- Thread starter
- #21
Haven't had to do anything to the truck the past couple weeks but she is still looking good.
Ford Reviving the family truck - 1985 F-250 Diesel Swap (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter yotadude520
- Start date
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Love that style Ford pickup.
- Thread starter
- #23
You and me both! They aren't anywhere near as popular as the ones in the 70's or the OBS ones, but they're starting to pick up in popularity! I'm glad they aren't though since parts are still cheap
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- #25
How awesome is this! Hope that little red truck isn't getting jealous
Fantastic work as always!
Thanks Brett! I think it might be so I'm trying to think of ways to make up for not driving it the past couple months. I've got the shifter bezel to install, and am looking at a parts truck with A/C tonight so she'll be getting some lovin.
Hows your 4Runner project coming along?
- Thread starter
- #27
It’s been a while since I’ve updated my thread. I’ve been doing some small projects on the truck as time and money allow. A couple of weeks ago I decided to re-dye the kick panels in the interior. They were gross looking and just were faded and for $40 and a couple hours of my time I figured I could get them looking better. The whole process was pretty easy. I started by cleaning them with a soft sponge and some mineral spirits. I did not sand them at all because they are in good shape for the most part and I was advised against doing so. I would agree that sanding them is not necessary and a good clean with mineral spirits will do. Once they were all cleaned up I did two coats of the adhesion promoter and then 5 coats of the SEM paint. I let them dry for 24 hours and I have to say, they came out really well! Not as blue as the originals, but honestly it’s so close you really can’t tell the difference.
My truck has also been riding really badly for the past couple weeks. I noticed it more on the passenger side and after checking it out I noticed my shock was disconnected at the lower mount! I could see the leaf spring was badly damaged since it wasn’t being dampened by the shock and was literally bending much more than it should. I ordered a new set of leaf springs, shackles and u-bolts from General Spring out of Kansas. I have to say I was pretty impressed with their customer service and shipping. I ordered them on a Tuesday and they arrived on a Friday! All parts looked to be good quality too. My truck had 1900lb front leaf springs on it and considering it has the diesel I just didn’t think those were right.
For the replacement springs I decided to go with the 2200 lb springs considering the diesel is heavier and I like a stiff ride. I replaced the worn out Ranchos with some Monroe Gas-Magnums. All in all it was an easy job and went smoothly. The only real snag I ran into were the leaf spring plates. The center bolts on the new leafs were larger so I had to ream out the holes in the plates. Also the passenger side one (which went bad) was so bent I couldn’t believe it. Whoever installed these springs and shocks did a horrible job and didn’t have the plate aligned properly. Instead of working it to align it, they cranked it down using the bolts and it was definitely not safe. No worries there, a couple good smacks with a 20LB sludge fixed that issue.
The new springs added some serious height to the truck, and I was a little bit spooked it wasn’t going to clear the door. Luckily, it did so I’m happy about that. Really happy with the new springs, and it rides and handles like a dream. Plus, it just looks better with the height on it too. I’m really happy with the quality of General Spring’s products, and time will tell how well they hold up.
Unfortunately, after the test drive I ran into a small issue. After 34 years of dutiful service, the interior door handle decided to let go. Luckily I have my brown parts truck and I was able to get the one off of that until I order a new one. Just reminded me that with these trucks if it’s not one thing, it’s another!
My truck has also been riding really badly for the past couple weeks. I noticed it more on the passenger side and after checking it out I noticed my shock was disconnected at the lower mount! I could see the leaf spring was badly damaged since it wasn’t being dampened by the shock and was literally bending much more than it should. I ordered a new set of leaf springs, shackles and u-bolts from General Spring out of Kansas. I have to say I was pretty impressed with their customer service and shipping. I ordered them on a Tuesday and they arrived on a Friday! All parts looked to be good quality too. My truck had 1900lb front leaf springs on it and considering it has the diesel I just didn’t think those were right.
For the replacement springs I decided to go with the 2200 lb springs considering the diesel is heavier and I like a stiff ride. I replaced the worn out Ranchos with some Monroe Gas-Magnums. All in all it was an easy job and went smoothly. The only real snag I ran into were the leaf spring plates. The center bolts on the new leafs were larger so I had to ream out the holes in the plates. Also the passenger side one (which went bad) was so bent I couldn’t believe it. Whoever installed these springs and shocks did a horrible job and didn’t have the plate aligned properly. Instead of working it to align it, they cranked it down using the bolts and it was definitely not safe. No worries there, a couple good smacks with a 20LB sludge fixed that issue.
The new springs added some serious height to the truck, and I was a little bit spooked it wasn’t going to clear the door. Luckily, it did so I’m happy about that. Really happy with the new springs, and it rides and handles like a dream. Plus, it just looks better with the height on it too. I’m really happy with the quality of General Spring’s products, and time will tell how well they hold up.
Unfortunately, after the test drive I ran into a small issue. After 34 years of dutiful service, the interior door handle decided to let go. Luckily I have my brown parts truck and I was able to get the one off of that until I order a new one. Just reminded me that with these trucks if it’s not one thing, it’s another!
- Thread starter
- #28
The truck has been fantastic the past couple of weeks. I installed the new Monroe shocks in the rear and put on a new tailpipe. It hasn't had one for as long as I've owned it and it kept bugging me how it would soak my undercarriage in soot.
There's a couple things mechanically the truck still needs. I'm going to be replacing all the tie rod ends, track bar bushings and rag joint. I think this should help the steering immensely especially after the alignment. I'm going to be tackling all that this weekend.
Some bigger news with the truck is that I was able to find a 1993 F-250 with a turboed 7.3IDI and a ZF5 5 speed tranny for $900. The motor is locked up, but I'm mainly interested in the turbo stuff and the ZF5 for my truck. I think those would be two massive upgrades to it's drivability. If I do pull the trigger on the truck, this thread is about to get much more interesting.
There's a couple things mechanically the truck still needs. I'm going to be replacing all the tie rod ends, track bar bushings and rag joint. I think this should help the steering immensely especially after the alignment. I'm going to be tackling all that this weekend.
Some bigger news with the truck is that I was able to find a 1993 F-250 with a turboed 7.3IDI and a ZF5 5 speed tranny for $900. The motor is locked up, but I'm mainly interested in the turbo stuff and the ZF5 for my truck. I think those would be two massive upgrades to it's drivability. If I do pull the trigger on the truck, this thread is about to get much more interesting.
Any updates? Just read all this. Love the swap and the D60. Those 6.9s just aren't that common any more, but have a great diesel rattle. I have an '01 7.3 that greatly enjoy, and it's nice and noisy (as in, it fails the drive-thru restaurant 'order test')
- Thread starter
- #30
So the parts truck with the turbo kit and ZF5 had 300k+ miles on it and the engine seized from lack of oil pressure- needless to say I didn't feel like it was worth going after.
I've just been driving it as is and enjoying the hell out of it. It's been super reliable since the swap other than the fact my battery cables failed recently and I realized it had only been starting on one battery for months.
I do love these old International diesels - especially the 7.3. I originally wanted to put a Powerstroke in it but am really happy I went with the 6.9.
All in all it's been a fantastic truck since the swap.
Nice brick nose! My 97 I’ve been working on.
- Thread starter
- #32
Thanks! Very nice truck!
Thank you so much! It’s very clean, I’m getting ready to install a new muffler and intercooler. I’ll post up pics here in the next couple of days. I’ve since added lights to the rack and have plans for a canoe setup.
New 4” MBRP exhaust. Intercooler next. Hope you don’t mind me hijacking your thread.
- Thread starter
- #35
Been a few years since an update and I'm ready to get back on this thing. My plans are to swap in a ZF5, turbo the 6.9 IDI, redo the interior and put in a slide in pop up camper to make it a comfortable camping rig. Hope to have the build done come spring time so I can start taking it out into the woods!
In the meantime, she got new BFG KO2s all the way around and I finally tracked down an original Warn winch bumper. It will be getting a 8274 in no time as well.
Stay tuned!
In the meantime, she got new BFG KO2s all the way around and I finally tracked down an original Warn winch bumper. It will be getting a 8274 in no time as well.
Stay tuned!
