rikard mentioned a co-worker that spent 600$ to have heater core fixed. my truck COST 600$! in the olden days a six was cheaper to purchase, DK about, now

 

Controversy/ drama sells magazines, and buddy you picked a good one. As old as time, I think you put it together. Good luck and I'll be looking forward to reading it. OBCB

 

Hopefull I've got some "subject matter" for you:

My '77 had 3 different engines; 2 of which I build in my garage. I love the sound of the Windsor V8's, nothing can match their sonic beauty and power potential!

When my '77 was stolen, I wanted a beater to drive until I found a new project/DD. My beater had to have the 300 because even I couldn't Frankenstein the motor into a Car Craft showpiece that costs thousands. I had heard stories of hundreds of thousands of miles and great fuel milage, and I knew that was for me.

I bought one with 158k on the clock. My "temporary" beater now has 277,000, and is going be shipped to Hawaii (where I will serve with the legendary Seabees of Pearl Harbor) in May, which is going to cost exactly half what I paid for it 6 years ago for the whole truck to ship it to the island! At 2 years, I was thinking "huh- this truck is pretty tough". At 4, I was like "wow- this truck is a worthy beater". At 6, I officially love this truck.

Highway milage: 19-22 proven, up to 24 MPG in certain conditions. 16 in town. Starts every single day. Cheap, un-sexy, low-compression, runs-on-anything, and the best engine in the best truck I've ever driven.

I'm going to buy one just like it when this one blows up! (It helps to be able to swap my parts over)

F-250 Restorer- good luck on the article!

 

The Ford 300 inline six was used in everything from airport tugs to pumps installed in mines. They are used in continuous duty applications where they are only shut off for maintenance. They were used in older UPS trucks (before they went to diesels.)

In other words their real forte is longevity. (I have one with 287K on it. No issues.) But they are also great for rock crawling because they deliver torque under a thousand rpm so you can just idle over rocks and through holes.

But for inline sixes in general, they are among the most inherently smooth and vibration free designs made. They have been used in old classic luxury cars because they can be docile and/or strong.

 

The 300 is a great power plant. There are few engines that can match its service record.

The reason the 300 get such good mileage and so much torque and at such a low RPM is because of the engine geometry. Only having 6cly's and longer stroke give the fuel a longer period of time to fully burn before the next cylinder fires. That means more low end torque and more efficient burning of fuel. But it also means that it takes longer for the engine to build RPM, which is something a V8 does better.