4.6 to 5.4 2v Swap - 2003 F-150 SuperCrew

4.6 2v to a 5.4 2v swap - factory style.

[@dawsonjorgensen3521]

I currently have a 03 expedition with a blown 5.4 2v, I had a 4.6 2v laying around and thought I could make use of it, going to be using the 5.4 torque converter, all it will have is less stall speed is all which I'm ok with

[@johngabriele6532]

I just bought a 1999 f150 with 306k miles on it … and I asked him if he knew about changing the timing chain if it was a headache… he’s one of those people “she’s not had a whole lot of luv don’t mess with things she might fall all to hell”

[@FOBBITS_]

what was the timeline for you to complete everything

[@kcscott639]

I have an 03 f150 4.6l exactly like yours for the most part. I have an 04 expedition that is totaled. It's the last year of the 2 valve. I know the engines are basically identical as I just completed putting an 02 f150 4.6 in an 04 expedition and now I'm about to tackle the truck. My concern I need to work out is the pcm for the expedition is on the passenger side firewall and the 03 f150 is not. Can I install the pcm from the 04 expedition directly to the f150 or would the plugs be different? I really planned to use the engine harness from the expedition but it creates a few issues with the pcm being in different locations.

[@WestCoastDigital]

i have a 2000 would it be easy to do a swap to 5.4 on mine and if so what year of engine do you recommend if i'm able to get a diff year engine or is the same year fine?

[@granthopper5]

My recommendation, if you're able to find one, is to get a 2003 2v 5.4 motor. The heads were modified to have more spark plug threads.

[@randallstewart8487]

I plan on fixing up a 97 f-150,it has little over 200,000 on it,been sitting in garage with original 4.6 engine out,it has some rust on frame and cab corners rust through but not bad at all,going to pull bed and cab and derust the frame with new coatings truck is still worth fixing,4.6 didnt have enough power,I want to install 5.4 to remedy that,it is five speed floor shift 4 wd,shouldnt the the 4.6/5.4 have the same engine bolt pattern to bell housing/auto trans?If so there shouldnt be an issue,4.6 Romeo had eight bolt crank,5.4 Windsor truck should have the same eight bolt crank,planning on swapping everything out while cab is off frame this summer,also planning on using the original two coil blocks the 4.6 had and eliminate the coil on plug system!This is the first video I have seen on this kind of swap,and with standard shift,wont have to change computer!Thanks good video!

[@granthopper5]

Yep, as far as I'm aware, the 4.6 and the 5.4 have the same flexplate, no external balance I think. Should work fine. Yeah, I ran the 4.6 computer for quite a while and had no issues, just not a ton more power. Finally switched over to a compatible 5.4 PCM a few weeks ago and it has loads more power now. Amazing what the correct tune will do!

[@randallstewart8487]

@@granthopper5 Yes,thats great on the power,thats what I am looking for over the 4.6,mostly more torque for pulling or hills,keep forgetting the computer sets the peramaters for air/fuel ratio between the 4.6/5.4,like you said if you want the most power out of your swap,you have to change computer to get the correct air/fuel ratio for the 5.4,that makes sense! Thanks!

[@OswaldoCruz-e6t]

I have a 2001 ford 150 V8 4.6 ID number it’s 1G-842-AA With a bad engine Could someone help me what engine could I use???

[@tomnelson3491]

I have a 97 econoline with a 4.6 and would like to swap with a 2002 econoline that has a 5.4... How do I find out all that needs to be done before I start ?? Thanks

[@granthopper5]

I'm not too sure on the Econolines - I'd bet the 97 has a Romeo block and the 02 has a Windsor block, that might cause issues. The 97 also probably has external ignition coils, whereas the 02 has COPS. In theory, you'd need the wiring harness, the motor, the intake and equipment, etc. to swap over. That's gonna be really hard to do on an Econoline, good luck!

[@connersears4050]

I have a 98 4.6l 5 speed, can I swap it with any 5.4l? (From any truck from 97-03)?

[@granthopper5]

Depending on how much of a drop & go build you want, you'll either want to stick with a 98-99 5.4, or if you want to do some rewiring, you can go newer. The 4.6 up until 2000 I believe had 2 coil packs whereas the 5.4 always had a COPS (coil over plug) setup.

[@UnderSprayedWhiteSkies]

Please, from where did you source the 1999 aluminum intake manifold?

[@granthopper5]

@@UnderSprayedWhiteSkies Just a pick and pull parts yard. No where I know of that you can get them otherwise

[@jeraldwolfe549]

Good information. Thank you Sir.

[@ryanclatterbuck319]

Have an 01 F150, was looking at a 5.4 swap, but I have a manual trans. Anyway to keep that and 4x4 but for 5.4?

[@granthopper5]

Most likely. The 5.4 is balanced the same, so in theory you could just throw the flywheel, clutch and pressure plate from a 4.6 onto the 5.4. Don't forget about the input shaft bearing in the crank. Be careful with that M5OD though - they aren't the best for torquey motors.

[@futurefunk88eddins96]

No one in they're right mind would purposely swap a 2v for a 3v it's insanity lol

[@granthopper5]

Oh absolutely not, I swapped in a generation correct 2v

[@futurefunk88eddins96]

@@granthopper5 lol I know that's right I've got a 2v with 210k still going strong

[@granthopper5]

@@futurefunk88eddins96 Yep. the original 4.6 in this truck had 330K on it, and would have lived alot longer had I done the timing chain

[@karinash9373]

Is the only difference between the 2V & 3V the deeper spark plug threads? Or are there some other modifications/fixes on the 2V?

[@granthopper5]

@@karinash9373 the 3v has 3 valves per cylinder, as opposed to 2. They also introduced variable cam timing, which loves to fail. For one, the motors don't produce enough oil pressure stock for the variable cam timing as it's oil pressure driven, and two the cam phasers love to fail. The 5.4 went to the 3v configuration sometime in 2004, and the 4.6 switched sometime later. As for the spark plug threads, yes they "fixed" the thread issue on the 3v, but plugs love to break off in the bores as they went to a horrible plug design that relies on the porcelain for the torque of the drive. The 2v spark plug thread issue was fixed on the 2003-on 4.6/5.4 2v motors, they added more threads into the cylinder heads. The best motors to get in my opinion are the later 2v motors because they have this fix. (2003-2004 for the trucks, I believe the vans and the crown vics retained the 2v motors throughout their production, but I'd check that first)

[@ThaRealBummyDavis]

325K??? God bless bro I don’t care how much you spent you got your money out of her 👍🏼 👍🏼 I got 97 F250 7700 series 7 lug

[@granthopper5]

Nice rig. She's over 350k now, running like new.

[@ralphvanover]

I changed from a 5.4 to a 4.6. The 5.4 went down and i know less power but we had a 4.6 laying around and ran with it. But after the transmission wouldn't hit the passing gear and the odometer wouldn't work. We used the 5.4 torq converter the 5.4 harness and still have the 5.4 computer. Any thoughts on the problem?

[@granthopper5]

That sounds like there may be something in the wiring harness that isn't the same, likely on the transmission side. It could also be something completely unrelated

[@MexicanPizzaYummy]

Change the computer to a 4.6

[@justinchamberlain3443]

Excellent video!

[@adventureswithrick8032]

Where did you find the aluminum intake? I changed out my 4.6 wish I would have done a 5.4 now I have a whole parts truck with a good 5.4 drive train

[@granthopper5]

You can find them off of any 1999 5.4 truck motor. That's the only year they were aluminum.

[@CG-iu1nq]

1997 f250 light duty also has the aluminum intake

[@MYasin-eb2ze]

I have a 98 expedition with a 4.6 on it's last leg. I want to swap in a 5.4 2v from early 2000s. Any major issues I need to plan for to start? I'd like to use the original transmission for the 4.6 if doable. There's no exhaust on the 4.6 currently so I'll probably straight pipe the 5.4 or get it a full system if I can find one for a decent price. Any programming issues I should know about? And thanks for the video.

[@granthopper5]

One issue I can think of off the top of my head is the fact that the 98 4.6 will have 2 coil packs instead of a COPS (coil over plug) setup. That will have a completely different wiring harness and, presumably, different programming or ECM altogether. The next thing you'd have to tackle is the torque converter; you'd have to source a 5.4 torque converter rated for a higher stall.

[@dave4882]

what do you think about going the other way? I have a f250 with a 5.4, and a wrecked f150 with a 4.6.

[@granthopper5]

Totally possible, but a little more complicated... The F250 probably has an 4R100 trans, and the wiring harness of an F250 is very different than an F150. It would take a lot of work, but it's possible.

[@samdeprima7529]

Is it possible to swap a 5.4 from my f150 and put a 5.0 from a 94 Mustang?

[@granthopper5]

The 5.0 is a completely different motor (though of the same engine family), and will require a ton of rewiring and re configuring of the entire driveline. Possible, but not drop & go.

[@markchidester6239]

I have a 5.4 in an E250 to go into a F250 4x4 with a 4.6. Do you know if the trans from the van will bolt up to the transfer case in the truck after removing the tail shaft? Great video!

[@granthopper5]

Swapping a tailshaft in a transmission isn't an easy process. You also have to source the output shaft, and swapping that out involves more or less complete disassembly of the transmission. At that rate, it would be easier to just swap out the torque converters unless the original transmission is blown.

[@fasterdenu1]

I just got a broken chassis 5.4 supercrew to swap my 4.6 supercrew. What do you think about swapping the cluster and ecu? maybe it would not need the key program.

[@granthopper5]

If you took the ECU and the lock cylinder over to the truck you're swapping into from the donor, it should work just fine. You do need to make sure you're swapping from a similar year range, there are small wiring harness differences between 99 and 03

[@fasterdenu1]

@@granthopper5 thanks I just got my swap done I'm still running the 4.6 ecu seems ok. no check engine lights on.

[@inlovewiththechase2576]

Can I put 2008 f150 4.6 engine catalytic converters on my 5.4 2008 f150 ? Help

[@granthopper5]

That one I can't tell you; I haven't tried to do that.

[@timmerry4610]

My 98 f150 5.4 has the factory aluminum intake

[@JBs_trucks_and_whitetail_bucks]

What about the exhaust, I keep reading the 5.4 manifold don’t line up with the 4.6 y pipe

[@granthopper5]

I took the y-pipe from the 5.4 donor truck and it bolted right in to the rest of the existing exhaust system. The collectors are slightly different on the 5.4 y-pipe

[@JBs_trucks_and_whitetail_bucks]

@@granthopper5 that’s what I was planning on doing but want to try and use my shorty hearders I just put on this 4.6

[@SprouseyTheHandyMan]

Are you on any of the 10th gen f150 pages?

[@granthopper5]

No sir, I'm not

[@dilrajchahal7673]

Where does that cab ground go to on the engine on the passenger fire wall??

[@granthopper5]

It's been a while, but I think it went to the throttle body, or the intake if you have an aluminum intake. May be wrong or thinking of the wrong ground though

[@andrue17]

Will the factory aluminum intake from the 4.6 bolt up to the 5.4?

[@granthopper5]

No, the 5.4 has a higher deck, meaning the block is wider. You'll need a 5.4 intake. You can get an aluminum intake, the 99 year trucks with the 5.4 came with an aluminum intake, that's what I did

[@adrianavalos1961]

What torque converter will I need to use I want to swap my 98 f150 motor to a 5.4 motor and use my rebuilt transmission out of my 4.6

[@granthopper5]

Definitely a torque converter with a higher stall, I just used the transmission that came with the motor. The 4R70W is the same between both motors though, so swapping out the TC is all you really need to do. I'd bet you could buy them new or reman, perhaps from Summit.

[@adrianavalos1961]

So just using a torque converter for a stock 5.4 will do the trick

[@granthopper5]

@@adrianavalos1961 That's the way I understand it. Seems to be working just fine for me so far.

[@curtisgore1611]

Great job dude. I have a 97 with a 4.6. I'm looking at installing a 2003 5.4. I don't think it's gonna be as easy as yours. Any advice?

[@granthopper5]

I think the major difference with yours is your 4.6 is going to have coil packs instead of COPs. All 5.4s have COPs, not sure how that works out with the wiring harness.

[@inlovewiththechase2576]

Question. Can I put 2008 f150 4.6 catalytic converters on my 2008 f150 5.4 or will there be a problem?

[@mattweeks2272]

@@inlovewiththechase2576depends on exhaust pipe diameter. Other than that they should function as needed. That’s a big should.

[@curtisgore1611]

Which motor Mets do I need? Motor is a 04 expedition 5.4 2v. I'm putting it in a early 97 f150

[@19jody72]

Di your 4.6 have the butterfly valve in the intake? Can't remember wht is was called but the 5.4 doesn't have that valve

[@granthopper5]

The throttle butterfly? Yeah, it's part of the throttle body, both the 4.6 and 5.4 and every gas motor to my knowledge has one.

[@19jody72]

@@granthopper5 not the throttle body, sorry. The 4.6 truck intake has some valve on the bottom of the intake that opens and closes to help with torque that the 5.4 didn't have. Might have been on the non PI engines

[@granthopper5]

@@19jody72 Interesting... I don't recall seeing anything like that on the intake of the 4.6 that came out

[@19jody72]

@@granthopper5 I think the proper name is intake tuning valve

[@johngabriele6532]

Did it sound like an exhaust leak ?

[@granthopper5]

Briefly, though that was mostly due to the fact that I'm a horrible welder, and was using a broken MIG machine. I recently pulled the exhaust back off and re-welded the cats.

[@MissingLinkMTB]

Looking to do this on my 97. No PATS so I shouldn't have that issue. Wasn't tracking the different torque converter stalls though so I'll have to do that as well.

[@granthopper5]

On a 97 you'll also have to watch out for the COPS, on the pre 99 4.6 they had 2 coil packs while the 5.4s had COPS

[@MissingLinkMTB]

@@granthopper5 Would that mean I just need the harness on the 5.4 or would that be a whole other ball of wax?

[@granthopper5]

@@MissingLinkMTB I'm honestly not too sure about that, in theory it would just be a harness issue, but I'd do some forum research

[@MissingLinkMTB]

@@granthopper5 thank you. i'll do that

[@19jody72]

@@MissingLinkMTB just use your coil packs.

[@baqashahmath1566]

Awesome 😎 swap I recently swap out a 4.6 f150 03 and put in a 5.4 stx 04 the original truck had only one fuel line connected to the fuel rail and the 5.4l motor had two fuel line connector to the fuel rail the intake manifold on the 5.4 wouldn't fit it was slightly larger with two fuel line connectors coming out from the fuel rail any suggestions how to run one fuel line from the 5.4l motor to the original single fuel line?

[@granthopper5]

One of those, the larger one I believe, is a return feed that runs fuel back to the tank. This is done so the fuel in the rail stays cool and helps keep the air/fuel ratio constant. I wasn't aware that any of these trucks had a single like dead-heading into the rail. You definitely can't use that rail with your current fuel setup, the regulator won't be setup for that. I'd either suggest running a return to the tank, or finding a dead-head fuel rail

[@kcscott11]

Ok. Ok. Im. Ot a ford guy, or didn't mean to be. However I'm swimming in ford's here. I had a 04 expedition (expedition didnt switch to 3v until 05) i totaled it due to needing front end work. Lucky to have lived after rolling 15 times at 75 or so mph down the highway whole full of my nicest mobile construction and mechanic tools for work. Stuff was going everywhere. I accepted my fate at ome point bit walked away. Reset the fuel switch and the totaled eddy Baur with 5.4 still is driveable lol or at least was until I got ot mostly pulled.from the truck so I can take any other parts I may want and scrap it. I almost immediately aquired another expedition... somehow screwed up, it's a 4.6 but was going to do the swap swap anyways. My totaled truck didn't even have check engine light or anything. At the time I was broke, especially after getting the 2nd expedition. Well I decoded to diagnose the 4.6l and same as yours, drivers side bent valves and jumped time. I decided to stop, and jusy buy new timing chain set but never settled.on if I should rering and replace bearings on the 230k mile 4.6, or buy timing chain for the 5.4 and possibly bearings and rings. So another couple weeks go by while I'm researching different kits, and finally find a romeo timing kit! (My 4.6 was romeo) and the kit came with all new timing, gears and head gasket and bolts etc. I went to order it after thinking it through to long and it sold out. All other optuons I find to replace it all is 2 kits double money. So I started considering the 5.4 again and hesitating. Then a guy I do lots of trading with reaches out with a broke down super crew with 120k miles and replacement motor with less. I told him that 4.6l wasn't necessarily 4.6 but he guaranteed plug and play. I clearly easily counted the the crank bolts on donor and it was 6bolt (romeo!) Git the truck home since it was nearly mint, it's 120k mile truck missing a rod while both my expeditions have over double and my 5.4 didn't even have check engine light or noises. Anyhow, I'm going to get the low mileage romeo today, im still torn on what i want to do. Swap the blown windsor for romeo from same style truck with under 100k miles as Is, pull th motor mounts and trand and replace the 4.6l crewcab f150 with my 5.4 and trans which will primarily be for work and hauling. If I use this 5.4l pushing 300k miles , even though as a mechanic I had no reason to suspect a failure in the near future, I feel like I am requires to replace all timing, and gaskets and possibly bearings. After checking compression on all 8 cylinders to decide about rings. Honestly my expedition was over powered for the family vehicle I bought it for, and now I have the truck, I doubt the replacement expedition sees any work or tows anything. . However the truck even though basically almkst mint almost mint almkst mint will primarily be for wok. From what I've seen going from 4.6 windsor to 4.6 romeo isn't much easier than going to 5.4, other than wanting to freshen up the 5.4l with at least timing and cleaning up valves and such . i have a video somewhere of my donorndo or 4.6l showing its under 90k Miles and ran perfect. However having an engine out and halfway torn down, I feel very irresponsible to not replacetiming, heads gaskets ans head bolts etc e even on basicallly low millage. for a 20yr old motor. I'm considering putting my 5.4 in the truck after freshening it up a bit since have the entiret donor vehicle. Motor, trans, pcm!, ignition cylinder amd door locks along with 4 keys I made with forscan for fun. I even cut them myself.with a dremel.to see if I could. My thoughts are upgrade truck upgrade truck and trans to 5.7, and see if the Eddie bait tow package is anything my suoervree doesn't already have then take my new low mileage romeo amd put it in the expedition I got which has the exact 4.6 romeo in it. This will hopefullynmakenmy. 8 passenger family vehicle beyyer on fuel a little, and my work truck truck a little extra tow power. What would yall do?

[@granthopper5]

I think any of those options would work fine. Depending on the year of 5.4, it may or may not have the spark plug thread issue, I don't think that was remedied until late 02. The 5.4 I put in was a 2001, so it does theoretically have that issue, but mine hasn't blown any out. If you torque the spark plugs correctly it's not supposed to have that issue. It's also not hard to put a helicoil in if it does blow out. Regardless of which direction you go, I would absolutely throw a timing kit on it, even the lower mileage 5.4 was showing wear on the guides. The way the 4.6 failed was one of the guides failed, probably years ago, and then the other guide failed and it jumped time. It's fairly cheap and super easy to do if you have the motor out of the truck, so you might as well do it. I did check my bearings, and they showed absolutely no wear, these motors don't wear a bunch from what I can tell.

[@LSDJtv]

I have an 02 how much did complete swap cost

[@granthopper5]

I managed to snag the powertrain for 500 bucks, and that came with most of what I needed since he was parting out that truck. The aluminum intake from the junkyard was another 70 bucks, and then whatever work you wind up doing to the motor on the stand (if you do any). I put about 170 bucks into a gasket kit and a timing kit for the motor

[@cyah9713]

heard a lot of talk but somehow missed the actual swap.

[@LoganHester-1489]

The 4.6 is better than the 5.4

[@DuckmyJeep]

If I use a manual transmission will I need to swap any transmission components?

[@granthopper5]

Obviously you'd need to swap in a flywheel, clutch, master and slave cylinder, pedal assembly, and input shaft bearing. You'd also probably need a reflashed or different ECM.

[@brandontrhorton9705]

So can a 4.6 fit in f150 5.4 ?

[@trillamannwinters6963]

Yes it can

[@bigV94]

@@trillamannwinters6963 would anything need to be changed currently have a 03 with a bad motor was wanting to swap it out with a 5.4