I've got a 05 F-150 with the 5.4L motor and am looking into having it swapped out with a diesel motor. Does anyone know any shops that do motor swappings?

 

o man....umm well you would be better off buying a f250 because doing the swap would probably cost that much, or wait till they put the diesel in the f150 in 2010. the only way i see this working cheaply is to swap in a non electronic engine or a stand alone engine that wouldnt requre you having to figure out a pcm for it, then just use your truck as a shell and would have to do lots of custom work to get all the electronics, a/c, heat, shifter, gauges to work again in the truck, or replace with aftermarket universal type stuff, or you could take a superduty with a diesel and take everything and i mean every sensor, gauge, all the accessorys, every wire, everything out of it and put in your truck, but then you have the cost of the truck being that you would have to buy a crashed truck to get a half way decent deal on everything then pay to have it all custom installed, by then you would have paid more money then it is to go out and buy a whole new f250 and keep your f150......

 

Cole there is a thing called a period, use it!!


Not to mention diesels are heavier so you probably have to beef up the front end.

The diesel V8 the same size as a Gas V8?

 

i dont like periods they make her more angry at me

yep you would need stronger springs

and the diesel is much bigger and i dont think a v8 diesel would fit it would need to be a v6 or maybe a straight 6 but that would be pretty cramped

 

lol good point.


Yeah I thought the diesel V8's were bigger and wouldnt fit easily, if at all.


Which leaves....cummins.

 

Good luck..........that is all I can say!............

 

yea... everything, and i mean everything will have to be changed. from the fuel tank to the gauges... Hope your stock brakes are good.

 

I'm just throwin change around, but doesn't th 04-08 f150 have more in common with the outgoing f250 than the previous f150? I am pretty sure that much of the suspension underpinnings and geometry are similar to the 3/4 ton design. Now, I know suspension is one thing but I would think that something of a powerstork 7.3 or 6.0 would fit (maybe) and locating the bellhousing to use factory f150 powertrain should be hard but do-able... I think... maybe.... course I could be completely wrong.

 

Technically it's emissions tampering, and any shop doing it could face large fines.

 

oh, and I mean no disrespect to you senior members, but you are probably right that the most difficult portion of the swap is the peripherals. Now that depends on how you look at it though. I personally hate throttle by wire, and "request" on demand components. But I figure this would lend itself to simplifying the install. Not having to route a throttle cable and some simple fabrication of a/c lines, extending p/s, abs, brake lines, etc is not too hard. Routing wires is a snap and with options of using a ford obd2 computer (a f250 unit more than likely) or an aftermarket stand alone unit should alleviate computer issues.

Truckinevan2005- First, you have to ask yourself; how involved are you going to be and how mechanically inclined are you? The more work you do the less it will cost and the fact that if you do pull it off you will have the only one in existence. In order to make living with your truck less stressful you, personally have to know it inside and out. Don't get discouraged. I have had the same idea and I am rather unhappy with the 5.4. I am a diesel /heavy equipment tech by trade and I know the benefits of a dsl. When it comes time to rebuild/toss my 5.4 I hope you and a few others have completed the swap so that some options will be out there when the time comes....

 

Yes... and no.

You might be able to get around the whole issue of emissions if you stay within the same engine family. What i mean by that is the powerstroke 6.0 (and maybe the 7.3) was available in the f250 of the same year. Vehicles for each manufacturer are certified by type... not actual model. So as long as he uses a same year or later engine that was available in the truck line (short of the 26K lbs/commercial vehicles) he should be able to "grandfather" in the epa certification... unless the law specifically prohibits in your stae, which I highly doubt considering california has some of the stringent emission laws in the union and they allow it....

 

The engine is identified in the vehicle VIN number. I know the IN BMV knows what engine and fuel type a vehicle uses by the VIN #. They don't know the gross vehicle weight by the VIN, so we are able to get around emission testing by buying 10,000 lb truck plates I know in some states the heavy duty plates require a comercial vehicle inspection which may cost some $$$.

 

order the 4.5L V6 that comes in the LCF's and put in it

 

I would bet on not doable there.

The tranny bellhousings aren't swappable if I recall correctly. Besides, if a 4R75W is somewhat pushed to the limit by a 5.4L, how would said tranny or even the rear axle hold up to upwards of 200 ft/lb's more of torque?

No, neither diesel would fit in anything resembling a comfortable truck.

Then again, I like A/C and heat when I need them and an intact firewall.

Something like an Isuzu 5.2L I4 (that might be too tall) or Cummins 3.9L I4 might do the trick...if you don't have emissions or visual inspection.