Dont worry its a fast read...
proposed swap- 88 302 EEC IV powering a 79 F150 4X with a NP 435. Here are the small time issues I have encountered. This is just brainstorming for now. I dont have the motor set in yet. I need to acquire a 50 oz. flywheel, not a big deal. My stock clutch should fit on the new fly. I have yet to design a bracket for the mechanical clutch bell crank as Ford decided to omit that block casting in 80 or 81 I think. Does anybody make such an animal?? I have an auto donor truck that I am going to rob fuel lines, second pump, and rear tank from, appears to be a bolt in. Other small issues include power steering hoses but we can fab them locally. What I am looking for is pics of a clean modification to the firewall for the install of the ECM. I haven't decided how or where I am going to do it yet. And the only other concern is will this thing run without the VSS which is located on the rear diff. I have heard from a Ford turbo buddy that it will run fine. My 9" has a fairly fresh rebuild and I kindy wanna leave it under the truck. No woes on the harness mods, I have that fingered out already. I know this has been done I was hoping someone would have pics and share other issues they have encountered. Let us share our experiences...

 

I cut a small hole in my firewall to accept the big grommet on the wiring harness and I mounted the ECU in the glovebox.

 

I was thinkin of cutting a rect. hole and try to mount it similar to the 88 I pulled it from. I was just curious of a location to clear everything in-cab and I still wanna do a clean install. So you just cut a 2.5" hole and flopped the harness to the right side and pushed the connector through sideways with a grommet? I wanna do this on my 77 with A/C also. Looking for a win-win on both. I guess this would be the truck for trial and error. As it is only worth alot to me. i.e. she's not so pretty anymore. Any other issues in the swap I haven't mentioned. This would be an attempt at a 79 4x4 with no A/C and a NP435 four speed

 

Many of the earlier EFI trucks had a mechanically speedo which was driven from a VSS output on the transfer case or transmission tailshaft, and there were combo electro/mechanical versions of this VSS assembly that could be used for a retrofit like yours.

 

I am using the 79NP435/205. my buddy who is a turbo freak has used many harnesses in his swaps, including an EEC harness, mentioned he had no trouble runnin' w/o the vss. I guess I could try without and swap the rear housing in later if she don't run. It has 3.54 gears but high miles. as mentioned, I kinda wanna keep the nine

 

I have an AOD in my truck and from all the research I did it looks like the auto tranny setups don't need the VSS. I'm not using it and it works fine. However I think you do need it on a manual transmission. Something about stalling when you push the clutch pedal in? I'm not 100% sure but that's what I remember.

I just use my GPS as my speedo.

My 5.0 came out of a Mustang and I used the factory rectangular grommet that's already on the harness. I had to disassemble a few connectors and re-route them but it wasn't too difficult. The battery in my truck is on the passenger side and the Mustang as the battery on the driver side so I swapped all the power leads and ground over to the other side. No EGR, no evap, no air injection. All that stuff is gone.

 

the pass through on the truck is different, no grommet. and the ecu was located adjacent to the driver kick panel. I am goin to see if I can mount it vertical in same location and just build a cover. none of my trucks have those plastic vent thingys. I haven't seen them on anything newer than '76. Like I said, all I can do is try it, save the harness and swap the 8.8 in later if needed. I can live with 3.50/3.54 gear combo. so you have a speed dens stang 5.0 installed? you have any pictures? Did you put a pump in the tank or just suck it from the rail?

 

An efi motor will run without a speed input but it won't run to full potential, vehicle speed affects load and spark calculations so it does make a difference to overall performance.

 

My 5.0 came out of a '90 or '91 Mustang so it's a MAF setup, not SD. I added a sump to my stock in-cab fuel tank and mounted a Walbro inline pump on the driver side frame rail. Just do a search for threads I've started and you'll find my pics.

 

Nice pics and debate. ha ha If you have a little run after the the radius to the filter I don't think you ll have an issue. BTW you TIG better than MIG lol. Didn t see the the finished product, do I have to search more. Oh and what about that big block, "Gordy" needs a new motor too.

 

LOL thanks. Yeah I was pretty shocked that that was the feedback I got on my entire build. Not a question about wiring or the install or anything else. I get some random BS from some guy worried about my gas tank sump poking through the bottom of my cab. So weird. And yes, I hate MIG. Finished product is sitting in my driveway and I'm without a camera right now. I'll get some pics for you soon.

And in closing, I bought my 5.0 with AOD delivered for $700. I sold the 460 and C6 for $700. And I got the truck for free! Best deal I've ever had!

 

found a 429, nine miles away. ol man deceased and daughter needing money, but I been outta work for 14 weeks and askin' wifey for beer money. just gotta a job sloppin auto parts over the counter again but only been a week. cant go buying a motor now. tryin to get the motor in her escape and the Tbird just laid down. cant win. check out the pic in my gallery about my escape, craziest thing i ve ever seen. been tickin' for years and all these crazies here said it was the check valve in the filter. been there tried that... worse issues for me . me and bro just got the "new" motor bolted in. do not try that at home. not a good idea can't wait to get started on my 79...

 

Wow that's a bummer. What was the problem? It's kinda hard to tell in the pic.

 

It was RTV or an O ring "piece" stuck in the oil passage and starved the OHC. then the cam wore out the caps and caused more lash until the rockers just fell off of #6.