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View Full Version : chevy 1/2 ton vs ford 1/2 ton



robertf03
06-06-2002, 10:49 PM
the old maximizer bit the big one and now I'm lookin for something inexpensive yet capable of towing to replace it with

I'm lookin for fuel injected v8 under $3000 which rules out just about anything pretty and modern.

Which one holds up better and would need less fixing up, the Ford or the Chevy? and what are the first years they started the EFI on the ford, 85?

robertf03
06-06-2002, 10:52 PM
also whats the best way to get the most $ for a half running vehicle? junkyard or sell it to a foreigner?

BigRedFord04
06-06-2002, 11:54 PM
You know all your closest friends are gonna vote Ford. Lets see, who all has one (or two), me, doug, steve, adam....speaking of...look what happened to adam's POS...its on like its 12th owner now who finally decided to put it out of its misery and run it into a tree. Join the club, get an F-Series, we all know those inside and out. I'm pretty sure 87 was the 1st year for EFI, i'll find out. I'll also keep an eye out for any good bargains over here in Richville. Are you lookin' for 2wd or 4wd? Auto or Manual? Etc, etc?

Krawler68
06-07-2002, 08:32 AM
I think you should look at an earlier carb'ed chebby... bang for your buck I'd never vote for an older 80's Ford. I have a friend in palestine who bought an '84 4wd with a worked over 350 (read: cam, intake, 4bbl, heads... bad mofo) turbo 350 tranny with auto cooler and an ugly *** brown paintjob sitting on 33x12.50's and he paid 3400 bucks for it. I am pretty sure you could never get a Ford with power like that and those goodies for that price... certainly not one that looked as good as Josh's truck. I say shop for a 4wd early 80's carb'ed rig...

robertf03
06-07-2002, 09:31 AM
anything with a carb is out of the question unless its a J10 or J20. I dont need another project

From looking at autotrader it looks like 2wd f150's with the I6 might be the ticket, did they start being fuel injected the same year as the 302? If James's f150 could tow the bronco I think that engine can tow the CJ no problem. I'm lookin for a standard and I think Chevy only offered the sm465 for the years I'm looking at and I'm looking for something with OD

Krawler68
06-07-2002, 09:40 AM
if you get something with a carb that runs allright it won't become a project... I promise you that carbs aren't the devil you view them as... and besides all that it's a **** load cheaper and easier to fix a carb than to fix an EFI setup...

GO ahead and get an auto with a chevy motor... those year ford suck balls... yes the 1-6 pulled James's bronco, but it was a painfully slow trip uphills...

I realize that you want OD, but if you are wanting to tow with a smaller motor then the extra low first gear of the 465 will be better...

Ask Matt Hodges at West Texas Offroad (aka TheLakeRat) about which is better...he has three early 80's chevies he's picked up for cheap... two of the are daily drivers...

robertf03
06-07-2002, 10:00 AM
i've already done my time in carberator land, its not bad if it runs right, but if it doesnt run right it becomes a pain in the ***. I've bought and seen quite a few "rebuilt" carbs and they all suck, and rebuild kits leave a lot to be desired, mainly throttle plate bushings. brand new carbs aren't cheap, and on those years there should be about 10 miles of vacuum hoses under the hood to keep it emissions legal, which is a concern of mine since it will be registered in Dallas county

Krawler68
06-07-2002, 10:05 AM
Hell go ahead and register it in Anderson County... we have 4 houses there and you could declare one a place of residency...

mark
06-07-2002, 11:03 AM
EFI and an overdrive did not come until 87 for Chevy. 88 was the break between the body styles.

So if you want efi and overdrive earlier than 87, you'll need to go Ford if they had it.

-Mark

Doug Krebs
06-07-2002, 12:31 PM
We could go on and on about who's truck has bit the dust, and how many times. My friends bronco is on it's 4th engine. I think when it comes down to it, it's personal preference. I went chevy for the straight axle. Alot is interchangeable too, but so is ford. Get what you want Flem - Doug

agshooter
06-07-2002, 08:45 PM
My roommate had an early 90's F150 with the I6 and he said it could tow like nobody's business. He killed it by wrestlinga tree at about 55 but up till that point he said it just wouldnt give up and hauled like a beast.

StevenAg03
06-08-2002, 09:46 PM
The first year that ford offered EFI was the later half of 86. i know this cause thats exactly what mine is. i have never had any problems with the fuel injection in my truck. unlike the carb in my jeep that i have had to tinker with time after time. My truck towes decent. not the best tow rig around but it will do. i think if it was stock it would tow about ten times better. if you are looking at getting a for i would either get an 86(might be hard to find with EFI although both mine and my dads old truck are EFI) or a 92 and newer. i personally do not like the 87-91 F series trucks. i am only on my second motor and the only problems i have with it are caused by those fawkin headers. I HATE HEADERS.

when i used james' f150 to tow my truck down to anderson it did great. it would hold around 70. those trucks produce quit a bit of torque.

if you are wanting an extended cab then a mid 80's chevy is probably out of the question. i have seen maybe one or two extende cab chevy's in my life time.

Broncocustom
06-09-2002, 06:38 PM
If you are going to get a Ford get one with the I6. It is better for towing then the 302. Mine towed everything I wanted including the bronco on the heavy trailer I have. It was not the fastes truck driving up the big hills on the way to Moab as suggested by Doug, but at least mine was not left behind at a gas station when it broke like his. You also would want the 5 speed tranny. I loved my truck and the only reason I got rid of it was because I could afford to buy a super duty after I finished school.

StevenAg03
06-09-2002, 06:41 PM
the I6 held 70 no problem on the way to anderson...there arent any hills though....

JB
06-09-2002, 08:43 PM
My 86 has EFI, and I think that was the first year of it.

Chevy motors are easier to work on than Ford FIs, IMO. My brother just bought a 92 Chevy 1/2ton 305, carbed w/ 127000 on it for $3000

I like the Ford body styles better though, minus 87-91.

THose I6s are really torquey, known a few to go through motor mounts quite often.

unrelated though, 01 Tahoe 4wd 5.3 will spank a 98 Expedition 4wd 5.4 in a race

so none of that really helps you though.

StevenAg03
06-09-2002, 11:00 PM
Originally posted by JBrown89
My brother just bought a 92 Chevy 1/2ton 305, carbed w/ 127000 on it for $3000


after 87, chevys use TBI. you might have confused this system with a carb because they look alot alike but they are not carbed in 92

robertf03
06-09-2002, 11:36 PM
I found a hell of a deal on an 85 ford from a friend of the family with a price tag too good to pass up. its carb'd and automatic but only has 70k on it. Its 4 hours away though so I won't know till Thursday

Did that year have the motorcraft 2100 carb?

JB
06-12-2002, 12:02 PM
Originally posted by StevenAg03


after 87, chevys use TBI. you might have confused this system with a carb because they look alot alike but they are not carbed in 92

your right, i just glanced at it and did think, its TBI

Krawler68
06-13-2002, 10:09 AM
it should be an autolite (motorcraft's home brand)... It's a good carb, and easy as **** to tune... go for it man...

StevenAg03
06-13-2002, 10:49 AM
oh and rob....if you get a ford and ever need help0 rebuilding it......doug can do an engine rebuild in a couple of hours. all he needs is some head gaskets and some silicone....http://offroadrepublic.com/fj40/pics-funnies/forum-thefinger.gifhttp://offroadrepublic.com/fj40/pics-funnies/forum-thefinger.gifhttp://offroadrepublic.com/fj40/pics-funnies/forum-thefinger.gif....

Krawler68
06-13-2002, 10:52 AM
yeah...it was actually more like 4 hours... and Austin will need to be there to "hone" the surfaces with a metal brush wheel on a 4 1/2" angle grinder...

robertf03
06-13-2002, 11:30 PM
just got home with my new truck

85 302 (p. owner was mistaken) 2 speed + OD auto tranny, 3.55 gears and 73k

damn near everything on the truck is in great condition, but its obviously been sitting. on the high way the passenger side front brake wouldn't let go. had to tear it down and pry the caliper from the mount, then put it back together

StevenAg03
06-14-2002, 12:38 AM
if it is an OD then it has a total of four gears.

does the gear selector say "P R N D 2 1" or does it say "P R N @ D 1"? the '@' is the white oval with a 'D' in it.

if it is the latter then it is a 3 speed with over drive(AOD). if it is the first then you have a 3 speed tranny with the third gear being 1:1....


so which is it? also is it a lariat? XLT? XL?

robertf03
06-14-2002, 02:04 AM
i guess its an AOD then

here it is

bburris
06-14-2002, 02:22 AM
is it a long bed?

looks good, hope it serves you well
congrats on the new purchase!

AgDieseler
06-14-2002, 09:48 AM
Looks good Robert. Now all you need is a 10" Richard Cepek lift and 35s.

Krawler68
06-14-2002, 10:11 AM
***...I was thinking the same thing...don't forget a bumpin' system...

robertf03
06-14-2002, 01:28 PM
yes its a long bed, and I've already got it full of chit

hopefully by the end of the day I'll have some CJ chrome wheels on it instead of the gay ford plastic junk.

Its got 1 speaker and an AM radio with a plug I can't find anywhere around town. guess I'll have to hack up the wiring before I can get that bumpin system :(

Broncocustom
06-14-2002, 04:59 PM
I sell you some ford rims from my '94 truck. Look better then those ford wheels.

StevenAg03
06-14-2002, 07:18 PM
it is easiest just to start over with the stereos in those trucks. all you have to run is a ground, hot, and ignition wire to it. and with only one speaker you will have to run new wires anyways. besides that isnt too hard....

robertf03
06-14-2002, 11:30 PM
turns out the guy at best buy gave me a harness for an 86, when I re-told him it was an 85 he said "oh its a really old truck"

got the harness but blew out the center speaker in about 5 minutes.

James- I already got some wheels, thanks though

StevenAg03
06-15-2002, 01:14 AM
you blew out what center speaker?

bburris
06-15-2002, 01:17 AM
the only speaker he had in the truck most likely

StevenAg03
06-15-2002, 01:19 AM
yeah but there is no center grate for a speaker....there is one right above the clock but i think that is for the radio to disipate heat through. mine nor my dads truck ever had a speaker there...

robertf03
06-15-2002, 05:13 AM
well that grate for dissapating heat is where the speaker is, and its gotta be factory

StevenAg03
06-15-2002, 01:47 PM
aybe there is a speaker there cause it is the base model

BMFScout
06-18-2002, 10:49 PM
What I can't wait to see is the CJ behind that fine piece of truck on a trailer or better yet a "dolly llama" As Flem himself said, it will look like the junk carnival just arived in town. Looks like a pretty clean truck though, good luck with the f*rd.

JB
06-20-2002, 12:07 AM
i have an 86 with that vent thing for the radio. It would be easy to put a 5th speaker there though. If it matters, I have an xlt

StevenAg03
06-20-2002, 01:00 AM
Originally posted by JBrown89
i have an 86 with that vent thing for the radio. It would be easy to put a 5th speaker there though. If it matters, I have an xlt


im guessing that the XLs from that time period only came with AM radios and that was the sole speaker they had....what i am wondering is if there is still holes in the doors for the 6" speakers. also my truck did not come with any rear speakers. we had to cut holes in the cab to put them in...