Might be getting a mid 80s F-250

[JoshT]

My cousin just lost his job last month and decided this would be a good time to move the family closer to his wife side of the family. We all live in GA, her family lives somewhere in the panhandle of Oklahoma. He's planning to move the family to Missouri to kinda split the distance, make it about a 9 hour drive to see either side of the family. His decision and if anyone can make the move and start over he can, but I digress from the topic.

He has a mid 80s, I want to say 85, F-250 that can't make the trip with him. He was going to scrap it but they wouldn't give him anything for it, so he offered to to me and my dad. At the lest we will let him store it at one of our houses until he's back on his feet and can do something with it. Dad has a 2000 F250 diesil so he's not interested but I've kinda been wanting a puller truck so I'm thinking about taking it. According to him the drive train is in excellent condition, it's got the 460 with manual transmission and 4wd. The body on the other hand is apparently rotten beyond repair. From what I'm reading on Wikipedia it appears any body (of the same style) from 80-96 will bolt onto that chassis, though according to my cousin the 73-79 bodies will fit as well. It's pretty convenient because the last body style I really liked on the F-series trucks was the 9th gen (92-96). I prefer the 5th gens (68-72, bumpside) with the 6th gen (73-79, dentside) being a close second. What ever route I go it'll probably be middle of 2014 at least before I start building it, gotta finish the Ranger first and I might be out of country for about a year.

I guess biggest things I am looking for is thoughts, input, and information about this potential future project.

If I have to purchase a replacement body I'd prefer to find a 5th gen, with the 6th gen being a close second on the list. Any thoughts on mounting either of these gens to the frame?

If I do decide to get this thing I have no doubt that I will want to "improve" on the drive train a little. At the top of the list will be to swap on factory fuel injection in place of the existing Holley carburetor. Primary reason being that I don't care for carburetors and can't seem to make them work right, secondary reason being a possible improvement in power and efficiency. I've also read to use the latest model heads for a bump in power. I'm not looking for any huge bumps in power as I think that in stock form it will have plenty for anything I'd do. I'd be more interested in making it as efficient as I can while staying at that power level. Now I'm not going to drop huge money on getting there, but it's a free truck so I don't mind spending a little money to experiment. Yes I realize isn't a diesel, and I don't expect those kind of numbers out of it. So to that end any suggestions on what to do to get maximum MPG out of that motor without completely killing the power?

 

[96fordranger]

a 460 gets 8 miles to a gallon loaded or empty at 30 mph or 80 mph. abouy the only thing you could do for gas milage is put in a zf 5 speed out of a later model truck that way you pick up overdrive and keep the granny gear

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

They did change the wheel arches so if you change the cab to the later but similar style you will have to change the bed to make it look right if it bothers you. The later ones are more rounded.

Personally I would prefer the bullnose (80-86) bodystyle. Far nicer interior and more agressive looks that wasn't rivaled by anything until the Super Duty came out... and I still like the interior in the older truck better.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

I'm not too familiar with the 429/460 after 1970 but I think they retarded the cam by 8 degrees or so for emissions reasons. You should research into that. And I got 17 mpg with a 429 in my '68 Torino, that would be 13.6 mpg in U.S. gallons. My Torino weighed 3250#.

Richard

 

[country0001]

Find a crew cab bumpside. I'd say put a cummins in it, but that is getting overdone now.

I prefer the 9th gen over the bumpsides because of leg room. As I have gotten older, I like my creature comforts.

 

[JoshT]

Wow over a month later before anyone noticed this thread!

85 I was planning to get an older body instead of a newer one, much prefer the dent (68-72) and bump (73-79) sides. Was going to go for the bump since I was told that was the earliest body that would bolt onto the frame.

Richard, that 13 mpg would be a welcome improvement over 8 mpg. That's the type of stuff I'd be looking into as long as it didn't completely kill the power.

Country0001, a diesel swap is definitely a future possibility. I would have gone with a PSD though, I'd prefer to keep a Ford (branded Navistar) in a Ford.

None of that matters for now though. The cousin never brought the truck by so I'm pretty sure I ain't getting it. I'm hoping that he managed to find a buyer for it.

May still end up with a full size eventually, dad's got a 68 F-100 sitting in his back yard waiting for a little TLC. It's got the 390 FE, but otherwise is pretty much the same truck. It too needs a new body as the bed, hood, and front fenders are shot. Heck it's been parked for almost 8 years so the cab might be shot as well now. It ran strong and reliably when parked, but the brakes weren't very good. I was going to build the F-250 instead because of the bigger engine, stronger axles, and (likely) better brakes. The 390 is plenty strong enough for my needs, and I can upgrade the axles and brakes. Besides the F-100 has more sentimental value, it's been in the family as long as I have.