changing my 2.3 to a 2.2 diesel

[Kenneth S]

ive also heard (mostly from the fullsize crowd) that the C5 is actually less reliable than the C4 (mostly related to the flakey centrifugal converter lock-up).

The C5 is a little bit better trans than the C4, The "lock up" converter is junk. I'm headded out to the same salvage yard tomarrow if the bell housing is still there I just may grab it.

On another note I got a complete 9" rearend from a 76 ford F100 pu, 3.0 gears, open 2 spider diff with a nodular case, figure that one out.

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

you dont have to tell me ford has done some oddball stuff over the years...i know. seems like sometimes they throw whatever part is at hand into a vehicle and call it good

 

[83bagged]

ok so my truck has a c5 tranny? intresting...

ok well i was talking to a friend about turbo'ing my carbed 2.3, and he said that id have to play with the carb an awful lot fairly often. im not sure thats why im asking.

ok now, what all would be involved in changing my truck to FI? turboing that would be better, ok not better but more common i should say. now if i can find a svo or turbocoupe i will buy it and swap the whole thing and i guess keep my c5 tranny, i need a 2 peice driveshaft anyway and i would change the gears to help transfer the load power.

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

you MIGHT have a c-5 trans...im still not convinced. id crawl under and check it out.

after you get the carb tuned, there shouldnt be too much fiddling around with it. youd have to be fairly confident in your tuning abilities to start though. turboing a carb usually requires rejetting the carb a few times to get it right. if your not up for that or dont have anyone that can help you...go EFI.

im not sure what all it'd take to convert the carbed version of the 2.3 to EFI. it might be as simple as bolting on the intake manifold, fuel system, and installing the wiring harness/sensors....but i dont know if there are differences in ports and whatnot. mutant pony could tell you im sure.

 

[83bagged]

ok well where is the tranny stamped at? ill go look for ya

but i will try to find a svo or turbo coupe. if i cant then ill buy a wrecked 2.3 efi and build on it i guess.

since my truck is carbed if i could find a svo i could use the harness and computer right?

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

the c-5 can be identified by its oil pan. click HERE and scroll down to C-5.

you "should" be able to convert your carbed engine to EFI easily with any EFI 2.3 (ranger, mustang, t-bird, etc) setup. the only reason i hesitate is because i dont know if there are certain flukes or changes throughout the years. i just dont know that much about the 2.3. thats why i suggest getting ahold of mutant pony for definite answers in that department.

 

[83bagged]

ok well it doesnt have the "hump" like the picture. but my pan bolts are like the c4-c5 and all the other pan bolts have way more....

what the hell?

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

sounds like a c-3...which is what it "should" have.

 

[83bagged]

looks just like the c4 automatic. from the picture on that page

looks the same as the c5 just without the ''hump"

hell idk what it is

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

the c4 wasnt offered in the rangers. the c3, c4, and c5 look very similar, with the exception of the c5 having the hump. no hump=c3.

 

[83bagged]

let me go see if the pan is square or if it has that notch like the c3. want some pics?

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

sure, if youd like.

note that the c4/c5 pan isnt perfectly square either. the bolt pattern is, but the pan has that little "buldge" on one side.

 

[83bagged]

yea. i got some pics, as good as i can get, its really really low you know? lol

 

[Kenneth S]

The way I'd do the turbo swap is find a complete 86-88 t-bird turbo coupe that runs (if it's wrecked and still runs would work to), and swap over the electronics, fuel system, etc to the truck. I custom built a few blow through carb turbo setups, the only problem is when you get around 6-8 psi the carb starts to have a hard time dealing with the boost unless you really modify the carb. Instead of a turbo why not get a dual weber carb setup, I had a dual 45 dcoe sidedraft weber setup on my 72 pinto with the german 2.0L, plenty of power (I was constantly whipping the then new 4bbl & efi 5.0 5-speed mustangs on the street with it), and it got good mpg also.

 

[83bagged]

dual webber carb setup? ive never seen that. thats cool and different. well how would it match up gaints the 2.3T? if i can find a svo or turbocoupe i will buy it right then and do the swap, if i cant then ill try this dual carb setup. and maybe hop up the motor some to?