I have a 1986 f150 as shown in title, a regular cab, and was curious if i was to do a engine swap in it, what would be the easiest to do? will the aod hold up to anything bigger than the 302 that's in it? I was thinking of maybe swapping in a 351, or maybe a 460 (will it fit in a f150?) Maybe even a diesel......idk, ive never had a diesel before, and figured it would be fun to see what i could do. Whatever i swap in would be fairly stock, would like to keep the auto tranny, (not necessarily the aod, just a auto in general), just would like some more power out of the truck.

Basically im curious about the following:
460- will it fit? what tranny options? carb/efi?
351- change tranny? carb it? (i believe the factory 351 in 86 was still a carb)
diesel- will it fit? what motor/tranny combo would work?

other sizes/ideas

 

460 will fit even though it was never offered in a f150.

The 351w will fit, the AOD would need beefing up or get a stronger tranny(c6).

Any swap besides a 302 would best be converted to carb or a aftermarket fuel injection system.

The only diesel swap I would recommend would be a cummins 4bt. If you get the right bread van that had a Ford chassis, the 4bt would be a bolt in. The Ford/International diesels that originally came in the f250's is too heavy for a f150. It weighs around 900lbs.

Remember any engine you get, will need a rear sump oil pan system. You can put car engine/tranny combo in these trucks as long as you convert to a rear sump pan.

 

so.....what all would i need if i was going to do a 460/c6 or a 351/c6 conversion. I am assuming i would need different engine mounts? what would i do about the computer system in the truck? leave it hooked up or take it out?

 

351 is a lot cheaper/easier and its not too hard to get 350+ horsepower

 

All v8 perches are the same. So you would need motor mounts for a f250 that had a 460. If you happen to get a 460 or a 429 from a older car, you could pretend you are buying motor mounts for the car on a online store, and then see if they match the part numbers for the motor mounts for a f250 with a 460. You can do this for most anything that you have a question about fitment and compatibility. I have heard besides the rear sump oil system, that the 460 had a different adapter for the oil filter to turn it away from the crossmember. If you didn't want to deal with that, you could buy a remote filter kit for it.

The 351 uses the same mounts as the 302.

The computer system and it's wiring could be taken out. The fuel system would have to be converted to get rid of the electric pumps in the tanks or if you have the system with low pressure pumps in the tanks, and a high pressure pump on the frame rail, you might be able to use the in pump tanks with a regulator.

 

It looks like the 351 would be the easiest swap to do to get a little more power, and go to a 4bbl carb. Would i be looking for a c6? Would my aod hold up to the 351? I dont do any heavy towing or burnouts or anything, its mostly a daily driver, with occasional trailer pulling (i dont even have a tow hitch on it, just a bumper ball) so im not pulling heavy equipment or anything.

So the 351 would bolt up to the 302 mounts, and i could pull the computer out along with the computer harness going onto the engine. How would i work the ignition system? i dont know anything about these engines really or how the ignitions work, so sorry for all the questions. I would hope if i find a 351, it would have the distributor in it already, does it have a module on the side of it or what else additional would i have to get? I do have the fuel system with 3 pumps, so im assuming i would do away with the high pressure pump altogether? Then put a regulator on by the carb? Ive never owned a carb vehicle before, but am not afraid to work on it, just always had efi stuff.

What is the rear sump oiling system? What's different between the oiling system on my 302 compared to a 351?

 

You can probably run the factory duraspark II system that came on the non-efi trucks. Someone on here said the wiring is there on the efi trucks for the older type systems, since they used some of the same wiring harness for both style trucks. So you will have to check that out. The duraspark II will require a common type ignition module be mounted on the fender.

If you want to skip all that, you could buy a aftermarket system like a MSD or something like that.

You could try using the in tank pumps with a regulator, or modify the existing sending units to do away with the pumps and use a smaller electric pump mounted somewhere, or use a mech pump on the engine.

These trucks have a big crossmember in the way, and most all Ford engines originally had front sump oiling systems. The oil pump is in the front, and the deep part of the pan is in the front. So to fit these engines in these style pickups, they had to put the deep part of the pan to the rear, and put a long tube on the oil pump to suck the oil from the rear. And then they also had to move the dipstick to the rear.

So you need the pan with the deep part to the rear, the long tube that hooks to the oil pump, the stud that goes into one of the main caps that supports the long tube, and the proper matching dipstick.

 

i have a 1982 f-150 I'm rebuilding. it has a 302 in it right now with a 4 speed manual.

what is the weight difference between the 302 or a 460, and would the 4 spd manual be able to handle the 460?

And then what is the horse power range that you would be able to get from the 302 and the 460?

 

[quote=dakota-boy;8125868]It looks like the 351 would be the easiest swap to do to get a little more power, and go to a 4bbl carb. Would i be looking for a c6? Would my aod hold up to the 351? I dont do any heavy towing or burnouts or anything, its mostly a daily driver, with occasional trailer pulling (i dont even have a tow hitch on it, just a bumper ball) so im not pulling heavy equipment or anything.

So the 351 would bolt up to the 302 mounts, and i could pull the computer out along with the computer harness going onto the engine. How would i work the ignition system? i dont know anything about these engines really or how the ignitions work, so sorry for all the questions. I would hope if i find a 351, it would have the distributor in it already, does it have a module on the side of it or what else additional would i have to get?

No, the module will NOT be on the side of the housing as is found with the EFI units. The Duraspark systems have the module mounted on the fender well and the DUI systems have both the module and the coil built inside of them.

If you decide to get a new distributor, consider our custom curved Duraspark Distributor built with our new Full Length Oil Impregnated Bronze Bushing. The full length bushing improves timing stability and spark scatter. If stock appearance is not an issue, take a look at our one piece D.U.I. Distributor. Whether you choose the Duraspark or the D.U.I., we curve each on a distributor machine based on your engine combination.
Please see them at:

http://performancedistributors.com/forddistributors.htm

Also, there is now an excellent installation article on the D.U.I. Distributor on the Ford-Trucks.com site at:

https://www.ford-trucks.com/article/idx/0/358/article/DUI_Ignition_Installation_In_A_Ford_351W_V8.html

Ignition Lesson of the Month: Hystereses, the difference between the timing as the rpm and vacuum increases to the timing as rpm and vacuum decrease, needs to be kept to a minimum. A precise advance curve accomplishes this.

 

I have a 300 straight 6 out of an 89 F-150 fuel injected and I also have a 351 Windsor out of a 90 fuel injector and I have a 302 don't know what is out of they're all for sale