For the past 3 months I have been fighting my 2000 Ford F250 with the Powerstroke. At first I thought it had blown a head gasket, so I changed them. Well, still getting water into #8 cylinder. Yanked the head again and changed out the injector cups. Ran great for 3 days and then hydrolocked #8 again. Head is back out now and awaiting a trip to the machine shop for magnaflux.

Anyway, in the interim, I needed a commuter, parts chaser. Checked good ole Craigslist and found a 1982 2WD F250 (351w/C6/D60/120k miles) for cheap.

Bought it and that is what brings me here.

My 82 F250 has the 351w with the EECIII and I plan on pulling all the emissions crap off. I saw the other recent thread about a similar truck but I did not want to jump his thread.
My truck is now out of emissions as it is older than they test for. State law requires testing for vehicles newer that 25 years old, and since mine is now 28 years old, everything is fair game.

My plan has 3 parts.
Pull the VV carb for a non emissions 2150. (Waiting for delivery) (I will be changing to aftermarket 4bbl later)
Pull ECC distributor for Mallory Unilite billet distributor/MSD blaster coil. (have)
Yank air pump/tubing/exhaust manifolds and running headers into dual exhaust. (have)
Besides plugging the holes in the heads and bypassing the egr cooler, is there an obvious problem with this plan?

I will also be adding to this as I get the parts installed and how they work, or not.
Oh, and once I get all this installed, I will be stripping the factory harness of the extra crap. Or I may use the wires for something else.....

This is the third oldest vehicle I have or have owned.
Oldest: 1953 ****** pickup
2nd old: 1975 Chrysler Cordoba, with Corinthian Leather. My first car. Gone.
And now the 1982 F250.

Any input appreciated.

 

Must be because I am a noob here.

Sooooo.......

 

I have been reading te FAQs posted above. Great info there. Wish I had seen that first before I started buying expensive distributors...

 

How many times can I post in my own thread?

 

Hmmmm, perhaps you should consult a doctor, you seem to be talking to yourself. But, at least you're doing a pretty good job of it.....

Sounds like your plan is pretty reasonable to me. I wouldn't have bought the aftermarket ignition system, but since you already have it, might as well use it.
I think swapping the carb and ignition system will pretty much render the whole EEC system dead, so you are on the right track, if that is your goal.

 

Gotta give folks a little time to post, most people don't check forums every 5 minutes lol, especially during bar time.

First some thought on your powerstroke. How often do you change coolant and add anti-cavitation additive (coolant conditioner)? The back 2 cylinders in a 7.3 PSD get hotter from the EGR and tend to rust through due to the air bubbles caused by boiling coolant and once a pin hole in a cylinder develops you need a block sleeve. Just type POWERSTROKE CAVITATION into google and see what comes up for more info.

Anyhow, on the other topic, the factory Ford electronic ignition system is probably one of the best out there, but I generally choose to simplify it by using a stock dizzy and a plain old MSD 6 box and blaster coil for anything that doesn't run the drag strip. As far as carbs go, I wouldn't waste my money on any 2 barrel but go to a 4 barrel Holley 650 and an aftermarket intake manifold. For small blocks the stuff is so cheap there is no reason to go any other way, just check craigslist some more and you should come up with a good used 4 barrel edelbrock intake and a carb in good condition isn't much either.

Other than that, you already have the right idea. Just start pulling everything off until you start to see an engine block and you should be good.

 

Thanks.

For the powerstroke, I have been running Evans coolant since the truck had 40k miles on it. (168k now). A hole in the block is about the only thing I can think of to be the problem now. Head is fine and the head gaskets have looked good each time.(good crush around each cylinder..) I am ready to pull the block, but not looking forward to it.
And since when did the 7.3 have an EGR?

The 2bbl was cheap so I bought it. I am going to have to pull the intake sometime, since it leaks oil down the front of the engine, but not ready for that yet. The Unilite and headers are hand me down from an old racecar a buddy used to have. I also have an MSD 6A box, but I figured that may be overkill for this truck.

This 82 is going to be my daily driver till I can get the Powerstroke fixed, so I cannot take it out of commission for very long. It is still totally stock right now, including the factory AM only radio.

I am not trying to make my 82 into a racer, just a reliable daily driver/parts chaser that gets semi decent mileage(high teens too much to ask for?)

 

Sorry you are correct on the EGR, I'm mixing up the 7.3 with the 6.0 turd. The 7.3 unfortunately is prone to the problem because it is basically a 6.9 bored over .110 so it has really thin cylinder walls. Good luck fixing the problem, I hope it doesn't break the bank.

As for the MSD 6A, yeah I don't think you need a rev limiter on that truck lol, but it sure does make my daily driver run a hell of a lot smoother and it gets 11 mpg instead of 10 (woo hoo!). I did manage to get 18 highway mpg out of my old '76 F-100 though with a 302 and 2 barrel VV carb, so I don't think 15 or 16 is too much to ask.

 

I had never heard of problems from thin cylinder walls except for people that did not check their coolant. Could have partially been my fault as I was running Evans NPG+ coolant, which is supposed to be "lifetime", but may not have been.

Anyway, yes I have a vertical crack in #8 cylinder wall, so the 7.3 PSD is down for the count. It is not pitted, there is an inch long vertical crack in the cylinder wall. I will try to get pics once the block is out. Bank is now broken.

I will be driving the 82 so upgrades will have to take less than a weekend to do. I may go ahead and put the MSD 6A in when I put the Unilite in. Can't hurt and it is just taking up shelf space now.

I would be happy with those mpg numbers. Close to what I was getting with the diesel.

 

Changed the oil on the 82 today and the black goo that came out was more like tar than oil. The old filter was not even hand tight.

She seems to like the new oil. She leaks more now. Rear main is shot. Well lubricated torque converter and underbody. It was leaking before, but not this bad.

It just gets better. Especially when I found out this B%tch has a 2 piece rear main seal. That means pulling the motor.

What did I get myself into?

Also, changed the front shocks. The old ones were quite wet from the oil leaking out. Put on some cheapie MonroeMatics. Rides ok. Better than the old blown shocks.

Doesn't make up for having to pull the friggin motor.

Already have to pull the Powerstroke, and now the 351?

I am starting to dislike Furd.


Did I say that?

 

You lost me at this is a commuter vehicle/parts runner...... I would have gotten first truck fixed before even moving onto another tearing down another vehicle but thats just me.I guess I have a problem with this is because I just bought a truck someone was more worried about removing emissions then putting all that destruction into proper maintenance.I would have to say if your not converting it to a off road vehicle then leave the emissions alone , just because its past some emissions age doesn't mean it has to come off.The truck will run just fine and have plenty of power with it for a parts runner/daily commuter......At least keep all the stuff your removing so when you sell vehicle cause you cant get it running right with modifications you choose, the buyer will not have to fork out large amounts of money to restore the system back.....I wonder if you run out and buy a 2010 truck would you also rip out all the emissons/evap systems/ABS ...... Leave it there and replace defective items and it will keep our planet cleaner even if its 28 years old....

 

Tryduck, the emissions equipment that they used 3 decades ago was a joke that resulted in greater fuel consumption and less power, and the ability to pass a sniffer test. There is a good reason it isn't around anymore. I removed all of the stuff on my truck years ago and improved the efficiency of my vehicle. I then did a complete teardown and ported the heads, plugged the thermactor holes, added a lighter weight intake, headers, 3 inch exhaust, bigger carb, MSD box, and a higher lift camshaft. All of this makes my truck make a lot more power and get better fuel economy, like it should have from the factory.

Basically, if you wanna save the environment, you should get a 3 cylinder geo metro and not 1980's carbureted F series truck.

As for fixing the diesel, have you looked at the cost of a diesel short block lately? not cheap. You can get an old gasoline powered pickup for 300 bucks running, I have a running 1967 F-100 out front to prove it. It is also nice to have a spare vehicle in case the other one goes down.

Anyhow, stangrcr that really sucks about the cracked wall. Looks like the coolant you were running was just fine. Any insight as to what caused the crack in the first place? On the bright side at least the small block is an easy engine to pull compared to the diesel in a superduty.

 

Ty, The 1982 F250 runs ok, dies at idle in gear and gets really bad mileage mostly due to the worn out/broken VV carb. I have been tearing emissions equipment off old vehicles for 30 years and as the Dr said above, they run better without it.

Who in their right mind is going to restore a beat up 1982 Ford F250 standard cab long bed?

My work commute is just under 9 miles, so have a vehilce that gets 30mpg isn't going to save much when most of the time it is stop and go and never over 55mph. Hybrid or a straight electric might make sense for my commute, but the battery pack will cost $5k once it needs replacement, and what about all the chemicals used to make the batteries, and then the disposal of the old ones? And I might be saving money at the gas pump, while my household electric bill goes through the roof. Oh, and it costs me $80 a YEAR for full coverage on my 82 F250. How much is insurance for a new hybrid?

I will stick with a nice simple combustion engine.

Dr, I am looking at getting the block sleeved. Rumor has it it can be done for a few hundred dollars, so I am now looking for a machinist to do it.

And it may have been bad coolant. Evans NPG+ coolant is supposed to be run without water. They require that you occasionnaly test it for water intrusion with a spectrometer, and since I did not do that, they will not cover the damage. Water in Evans can cause pitting in the cylinder walls.

And after finding out that my 351W has a two piece rear main seal and you cant yank the pan in the vehicle..... She will continue to mark her spot wherever she goes. She doesn't burn any, it seems, but the tranny is well lubricated.

 

Changed out the engine temp sensor in the intake manifold today.

I went to Oreillys and the sensor they had listed had 2 contacts, but mine has one post. So we had to go back to a 1980 truck to find it. Eh, whatever. Temp gage works now and I am somewhat happy.

Still have the front tires looking like plow sheaves. Heavy wear on the outer edges otf the tires and lots of positive camber. Toe is less than 1/8" in.

The bolts for the springs look like they have not been touched in forever, and I put in new cheapie Monroematic shocks. I jacked up each side and there is very little play in any direction. The passenger side had some play, but I tightened the wheel bearing a touch and it went away.

Maybe there was a heavy winch or plow on the front of this truck? Doubt it. There was a slide in camper in the bed at some point in its previous life.

Hmm.

 

The temp gage does not work, or I have more issues. The temp slowly rises while driving until it gets to the H mark and then sits there. Does the earlier sensor have different resistance readings? Is my gage cluster hosed?

Motor does not seem to overheat, but I am not liking the gage siting on H. I felt better when it didn't work at all.

I now have all the parts for the conversion.

Fresh 2150.
Mallory Unilite distributor with all new guts.
Mallory 8mm Sprint wires.
MSD Blaster 2 coil.
Autolite Platinum plugs.
And all the hoses,clamps,wires,connectors to do it.

Headers and exhaust will get done later. Want to get the hard part done first.

It should get done sometime this weekend, if I don't spend the time working on the diesel.