Maybe someone should start a sticky on this subject as it keeps getting asked.

Here is the info on my swap that is finally done: 1997 f1504x4 4.6 swapped out for a 2002 5.4.

FLEXPLATE: my 4.6 was a windsor so i reused my stock flexplate and bolts. if you have a romeo engine, it has 6 bolts in the back of the crank, so you will have to get a flexplate and bolts. make sure the flexplate fits your torque converter BEFORE you bolt it to the crank.


KNOCK SENSOR:the 4.6 had a two wire and so did my 5.4 but the plug was different, so i swapped plugs. no issues as of yet.


COOLANT SENSOR:if you notice, the 4.6 has a second coolant sensor. i drilled and tapped the aluminum water crossover for it.



SERPENTINE BELT:my tuck had the 8 rib setup and the belt fit perfect. only thing i had to do was shim the idler pulley out about.060" to line up.

 

EXHAUST: The exhaust manifold on the drivers side on the 5.4 was twice as wide as the one on the 4.6 so i had to tilt the motor a little more to get it in. i wound up taking the gearbox off and separating the steering shaft. if you do this,DO NOT spin the shaft, you will ruin the clockspring in the column. also the manifold stud on the passenger side hung on the trans dipstick tube and bent it a little. I had new downpipes made at the shop and have no problems.

EGR: small fitment problem with the lightning plenum. You can't just bend this tube, trust me!


HEATER HOSE: I just pulled the heater hose forward and it fit fine.Here you can see the other coolant sensor in place.

more to come later

 

Lookin good

What did that engine come out of? At first I though it was an L engine because of the intake plenum, but I guess theres no s/c there

Should wake that truck up just a little bit.

 

I only wish it was an L! yeah, i thought i might as welldo something non traditional with the intake...Who wants to pay 279 for a puny 75mm when i can run a L for $40! The engine is out of a 2002 expy. low miles. Waiting to datalog the a/f numbers to see if it works out. hoping for turbo later so i added this now. fabbed up an adapter less than $20.

 

FAN AND PCV OIL SEPERATOR: You can see the 200 amp continuous relay for my taurus two speed electric fan. only use low speed so far, keeps it cool. the red can with the hoses is an air compressor filter that i plumbed in to remove the oil from the vacuum stream. waiting to see how good it works.


RADIATOR: I bought a new one but the trans fittings were wrong, reused mine after cleaning


AIR INTAKE: not stock test fitting L plenum and t/b to datalog a/f for Mike

shot of air intake

 

Thanks again to all at Troyers

 

COIL BRACKET: the passenger side coil will need a bracket made to bolt into the stock location. I made two Z shaped brackets and bolted them to the coil bracket, then bolted it to the studs on the chain cover.

IGNITION SYSTEM: If you want to keep the original COIL-ON -PLUG setup that is standard on the 5.4, you will have to get the ecm and wirng from your donor vehicle. I reused my stock two-coil system and added MSD 8.8 wires and got a set of motorcraft plugs. Torque these plugs BEFORE you drop the motor in and you will be much happier!

TUNING: I first spoke to TROYER performance before i even started this swap to be sure they could do what needed to be done. Talk to your tuner about what you are doing to be positive he understands what is being done. If you run the 5.4 on a 4.6 tune, YOU WILL RUN EXTREMELY LEAN, and your motor may not last long. I had to drive to the muffler shop slowly on the 4.6 tune because it was too cold to load my tunes at the house. i have an OBD2 scanner and watched very carefully for problems. The motor was definitely running lean as i saw the fuel trim #s jump way up from normal. Mike was able to get my tunes to me in a reasonable time and i actually had my xcal2 sitting here a month before the swap began. Got home from muffler shop and uploade tunes, now it breaks the tires loose from a dead stop. something the old 4.6 couldn't even do in low range in dirt. now i can measure 0-60 on a stopwatch instead of a calendar.

 

Nice.

So how long did it take you do to the swap? Something you can do in your garage with mostly basic tools?

 

it took roughly 20 hours to do it all in my freezing garage! that was spread out over 3 days off work and had to go inside the house to warm up every so often. Here are the few special tools you need:

FUEL LINE DISCONNECT SET

TAP FOR COOLANT SENSOR

HARMONIC BALANCER PULLER SET

HARMONIC BALANCER INSTALLER SET

SAWZALL TO GET RUSTED FLANGE STUDS LOOSE ON MINE

Hope this helps.

 

CAM SWAP: now is the time to do it BEFORE you put the motor in. my comp cams xe262ah have a pretty nice lick to the idle. reminds me of a 280/.480 comp cam i had in a 355 chevy for a while. You can get all the other necesary parts from the ford dealer(sprockets, spacers, washers,bolts) don't forget the locktight