck into the ground with a new 300 six behind a modern 4sp or C6 and good road gears.
300 strait six. Will get as good a mileage as any of them other than SB and you can put a fast rear axle ration in there and do just fine.
Assuming 4X2 of course.
You will drive the rest of the truck into the ground with a new 300 six behind a modern 4sp or C6 and good road gears.
Senior User
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 211
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From: Oklahoma
3.9 4bt cummins. reliable, good fuel mileage, plenty of torque for a stock replacement motor. Flywheel housing for a ford tranny though would be tough to find, but are around. 6bt 5.9 also, just more torque and power, mileage a little lower.
Posting Guru
Joined: Feb 2007
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From: Pittsburgh,Pa.
Look for 80's bread vans. A lot of them that came with 300's were repowered with 4bt's. A lot of them are getting scrapped due to rusted out frames.
Senior User
Joined: Oct 2008
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From: Oklahoma
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Laughing Gas
Joined: Oct 2003
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Thanks for the replies, figured the 4.9 would get a lot of support. In a 2wd wouldn't a T5 be a good choice behind the 300? Good street gearing, bellhousings match, cable clutch so its easy to swap over and you get a decent od.
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Senior User
Joined: Jan 2008
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From: Burleson,Tx
For ultimate reliability, best mpg's, and awsome power I say go with a diesel. The cummins 4bt or isuzu 4bd1t/2t's are very easy to swap into these old trucks and can easily be adapted to any ford or chevy trans and only needs one wire hooked up to the motor so the swap is as simple as making motor mounts and radiator hoses basicly.
I for one was getting 32mpgs around town (verified over 3000 miles of driving) in my 67 F100 with an isuzu3.9L diesel and it would out run most vehicles on the road, not exactly a vette killer but still pretty quick. These little diesels were designed to go well over 300,000 miles in 14,000 pound trucks pulling loads and being abused like step children, most of them go way past 300,000 miles even with all the abuse they get just imagine how long they will last in a 4-5,000 pound truck.
I for one was getting 32mpgs around town (verified over 3000 miles of driving) in my 67 F100 with an isuzu3.9L diesel and it would out run most vehicles on the road, not exactly a vette killer but still pretty quick. These little diesels were designed to go well over 300,000 miles in 14,000 pound trucks pulling loads and being abused like step children, most of them go way past 300,000 miles even with all the abuse they get just imagine how long they will last in a 4-5,000 pound truck.
Elder User
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 920
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From: Westminster, Colorado
390.....390.....390....390........390......
Honestly...other than the occasional tune-up, I never have to do anything with my engine....
As for mileage...I get 13-15.......which beats the pants off the new F-250's.....
Honestly...other than the occasional tune-up, I never have to do anything with my engine....
As for mileage...I get 13-15.......which beats the pants off the new F-250's.....
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