Thanks guys. The engine swap project as a whole has been three years in the making. It started back in 2011 with a big block and tranny combo I acquired through some horse trading. The attraction was the big block was computer controlled and I had never played with anything other than carbs before. I did get that motor running on my stand and got as far as building a pair of cross members in the junkyard chassis before stopping and going to the diesel platform. The reason I switched is I found the gas platform was not easily modified for performance the way the diesel platform is. There’s a whole sub-culture around these diesel engines that doesn’t exist for the gas big blocks. Many small companies that have cropped up all around the country whose sole existence is making performance parts for the Powerstorke and Cummins (Dodge) engines. The only limit for buying performance parts for these engines is your wallet.
I gathered up all the big block stuff I had acquired and again did some trading and managed to get the 97 F250 Powerstroke truck as the donor vehicle for the swap project. Got lucky; it’s a low mileage (175 K) motor, 2wd that was fleet maintained by a fence company that’s owned it since new. The body of the truck didn’t have a straight panel on it, the interior looked like a dog fight had taken place in it but the drivetrain ran like a top.
I’ve tried to capture the biggest components of the swap in the pictures and the videos, but there’s still a ton of smaller details that I haven’t mentioned. I’d need to make a couple more supplemental videos to capture everything, so if anyone has any questions please ask.
This project has actually turned into a money maker for me. Well, at the moment it’s a money off-setter since it’s helping to finance the project but has the potential to keep on giving after the project is paid for. I mentioned earlier that an entire sub-culture exists and now I’ve joined it. The fuel conversion pieces I machined for the engine became an instant hit on the diesel boards that guys were asking me to make one for them. I sold several and the requests kept coming so I now offer a complete kit that converts the first generation Powerstroke engine to allow the use of an electric fuel pump and remote filter system. I’ve sold a little over 50 kits to date with many sales pending. Below is a couple videos about what I’m doing. The first is the installation video for the kit which you only need to watch the first three minutes to get the full explanation. The second video is a tool I had to make so I could repetitiously make the fuel lines for the kits. It’s a short (and fun) video that you can watch the whole way through.
