I read some old posts in this forum, about this topic, but they were pretty confusing and all over the place...

My '97 F150 has 281k miles and the replacement '00 engine has 140k miles.
Both are 4.6L and Windsors.

What do i need to do to make the 2000 4.6L engine work in my '97 truck?
I'm not looking for performance, only the cheapest way to make it work.

Some posts say that the '00 engine is PI, others say it is not.
-So if it is NOT PI, then all i have to do is swap the intake and exhaust manifolds, oil pan and coil packs, right?
-If the engine IS PI, then i have to take the NPI heads off my '97 engine and put on the '00 engine? As well as the manifolds, coil packs and oil pan, right?

This is the my first engine swap, so i'm a bit nervous and want to make sure i know what i'm getting into before i start... I have 30 days as of yesterday, so if this one is too complicated, i can still return the '00 engine. I'd like to have this swap done in less than a week.

 

If the 2000 engine is out of a F-150 and is complete with intake and exhaust manifolds, just drop it in.

 

i thought i could only drop in a 97/98?

so why do so many people talk about npi vs pi, just for performance?

 

You can essentially drop in any 4.6, you just have to have the right manifolds. PI manifolds go with PI engines. Cars and trucks had different manifolds.

All PI did was upgrade the heads for more performance.

There may be some minor electronic differences.

 

Correct, so i decided to use a truck engine to put back into my truck. Like you said, i can drop in the '00 engine as is, but i'll just need to figure out a few electronic issue?

And from what i read, the only issues i found was a temperature sensor needs to be added somewhere and a coolant hose might need to be replaced. Just making sure i can use my current '97 wiring harness.

I'm going to start working on the truck this Sunday, so i have until then to decide if i want to return the engine or go ahead with the swap. If i had to put the heads and manifolds from the '97 engine onto the '00 engine, i would have had to buy a whole engine gasket set, which is $124-$155 on rockauto. On top of other things that i'll already have to purchase. If so, i was just going to return the engine... But if i can drop in the '00 engine as is, with a few minor/cheap fixes, then i'll go ahead with the swap. Thank you very much for responding GLC!!!