Sure I will. If I buy a 2024, that will run me 50-100k. What’s crazier? Hauling concrete in a 25k truck or 100k truck? At the end of it’s like my F100 will bring 2/3 of what I have in it , vs 100k that brings 5 grand.
Ford in a Ford ! https://www.summitracing.com/parts/mll-bpf4089ctc/make/ford https://gearstar.com/ford-4r70w-performance-transmission-level-4 https://www.holley.com/products/fue...WcRjy6EZpKt_UGgnGUvVWqRx5h08JJcRoCRnAQAvD_BwE
I wish you were within driving range. I'd put behind the wheel of my 460 powered Club Wagon with a 4K loaded trailer behind it and let you drive us to lunch through the Mountain pass to Randel then out to the I-5 freeway and back to here. I bet your choices would get a lot narrower. The fact that any service item needed is in near every Parts house is a big Plus in my book. I keep thinking about that Vintage Hemi in my 53 and know I could have made a better choice for my full-time driver.
When my Dad closed his mechanic shop years ago he was left with a rusty OT '75 F100 extended cab long bed and a nice '70 383HP engine on a stand. His brain said "Hmmm?" and in the 383 Mopar went into the Ford with a 727 behind it. Made a terrific tow rig! Also made the pump jockies in Oregon twist their heads around when ya fired it up because of that distinctive starter sound! After he had passed, my wife was driving it when the trans cooler line leaked and burnt up trans. Truck got sold to a rodder who put the engine in a '47 Plymouth coupe. The beater Ford was the best shop truck/tow rig we ever had. Dave
292 Y-block. 4 barrel. Mild cam. Transmission of your choice, but not a T5 as they are not up to shop truck use and definitely not towing. If this is truly a shop truck, there is no need to get crafty and fancy with the engine. Power it with a workhorse engine that makes enough power to do the job and no more. If post-'65 engines are in the mix, 351W everyday of the week. They're very available and support for them is wide thanks to the late model Fox body Mustang guys. Back it with a 4R70W overdrive. Need a part? Buy it at any auto store, nationwide.
I had a 53 years ago and I made the bed floor out of 3/4 marine grade plywood and then added a solid rubber mat. I will probably do the same on this one. I installed D rings in the floor for tie downs. I was digging through my junk and found a Reese hitch that looks like it was made for it.
I’ve got a 292 that pulled my bus for decades. Plain Jane 2v 292 pulling a10k buss plus passengers. I’ve also got the 7:20 geared rear end that was in it. The mild 350 in the kids 61 truck pulls great. 4:88 gears on 32 inch tall tires Cruising 60 to 65 is ok The 500 in the bus pulls good. Not great with a trailer loaded. 4:10 gears on 32 inch tires. 7k bus plus trailer, swap meat parts and a car. For me the th400 gearing is poorly suited for my use. 2:48 first gear. Same for a 4l80. Working an engine with only 3 gears. most is spent between 2 and 3rd. Cruising and climbing. The later autos have much better gearing. scratching and dinging up an old truck cost less than doing the same on new. Abusing an older truck as intended makes better financial sense for an individual unless needed as a primary tool for a business.
That’s the beauty of a Godzilla swap..10r140 trans has a 4.61 first gear and a .63 tenth gear. Swap like that would be cost prohibitive for most though.
I am seriously looking into the Godzilla 445 swap. There's a place in TX that does pull outs for electric conversions. You get motor, tranny, wiring etc.
The 460 and Godzilla are two completely different engines. Godzilla is actually 7.3 liters which is about 445 cubic inches.
There's always someone out there doing Spell Check and being Numbers Specific. I just find that annoying! To avoid that I'd just say the newer factory 500 H.P. Ford pushrod motor and let them say there isn't one, then show them the Dyno slip. I wouldn't even open the Hood for them and just let them simmer in frustration. Then show them your Taillights loaded trailer and all. That would Kool their Jets!
I am a Mopar guy. I have had trucks with the 383 HP Mopar big block, and the Mopar 400 big block, and one with a 440. The 440 truck was built for towing a trailer and it worked great @ 9 mpg all the time. The 383 and 400 Dodge big blocks were awesome truck motors, towed our dirt track car on the trailer great, and both pulled 14 mpg pretty regularly. All that said, I sure would not want to start looking for either of those two motors these days, a modern Hemi would do a better job, have the power to do the job, get decent mpg to boot and would be easier to find. Just another option on the long list.
I went through this mental exercise a couple years back. Still have not put it into a truck yet, but I broke a bunch of personal rules and started collecting parts to use a late model ZF6 transmission mated to a slightly older late model inline 6 without spark plugs. I see the 445 pushrod Ford engine being mentioned here. I definitely considered that, with the addition of a carburetor and a distributor of course just to keep things on topic You mentioned wanting to run a stick transmission and having plenty of room under the floor. The ZF6 out of a gas OHC Ford truck shares the same bolt pattern. Very good, reliable, fast shifting transmission with good parts availability and very good ratios. Cheaper and better (imho) than any of the other alternatives. In my case I still come money ahead even after having to buy a $$$ flywheel and adapter plate. If you did it right you could put a Ford / Ford combo in your Ford WITH a warranty for right around 10 bills.
Guy I know who works at a Ford dealership used their Godzilla-powered shop truck to pick up an Expedition dealer trade. He said it was an animal for a gas truck. This guy and his son have built some straight nasty diesels, so for him to say a stock gasser pulled well was a pretty big endorsement to me.
Scrolled thru some of the suggestions and there's quite a few different choices. My .02 is, if you want a torque monster that will give you 100k miles of trouble free service I would go with a Ford 300 6cyl. Probably the best 6cyl Ford ever made and might be the best engine they ever made.
Godzilla gas 7.3 is an amazing engine, available since 2020 in F250 and larger Fords. It's like a bigger LS. It does have a weird computer controlled variable displacement oil pump built into the cast deeeeeep oil pan, and variable cam timing. A company called Late Model Engines makes a front cover to use an old school Chevy distributor, and there's a couple 4150 intake manifolds. All its shortcomings are being addressed by the aftermarket, but non of the solutions are cheap. And, none of this stuff is on topic for the Hamb.
I apologize for the statement I made about the difference between the 7.3 and the 460. Working in the heavy truck repair industry, I’ve heard from many people about how the two engines are the same since the 7.3 came out and I just felt some clarification was needed. I wasn’t trying to be snarky or a wise guy.
That's always the argument for the inline 6's, that they're a "torque monster". The truth is their torque ratings closely align with 302 torque ratings, so for their displacement they produce as much torque as you'd expect.
Just curious as I know nothing about newer Ford stuff, what is needed to run that trans? Is there a stand alone computer? With 10 gears you could almost run a Briggs-Stratton....
Hey @Roothawg not sure how serious you are. I have a fresh built never run 454 (with all the paperwork) sitting in the corner of my shop. It was slated for a drag car that I no longer intend to build. Ive also got the turbo 400 I wont be using and I think possibly even a new radiator too. I might consider selling it. Ive been in a "cleaning house" mood recently. I dont want to haul all this crap to Okiehoma when we move in a few years. Shoot me a PM if ya have any interest in talking further. Im not making any promises on good gas mileage though...
The transmission is massive, it is also used in medium duty F-650 and F-750 trucks. Being this big and heavy, theoretically, it should never give trouble in a lighter application.
Well, you gotta have some place to stuff 10 gears..... Not much different than MaMopar's 8-speed The downside is that damned computer.....
But the good news is the trans cover part of the 56 F-100 floor is totally removable with a hand full of screws. I picture modifying that part a small job.
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