has there been anybody that has swapped in an ls based motor into a 1997-2003 ford f150 in place of the junky 5.4 that has no *****
im looking to swap the 5.4 with a 5.3 4l60e and transfer case out of a chevy 4wd pickup
any pros and cons to this?
isnt the firing order the same?
could i use my stock wiring harness?
any help would be great thanks

 

anyone?

 

Thats a huge undertaking.

They won't mount up the same, the firing order is not the same, you can't use the stock wiring harness. You would be much better off working with the 5.4 and adding bolt ons and F/I.

 

Why not just buy a chevy truck? For the cost of doing the swap would be cheaper to just buy a chevy

 

well i got the truck for free
i can get a 5.3 for under a grand with tranny
and im thinking the transfer cases are the same
the 5.4 has a knock and the parts for them are way too high
i have all the fabricating capabilities to install it and im sure i could do the wiring too
i figured it would be something different and would have more power and better gas milage
the 5.4 has no power and gets less than 13 mpg

 

I figured the story was something like that.

You may want to check out this thread about budget swaps. There is a lot of great reference material regarding general parts and budget.

If you have good fabrication skills the task will be easy - you have a LOT of room. My Tbird has a Gen III in it and I wired in all the factory gauges, idiot lights, etc. Obviously you will have to make engine and transmission mounts and possibly custom drive shafts from the transfer case. With a truck you may be able to use all the factory GM accessories, their brackets and tall intake, I wasn't so lucky.

I used the GM alternator and the Ford AC compressor on custom brackets, the GM power steering pump on the factory bracket with a custom hose made going to the Ford rack. There is a pressure adapter you will need to reduce the output pressure to the Ford level or you can save yourself the hassle and just make a bracket for the Ford unit. The engine is wired using the factory GM harness modified to stand alone status and spliced in the factory Ford car. The only Ford engine harness bit I used was for the AC and temp gauge.

For wiring in the car I bought a service manual that has schematics for the entire car. The factory computer is gone and the OBD II port under the dash works with the GM engine along with the tach and speedo.

Hope this helps and good luck!

 

will it be better than the 5.4

 

are the t cases the same?

 

The worst part about the 5.4 is the exhaust and the tuning. With a tune and some freeflowing exhaust, you will be ahead of the game for less. It does not matter if the t-cases are the same as you are going to be using the Chevy stuff to run it right? As long as the output is on the same side, you should be golden.

SWS

 

Not sure what you mean by this. Will what be better how? 5.3 to 5.4?

The next Ford truck I own will be the first so I can't speak to this. I've worked on a few 4x4 vehicles but never paid attention to the transfer cases. I've replaced them stock for stock and replaced transmissions on 4x4 trucks (PITA) but that's it. I do know they are heavy and awkward, but you probably already knew that!

 

yeah this is my first 4wd
did i mention that this has a 4.6 computer and no cats
coun\ld that be a reason it runs so shitty
im going to add some resistors to the o2 sensors soon
and i may get another 4.6 to put in it
it needs rings but the 4.6 the truck had in it before looked real good all the rings looked good
so im going to swap rings and put the 4.6 in
maybe ill get better gas milage too

 

well i didnt get the 4.6 but one of my buddies has one he said i could have it
it dropped a spark plug tip
so im going to swap pistons rods and heads

 

Reviving this swap because I'm doing basically the same thing to my 1997 Ford F150. A little history.....Mine is a 4.2 V6. In '97 and '98, Ford put really crappy intake gaskets into these motors. They leaked anti-freeze into the cylinders and of course, instant hydro-lock would occur. You can pick up really nice '97 and '98 F150s because the failing gaskets had nothing to do with how well the truck was maintained. In other words, you could be the most faithful maintainer of your F150 and failure was still a strong possibility. How "strong"? How about 250,000 failed 4.2 motors from intake gaskets and counting. Ford put out a Service Notice but no recall was offered.

Anyway, mine is a two wheel drive/five speed. Mine will be a 5.3/six speed. I will be running propane through a carbed Edelbrock Performer RPM and MSD Ignition Controller. I've always wanted to run a "green" truck and it will help me get around the fuel injection/computer hurdle. That's not to say this swap will be without it's stumbling blocks.

I want to run a one-wire alternator but can't find one for an LS motor.
Will my anti-lock brakes system still work without a computer?
I can build custom adapter lines for my P/S hose to steering box but will the pressure from the Silverado P/S pump be sufficient to run the F150 box.
I have to break in the motor on gasoline (about 600 miles). How am I going to do that utilizing the stock F150 EFI fuel pump?

I'll start my own build thread next week.

 

I have swamped my 97 2wheel drive f150 2002 5.3 with a 4l60 out of a Yukon. Sloppy stage 2 cam swap was basic made my own motor mounts used the Ford fuel pump and tank . I like it also but my was a v6 truck

 

I’ve done a 2wd swap. 5.3 with a T56. Easiest swap in the world. Way easier than an S10 LS swap, IMO. Had it going for 10 years now. But it’s time for real truck work like towing. The T56 is a good light duty truck transmission but it’s weakness is no direct lubrication for the main shaft. So I hate to lose the gas sipping 6th gear but it’s time for a NV4500 with an LS2.

 

I have a 4.2 v6 5 speed, I’m wanting to swap a la into it I’ve looked at all the forums, and everyone says it’s pretty straight forward, do you have any tips ?