rossta86

iTrader: (1)

I am replacing this

with this


The truck had a 351M that had low oil pressure and only had 30 psi of compression in cylinder 1. The new engine is GM 5.3L LM7 out of a 2000 Chevy Silverado.

Got the engine pulled out



I had to have a look at the cylinders of the 5.3. Scraped some carbon buildup off of the pistons and cylinder heads. EGR really makes a mess. I could still see cross hatching in all the cylinders.





I made an oil pressure sensor adapter. First I gutted the Factory GM sensor as it is not read by the ECU, just a dummy light or gauge. Next i tig welded a 1/4 NPT bushing to it. Still learning on the tig......



For the coolant temperature sensor I drilled and tapped a spare port on the passenger side head to 3/8 NPT for the factory ford sensor.



Clutch and bellhousing setup to attach to my NP435.


Turned down the front bearing retainer to slip fit the bellhousing


Next I slotted the upper holes of the NP435. Then I drilled a hole in the bellhousing to meet the lower passenger side NP435 bolt hole. Finally I drilled a hole in the undrilled lower driverside ear of the NP435 to meet the GM bellhousing hole.


Where I am at currently is making a bushing so I can use the stock ford pilot bearing. Just needs to measure and cut to the right length.

bufmatmuslepants

iTrader: (3)

Yea buddy!

Bighatchy

I'm going to be tackling a similar swap in the next year. I have a 73 F100 2wd that I'm going to do an ls conversion. Lolling forward to seeing this completed. Plus I'm going to enjoy posting a build thread on my favorite ford truck site just to **** them off

99firebird-ta

nice setup

rossta86

iTrader: (1)

Finished the pilot bearing.



I'm using a truck SBC clutch fork with the Ford 351m throw out bearing.


Test fit the engine, transmission and transfer case as one. Bolted the transmission and transfer case in and then began my engine mounts. First I cut the perches off of the frame mounts and made flat plates to weld on.


Driver side mount.




Passenger side mount. I had to flip this one for it to work, it doesn't seem like this will cause any issues.




Mounts back in the truck and supporting the engine.




No problems with oil pan clearance.



I still need to pull the mounts to clean them up and paint them.

Crystalss

Nice work, that should be fun!

cruisin'73

iTrader: (8)

Holy smokes! You are kicking *** on this swap! You must be a get sh*t done kinda of guy. See a problem, figure out how to solve it, do it, move on! Keep the updates coming.

rossta86

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the complements and words of encouragement everyone. I'm excited to see how the truck performs compared to the old worn out 351m.

I'm not moving as fast as it might seem. The first post details all my progress from when i bought the engine in mid May. Getting the engine mounted is a big step for me, but I'm afraid that finishing the electrical and mechanical connections will take me a while longer especially since work has really picked up lately.

Jimbo1367

I always liked those 70's F150s. Great work!!! Subsrcibing

dvdswan

nice job so far.

rossta86

iTrader: (1)

I've made some slow progress on the truck. Mainly just installing parts that were removed to get the engine in, wiring, and plumbing the fuel system. Wiring still needs be cleaned up and stuff like the PCM still needs mounted.



I quickly modded the fuel pickup and sending unit for a return line just to try to start it. I figure that I may need to build a fuel tank or at the very least sump this one? Anyone have any experience using an OEM tank from an originally carbed vehicle with the stock fuel pickup? Any issues with fuel starvation?



The truck started first try once the fuel system was primed. Of course it only runs for a second until it shuts off because the ECU still has VATS enabled. It does make oil pressure during its short operation and i can't hear any odd noises over the open exhaust manifolds.

I've been waiting to send the PCM off until I figured out my VSS and the number of pulses per mile to program in. I was initially going to go with a Dakota Digital sensor, but from what I can tell they do not offer a pass through sensor that will work with my style of ford speedometer cable. I really want to keep my mechanical speedometer. I believe I have a solution. My NP205 transfer case has an access plate on the passenger side.



The gear on the far left is used for low range only, but it is always spinning regardless of 2wd, 4hi, 4lo. I've found that it will give me 18 pulse per drive shaft revolution. I bought a stock GM VR sensor that I plan to install in the cover or if necessary make a new cover (thicker) that i can better machine to fit the sensor. Does anyone foresee any issues with this?

Cape T/A

Awesome build, I love 78/79 Fords! I had a 76 with a 79 grill, if i sill had it i would probably LS swap it too!

rossta86

iTrader: (1)

Progressing on the swap....

Sent the PCM out to be re-programmed today.

A while back I put a corvette manifold on the drivers side because the truck manifold interfered with the clutch linkage.



I got a radiator from a coworker. I made a bracket for the bottom mounts and used rubber isolators to bolt it to the core support.





Mechanical fan was being stubborn and the shop air was down so no air chisel to help. The inlet and oulet of the radiator are different diameters than the thermostat housing and waterpump on engine. They are also on opposite sides. I have a few radiator hoses on order that I should be able to splice into a lower and upper hose.

rossta86

iTrader: (1)

Got the truck running, but still a lot left to tackle.


Engine needs a new waterpump as it is leaking out the weep hole. Regardless the temperature stabilized without the electric fan.

rossta86

iTrader: (1)

Made a quick bracket for the throttle cable out of some aluminum angle. I used a Mr. Gasket Universal Cable and the stock 351m pedal, but I bent the linkage back towards the cab about 2 inches.



Mounted my VSS in the pto plate on the transfer case reading the 4 low gear. I made a bushing for the sensor out of black pipe on the lathe, drilled a hole in the PTO cover and welded it in place.




I also got my clutch linkage sorted out and was able to drive it down the street today. Not far and not fast because my booster is bad and no rear brakes, but whoa! A huge difference from the tired 351m.

bufmatmuslepants

iTrader: (3)

So awesome

mufflerguy

Nice work.

cruisin'73

iTrader: (8)

Congrats! Very inventive solution for the speedo pick-up! How did it work on your short test drive? Now get those rear breaks in order and lets see a burnout vid.

What is the plan for the truck? Work rig, shop rig, slammed cruiser, hot rod truck? All are good options.

rossta86

iTrader: (1)

Thanks Dudes! I'm not sure if the VSS is working correctly yet. I'm waiting on the electrical connector for it. Then I can wire it in and make sure I'm reading a vehicle speed on my scanner. I am a bit concerned by the teeth spacing on the gear I'm using. The OEM silverado gear has a very fine tooth spacing compared to what I'm reading. I have read that as far as the PCM fueling algoritms go it just needs to know when the vehicle is moving. Hopefully at the very least my setup will provide that. An accurate vehicle speed output would be icing on the cake.

The truck is quite rusty and still needs a fair amount of suspension work. It will never be perfect, thus it will be a driver, hauler, errand runner etc.

blackout5.3

Great job on doin the swap I think your Really going to enjoy it, im ls swapping my 75 at the moment to a lq9, its a real pain what im finding out, I first have to get the twin I beam stuff out and my crown vic K member in before I get to fabricate any engine mounts.