hi, I have a 1950 international L110 that's very tired. it does run and drive, but the 3 speed "growls" at me when I let off the gas. I've been contemplating my alternatives. I'm not "rich" by any sense of the word, but would like a daily driver out of this. Ill be renting some shop space starting in august, so I'm deciding my route. the truck will need to tow our #3500lb vintage travel trailer. it would be costly to rebuild the current engine. it's a 220. I did pickup a 4 speed (t98) from a 55 IHC, but its still a 3spd with granny. I have already got a ford 8.8 out of a explorer for it. I like the big 6 as I don't have to redo my steering, it looks similar and will have more "**** in it's britches". I want to lower the truck, give it that "hot rod" look and run twin pipes. I don't want an automatic. what (years) engine/trans would YOU look for? how would YOU modify it? what's the best way (safely, as i'm towing) to lower the front. got the rear figured. thanks for your input
Well,,I guess I'm first here,,,those little 'L's were homely little suckers, but it looks like a good one. No personal experience with a 300, but have heard they are a great motor for their purpose, pulling things. Should be a good easy swap. But I think a modern 5 speed trans would be a better deal than a T98. As for lowering, I guess the axle is under the springs, so that leaves "leaves" to play with, or spring eyes if that will work. Good Luck,,,,,,,what ever the later van ex. manifolds make it easy to have split pipes,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
I'd shoot for a later engine / 5 speeed combo out of a later F150 or F250 (there were some). I had the 300 with RUG 4 speed (od) in a Ford van, and the gear spreads were pretty wide, and the trans wasn't long lived. Unladen performance was ok after I swapped the rear gear from 2.75 to 3.5:1. Your explorer rear is likely 3.5 or 3.73:1. The later 300 engines are fuel injected, but people have swaped them back to carbs. The latest engines were OBDII, so watch for (avoid) that if you are retaining the injection system.
There is a lot of good six swaps avalible, but any truck six that came with a 4 speed or a three speed OD, would be a good engine. The 6 pots, got the opportunity to make good torque down low and good mileage. And if you don't want to make a racer go with a good motor you can here driving before purchase. I here a lot of good things about the 300, so it must be good, and the only real complaint that gets repeated is; it runs and drives like a truck, but if it sits in a re geared truck that must be a compliment. Hang around at some of the street rod forums and look for old trucks getting pulled apart for a V8 transplant. To a street rodder, they are junk, to us they are gold! But to me a 265, 231, 250 and 292 stovebolt sixes are good and available. The Jimmy 302 is good, but can be pricey. The 300 ford should be in the same situation, getting pulled for a v8 transplant as should be possible to get on the cheep. And if it comes out of a truck, there is a chance it came with a gearbox that fits the mill, gear ratio and spacing. And a slight gear change in the rear wouldn't hurt. The front suspension is a matter of how low you will go. A reversed eye spring gives a slight drop, if you what more I would go for an axle drop. Give you a lower car, with out changing the way you truck feels now, regarding comfort. But this is only if you like the way it rides. But better tire,d new shocks, and going over all bushing (maybe new) will give you a better ride. You can always remove a leave to soften up on the truck feel, but to much will effect handling. Best of luck and keep us informed.
I have no practical experience using a 300 six, I have heard lots and lots of great things about them though. Almost put one into '56 F100 before I traded it for my '56 Chevy. One interesting thing I learned was the aftermarket engine swap mounts for a big Ford (429? 460?) can be used with the 300 six as long as you use the 300 motor mounts. Should make hanging the engine in a truck a breeze. http://www.speedwaymotors.com/Big-Block-Ford-Current-Big-Block-Motor-Mount,1198.html
There should be a lot of 80's trucks out there with a 5 speed od trans. One thing I remember about a 300 is the flywheel bolts should remain in the motor when you install it, If you remove them and tilt the engine, oil will run out!
The Ford 300 was built from 1965 through 1996. The 240 is the same excepting for the rotating assembly. It was last built 1971 I think. In the 1980's, Ford went fuel injection. All the fuel injected pickups, trucks & vans had the cast iron two piece exhaust manifolds. Their performance is close to headers but without the hassles. $50 to $75 should get you a pair any wide spot in the road. Big trucks like utility trucks or farm trucks had forged cranks too. All 300's & 240's have forged rods, seven main bearings & gear driven cam. Right from the factory. They are also about 60 lbs lighter than the 327 Chevy. The very last years, 95 & 96 Ford went to a hyper piston instead of the bean counter driven cast piston with iron struts in the pin area. I've had a couple core motors that were running fine but during tear down I found cracked skirts or chunks of the skirts in the oil pan. That said, it is common to find 300's with 250,000 miles...or more. They are a wonderful engine...I can't think of a better kept secret. It will be an excellent choice for your application. They also respond well to a little performance work too. I only wish Ford had made a bigger version with more cubic inches like 400 or so. For transmissions, the best choice would be a zf 5 speed. You'll find these in pickups with 351's. They are getting a little scarce and a bit pricey too. It is plenty strong & has a good gear ratio in reverse. You'll obviously need that. Any transmission that fits onto a Ford small block will bolt up to the six. There is also the Mazda 5 speed. It works ok but has a stupid way too tall revese gear. The other option already mentioned is the four speed overdrive. Not as good as it could be, but it is out there. You may also wish to check out fordsix.com for the 240 & 300 forum. Much good information there. Good luck, Worken2much
I'm going to go out on a limb here but what about a later IHC engine like the 258? It was an AMC built inline 6, used through the '70's and plentiful. It will bolt to later transmissions. AND it should not take a lot of fabbing. Check our Scout forums and other IHC light line info.
A 300 ford with more carburetor and late fuel injection exhaust manifolds make a great combo a f250 ZF 5 speed would be my choice for a trans the f 150 m5r2 is not to stout.
In your situation you need to look at oil pan clearance especially if you want to drop the front end. I don't know if lowering spindles are available for IHC trucks. If you lower the axle in the frame, it could hit the oil pan. Dropped spindles keep your steering geometry. When towing, you don't want it to wander. Also look at cooling system in and out. You might be stuck with the IHC radiator to fit the body.
Nice looking L series. The Ford 300 swap sounds interesting. Going AMC 232 or 258 will be just as much work as the Ford 300 and the 300 would be a better engine with more power. I have a 1955 S100 that someone put a GM 235 six and 3 speed in and it fit but they hacked alot of stuff to fit it into there. No drop spindles for a IH, you could flip the axles on top of the springs with a small C notch in the rear to get it lower just make sure you have enough pan to axle clearance, i did that on a 1956 S110 but with a SBC with a rearsump oil pan. Your L is a 1951-52 and titled as a 1950 for some reason, 1950 is the only Comfo Vison Cab (Nov 1949-early 1957 L-R-S) that had hidden hinges unlike your exposed hinges that where 1951-early 1957.
Or even a late-model Jeep 4.0, with the EFI removed, with a conventional distributor and a carb installed. Bolts in just the same, VERY revised head. Runs unleaded, native. The later ones are backed by an AX15 which is very stout. There are 2wd models. My AX15 has 210,000 miles on it, and is not yet up for a rebuild.
Make sure that there is enough length for the 300. I wouldn't do the swap if you need to cut sheetmetal.
A few of my old scouts had the AMC 232 , smaller cube 4.0 family 258 engine, bulletproof. You really can't go to wrong with any of the good ol American inlines, they were all great motors. Even though I come from a gm dealer family background I'd lean to the 300 ford for power purposes, I've overhauled a few years ago & they are well proven old birds, but the AMC inlines are possibly the longest lived production run & very worthy of consideration. If going later model & carburator on it, check some to see if there is s fuel pump boss for a mechanical pump, simplistic reliability & no buzzing noise. The transmission / bell housings are another thought, most my old ih pickups "r" series, had hydraulic slave/master cylinder combos so easy linkage hookups. Whichever route you go. , good luck! Flux
that's a lot of good input! thanks everybody! HOMLEY??? WHAT???? hahahahaha i'll look into the reversed spring eye. yes, i'll be u rebuilding the suspension as I go thru the truck. i'm looking at putting my rear axle on top of the springs, so the front will need to come down some. maybe a drop axle for a ford will fit? great info on the motor mounts! hahaha! i''ll have to remember that! thanks! I've looked around there, but can't seem to get an account set up. I even emailed the admin and no luck. sounds like the ZF5 is my best bet! I will, thanks! the radiator was just boiled out and is in perfect shape, so I should be good with that not sure why it's titled as a '50? I do know about the hindges. the serial number is 6xxxx, so maybe it was one of the first with the new hinges? Great! thanks! axle over springs and a "c" notch.
there is a 1988 ford f250 custom 3/4 ton inline 6 cylinder with a manual trans for sale near me for $1500. that's a lot of money for me, but I get engine, (I believe a zf5) trans, master cyl, slave cyl, a few other parts. maybe he'll come down some. I just feel bad scraping the fest of a good truck...... I would have to go the carb route, as EFI just wouldn't look right in my truck.
I'll go along with the guys who say this is a good choice. I had an old Winnebago with one in it that I used to haul my vintasge race car.. It was kinda worn out, so after the first season, we did a ring and valve job, added an Offy 4-BBL manifold with a Holley 390, the aforementioned later cast headers, and an Erson RV cam. My engine builder welded up the valve rotators (he had a lot of experience) and it ran like a champ. We could run 70 all day going down 35 to go racing in Iowa. I had a buddy with a 440 Dodge powered motorhome that couldn't keep up with me.
...I looked at my IH and if I'd flip the rear on top the leafs it'd be pretty low, don't know how you'd get the front down that low without using a later front clip. I wanted the rear on top of the rear springs, but am going to lower the rear spring hangers on the frame so I don't need to use a C notch, it'd still be lower without being too low.
I have 330,000 miles on my 300. It's never been overhauled. It seems to have plenty of torque when pulling a trailer or another vehicle. I have a heavy camper shell and 2 heavy 8 foot toolboxes on it. I think you'll like a 300 in your truck if you don't mind getting about 15 - 18 MPG.
that's probably a better option. I've seen them flipped too. I think I need to get my tires first, and see where I want it to be. did you lower your front? and if so, how? thanks that's about all I get with my 07 f150! ha!
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