Hey everyone,
I just inherited a 1994 F-150. It's a great truck, in good condition, still under 100K on the clock. The downsides are it's a Standard Cab, so theres not much room, and it's only a 6 Cylinder (4.9 I beleive), 2WD. Regardless though, the truck was my grandfather's, so I'm kinda attached to it already.



Here's the deal, I'm a 16 year old boy, with a 10 dollar an hour job and low living expenses (Gas and Girls), so it's only natural I show the truck some love, and mod it. I figure I'll start with the basics, Exhaust and Intake, to try to wake up the Six. It's got a lot of torque, just needs some more pep. Any suggestions?

For the exhaust I've been looking at Jeg's(555-30460) and Summit (SUM-684011). Summit's has a muffler with split duals, while the Jeg's system has a y-pipe spliting the system, then the tips are glasspacks. I'm not sure how either would sound, so this is where I need your help. My parents wouldn't be too crazy about a loud system, so I think that rules out flowmaster, which was what I was realling looking at. Are there any other options? I want to maximize flow, with a good deep rumble and would love dual pipes out the back. Help!

As for other mods, I'm up in the air. I'd be great if you could point me in the right direction. Maybe a posi? Something to level the truck out, I hate how the front sits lower than the rear. Any suggestions are welcome, Thanks in advance!

 

don't know how it would sound on a 6, but i have a summit dual system on my 91 5.0 f150, It's quiet because of the cats, but i like it, and it is holding up real well. If you get high flow cats they should be a bit louder, but i still have a nice rumble when idling. I was considering the jegs "powertone cat back" which i believe is what your refering too. That would be louder, but with stock cats...idk how loud. My duals are as loud as with the summit muffler as it was right off the cat...almost no change in how loud it was with the summit muffler. It's a cheap, easy kit to install and it holds up pretty well, you might want to get some tips for it, but that's up to you...i don't have tips on mine...just the pipes...and it looks nice. I have several pics of them in my photo gallery. If your truck is like mine...which it is, you might have to custom fab the swinger hangers to fit, like i did. If you decide to get the summit kit i could help you out with instalation and stuff.


as you might be able to see in this pic, the swinger hanger is next to the spare tire on each side....those pipes don't budge...there are really secure with those hangers.

 

Nice looking truck by the way it's a beauty. I'm right there with ya, i'm going on 17, and i got my one-fitty from my bro. I'm starting to mod it out a little, but not much since i have a ranger that needs work...more than the one-fitty. I'd go with a decent performance air filter maybe....i might get one soon because the stock one sucks. But good luck..and keep us posted on what you decide to do with it....and once again...nice truck

 

Howdy and welcome aboard! Fill out your profile and hit me up on a instant messenger.

Did I hear "only a six?" Thems fightin words... hahahah. Check out www.fordsix.com to make your 4.9L (300cu in) six banger fly.

Even though it is a regular cab, there is still enough room for certain "activities"... hahahah

Oh, stick or automatic?

Adrianspeeder

 

Free is good!

 

Thanks a lot for the repiles everybody.

First, let me answer your questions. Adrianspeeder, the truck has the mised blessing of an automatic transmission, not my preferance, but hey, it was free, and I completely agree with NIUPonyBoy, free is good! The standard cab is indeed big enough for two, but why stop at two.

I'm still looking at my options for catbacks. 74duster, Thanks a lot for the info about the Summit System. So it's definately louder than stock, and can get louder with a high-flow cat, that all sounds good, but I'm still intrigued by the Jeg's system. The Powertone looks cool because there's no actual muffler, just glasspack tips, so as 74 said, I imagine it'd be louder then the Summit system, but how much louder? Does anybody on the board have the Powertone setup?

I just wanna say thanks a lot though, you guys have been great so far, now, Does anybody know anything about suspension and leveling the truck out, maybe even a little lift? Any help will be greatly appreciated! Thanks a lot for the compliments too, 74, your truck looks great too, love the exhaust set-up, and you can't beat a black truck, looks aggresive and mean!

 

Ok, which auto tranny is it?

There is the "heavy duty" E4OD with 20 pan bolts and a door TRANS code sticker of E, or the "light duty" 4R70w with i think 14 pan bolts and a door TRANS code sticker of U.

Search for prerunner style lifts for your 4x2.

You on any instant messengers?

Adrianspeeder

 

It has the TRANS code "E", so heavy duty. I hope that's a good thing. Any good places to shop for products for our Pre-97' F150s, like suspension lifts, preferably board sponsors or supporters. Thanks man, I'll put my AIM name in my profile.

 

Just wanted to say thats a nice truck there. Im only 17 and i noticed you are also from wilmington, de. Thats pretty cool i dont see to many people from wilmington on here. Dont under estimate these 6 cylinders, I have a 87 with the 300 in it and they can get up and go. One suggestion i can give you is to look into some new rear end gears depending on whats in there right now.

 

Wilmington all the way man. I hear ya about the rear end. Right now it has an open differential with 3.08s I think. I'm not too familiar with truck gears and rears, I have helped swap 4.10s into an SS Camaro though. Back to trucks though, what would be good for my truck? I eventually plan on going to bigger tires, 33's max, and doing some light off-roading. Maybe a locker? I don't really know what a locker is, but I think it gives full power to both wheels, which I think would be a good thing. So any rear and gear advice is more than welcome.

 

Ok rear end 101.

An open rear end really only sends power to one wheel at a time. The axle is split in the middle and lets the two wheels turn independantly to take turns easily.

A LS (Limited slip) acts like an open diff normally, but if one wheel spins too fast, like in a slip, a clutch pack engages and locks the two wheels together to get both pulling.

A locker physically locks both wheels together all the time giving a lot of traction but at the expense of quick easy turning. Under a tight turn the mech will unlatch and lock with a loud click to let you turn.

Gearing... Bigger number means "lower gear" and more grunt off the line at the expense of top end speed. Bigger tires work to lower the number, so big tires on the "high" gear of 3.08 will pull you down to the 2s making a pig off the line but nice RPMs on the highway. I would go with 3.55s for only a 33 tire. Any bigger go with 4.10s.

Adrianspeeder

 

Post your rear gears code (under "axle" on your cert label).

Over the last 9 years, I've tried quite a bit to see what I could get out of my 4.9L. First, don't be upset for having a six. This engine is one of the very best that Ford ever made. It may not be zippy, but it will last forever, and as you said, is quite torquey. The auto tranny is better for towing, but makes the truck even less zippy than a 5 speed. Oh well, it's still a great truck!

Don't spend a lot of money on engine mods and expect a big difference. You're not going to see one. I would keep the stock intake and exhaust manifolds, but a cat-back wouldn't hurt. I looked at several, and settled on an Edelbrock RPM kit that has dual out pipes behind the passenger side tire. Really helped the sound. Might be too quiet for you, if you're looking at glass packs. The Edelbrock RPM kit makes it sound like a V8 with a little work done, but it's not obnoxious. It didn't do much for power, but my manifold vacuum went up an inch, and my gas mileage improved.

The single best thing you can buy for your truck, that will give you the biggest performance increase, is a K&N FIPK. It still won't be a rocket, but you will instantly notice the difference, big time.

I've tried just about every type of plug I could find, and the plugs it loves the most are Champion Truck Plugs. I like to slightly cut the ground electrodes to sidegap them, but that isn't necessary to notice the improvement these plugs will make. I currently have a set of Taylor wires, but I liked Accel 300+ Race Wires better. I replaced the coil with a Crane PS91, but just because I wanted to. The factory ignition is actually excellent. You could drop a few hundred, and buy an MSD box and a fancy coil, but you won't notice any difference (unless your current system is faulty).

I installed a JET chip, and was really very pleased with it, but after 5 or 6 years, the truck developed an odd cold start problem that I traced back to the chip, so I removed it. I noticed the difference right away. The good news is that JET guarantees their chips for life, so I need to send it back for a replacement. I just haven't gotten around to it yet.

I'm debating installing an electric fan(s), but haven't decided yet. A very good friend did to his '96 4.9L, and he loved it for a while, but then he started having overheating problems, and reinstalled the original fan.

I replaced the shocks with Monroes, and regret it. They suck. I added an Add-A-Leaf rear spring to the leafs, which really helps with heavy loads, but when the bed is empty, the rear stiffens up a lot.

If you've got any questions, let me know. Check my gallery (link in sig) for an idea of what I've done.

Take care,
~Chris

 

Okay, here'sw everything from the sticker, it'd be great if you guys could help de-code the rest for me.

WB - 135
TYPE GVW - F154
BODY - D64
TRANS - E
AXLE - 18
TAPE - J
SPRINGS - K N

Thanks a lot for all the help so far.

 

WB - 135: I think you mean 133. 133" Wheelbase

TYPE GVW - F154: F150 4x2, GVWR 5450 lbs., 133" Wheelbase

BODY - D64: Cloth Flight Bench seat, Grey Opal Trim Color, Styleside Pickup

TRANS - E: E4OD Automatic Transmission

AXLE - 18: 3800 lbs. Capacity, 3.08 Gears, Open Differential

TAPE - J: Deep Forest Green/Silver Styleside Tape

SPRINGS - K N: Front Spring Code: F4TA-5310-KA, Rear Spring Code: F4TA-5560-XB

 

Yup.

Adrianspeeder