(08/98) I just passed my first "normal" smog check at a regular smog check station without a glitch. My idle emissions were a little high as my cats are kind of far back from the engine... couldn't fit them any closer due to the narrow frame and the size of the engine and tranny, so they get cold quickly. If I have any problems passing at idle in the future I'm thinking I might wrap the cats in that insulating tape that they sell for headers to keep them warm longer.
I have now put about 25k miles on the engine in this truck and I have to say it's working wonderfully. I've run into minor glitches here and there (power steering pump went out, idle problems probably due to some sort of vacuum leak that I've been unable to trace down, and some other minor things) but all in all it's working great.
The remainder of this page was written in 1996 shortly after I completed the swap itself.
Well, it's finally done. I have passed the California smog check and I'm legal. Getting it to pass was quite a pain, as the referee wanted absolutely everything in place, even the neutral indicator switch in the tranny. Whew!
Even without the stock fan (had to go with 2 electrics), I had to push the fire wall almost 10" back in some places. Let's just say my ventilation system is a little whacked.
One thing that I wasn't aware of at the beginning was that the stock engine mounts have to be cut/torched off, so once you start, there's no going back. (Don't know why you'd want to though....)
Advanced Adaptors sells the kit stating that you will NOT have to modify drive shaft lengths. While this might be possible, I didn't want my engine to pop through my radiator when I go wheeling so I mounted it back a bit farther. My shafts were adjusted about 1.5 inches to clear everything. Now that I know the engine doesn't move more than a few millimeters on the mounts I can probably slide the engine forward a little, but for now it works.
After about 1500 miles on the new engine, the check engine light popped on, but the computer wouldn't give up any codes. It turned out that the computer was hosed. This was caused most likely by an exceptionally bad ground wire coming from the battery. (I tested it after I fried the computer and it registered 45 ohms in just 6 inches!) I have replaced the computer, and fixed the ground situation, and the new computer seems to be much happier.
One other interesting aspect.... It turns out that I have a manual tranny computer, and an automatic harness. YES, there is a difference. The difference only becomes a problem when you want to put the computer into diagnostic mode, since it's checking the wrong leads on the harness. After tracing the wiring diagrams, I figured out which wires to connect to put it into diagnostic mode. (Urgh, that was fun.)
After about 1000 miles on the engine, one of my front steering knuckle bearings went out. I'm not sure if this is the fault of the heavier engine, or just age (The Truck body has over 140K on it.)
While it's not really broken, the front end has loosened up quite a bit with the added weight. All of my steering components are stock, and when the 3.5" lift and the bigger engine are combined it makes for an interesting drive sometimes. It tends to wonder a bit more than I would like on bumpy roads or under braking. I should hopefully have this situation resolved before too long.
| Date | Source | Item(s) | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 02/23/96 | AA | T5->Toy trans adaptor,engine mnts. | 931.88 |
| 02/27/96 | Total Performance | Gerling clutch slave cylinder | 187.38 |
| 03/13/96 | AAW | 1989 Ford Mustang 5.0 engine & T5 transmition | 1724.00 |
| 03/14/96 | Dealers Car Stereo | Assorted quick connects | 20.00 |
| 03/14/96 | Frys Electronics | Assorted wires and connectors | 64.67 |
| 03/15/96 | AA | Chevy radiator | 343.20 |
| 03/15/96 | Kragen | Fan belt, oil & antifreeze | 50.26 |
| 03/15/96 | Napa | Trany thrush? bearing | 12.57 |
| 03/16/96 | Napa | Assorted fasteners, gaskets | 27.96 |
| 03/18/96 | NW Off-road | Body lift | 301.10 |
| 03/18/96 | PAW | Oil filt. reloc., volt oil & water gauges, electric fans | 398.99 |
| 03/20/96 | A-Z rental | Engine hoist rental 1 week | 100.82 |
| 03/20/96 | Napa | Assorted hoses | 61.64 |
| 03/21/96 | Napa | Fuel filter, assorted hoses & clamps | 35.47 |
| 04/03/96 | Central Coast Bearing | Custom Hose adaptors | 133.33 |
| 05/18/96 | Hysen Johnson Ford(SLO) | Gear shift lever | 58.24 |
| 05/31/96 | PAW | K&N filter,elec. tach & mntg. cup,fuel press gauge & hose | 393.24 |
Total to date: 4844.75 AA = Advanced Adaptors PAW = Performance Auto. Wholesalers AAW = Action Auto Wreckers
In all honesty, I personally probably shouldn't have done the swap. I just wanted power, but I had no idea it was going to cost this much. My initial estimate was that the swap would cost about $3000. I would have come out far ahead to just buy a full sized truck in the first place, as I now have well over 12K invested in my truck, and it's definitely not worth that now. (Maybe 8k.)
Bottom line. It's a fun, scratch that, awesome truck! It hauls ass, and as long as you don't break anything, I don't think you could stop it if you tried. It rocks! The exhaust note definitely turns heads, and when people look under the hood, their jaws usually hit the ground. ;) Even with 33" tires and stock gears the back end will break loose quite easily if I let my right foot get too carried away. I can easily accelerate past 80 on steep hills that I used to creep up at 35. Since I placed this page on-line I've gotten quite a few e-mails from envious 4Runner and Toyota truck owners. ;)
If you do plan on swapping a Ford 5.0 in your Toy, you might want to send me some e-mail as I've left some of the little details out of this that might make your life easier knowing in advance. (dhiltgen@drseuss.calpoly.edu)
| 
| 
|
|---|---|---|
| $Id: conversion.html,v 1.5 1998/08/04 06:18:06 dhiltgen Exp $ | ||
