I was recently given this 86 F150 with I-6 4.9L, 170K miles, the clutch was out when I got so I replaced the entire assmebly, rear seal, master and slave and that went great. While doing that I replace the oil pan gasget. The oil that came out was very black, when I started her I had a heavy ticking, the idle was real poor and I have strong black exhust. I am considering changeoing the header, exhust and carberator but wonder what is the best way to go, should I get a rebuilt short block and go from there or can I make this one work by upgrading the header, exhust and carb. Also does anyone know of a good performance carb for this engine?

 

A Holley 390 or 450 CFM carb would probably be a good choice for this motor.

Before getting rid of this motor for a shortblock, do a compression check on all cylinders and see what kind of shape it's in.