ford trition conv

[pac city]

has anyone know if you could adapt ford 4.6/5.4/6.8 picup motors to i/o ? if it could be done , very durable eng's from my experiances.

 

[truckermatt]

Re: ford trition conv

i am sure it could be done. because anthing is psoosible with time and money....

what is wrong with using gm marine specific engines already?... they are just as reliable.

 

[180shabah]

Re: ford trition conv

Can it be done? Sure, but why?
Whole lotta money just to be cool

 

[Bondo]

Re: ford trition conv

Ayuh,... Sure,...
All ya gotta build is the marine exhaust manifolds, Marine rated Induction,+ of course, Marine rated Igintion...

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: ford trition conv

Not to mention that he have to fab up a transom plate bracket to match the Triton motor mounts. I don't think I'd mess with it if I were you. The COP ignition system seems like it might be a ton of trouble, in addition to OBDII issues like where to mount the 02 sensors.

 

[uaw9fan]

Re: ford trition conv

Besides the spark plugs tend to fly out of the heads.
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/ford_spark.html

 

[uaw9fan]

Re: ford trition conv

I lost three in my wife's truck before I pulled the heads and inserted thread savers in all the holes
http://www.timesert.com/html/ford_sparkplug_faq.html

 

[pac city]

Re: ford trition conv

the spark plug issue is from improper tourq of plug , have had all 3 eng's and had no prob, one 97 4.6 i still have with 250k ,no prob. istill think it would be agreat motor.with todays tech, it should not be hard to prototype parts ., and i'am the only one to service or repair any of my trucks., don't own cars.

 

[Bondo]

Re: ford trition conv

with todays tech, it should not be hard to prototype parts .,

Ayuh,... By all means,... Go for It....
just take lots of pictures,... We'd all love to follow your progress,+ expences...

 

[180shabah]

Re: ford trition conv

istill think it would be agreat motor.with todays tech, it should not be hard to prototype parts

...so do it, then we can discuss why your 300hp is no faster or more reliable than a vortec 350, even though it cost 7 or 8 grand more. Again I ask, just how much time and money are you willing to spend just to gain a few cool points?

 

[pac city]

Re: ford trition conv

was not intended to be a pi^&*&ing match ford v.s gm,. or how cool it would be. just why a perficly good powerplant has not ben used by the marine ind, staite forward question, didn't need the sarc. thankyou....

 

[180shabah]

Re: ford trition conv

It's certainly not a Ford vs Chevy issue at all. I have no doubt at all, that any of Fords mod motors would perform well in a boat. Ford withdrew from the marine market almost 20 years ago. This is before the introduction of the mod motors. This means there has never been a bell housing to attatch one of them to ANY out drive. There is no coupler for these engines. There are no water jacketed exhaust manifolds available. There have never been any USCG approved fuel, ignition, charging or starting components developed for these engines. Can all of the above be modified, converted, fabricated, etc? Sure, but it would be rediculously expensive, with no benefit other than the novelty of it.

 

[uaw9fan]

Re: ford trition conv

Ford withdrew from the marine market almost 20 years ago.

Actually ford motors are still used quite consistantly by PCM and Indmar for ski inboard and v-drive applications.
I agree with most others in that it would be a heck of an endeavor.Mercruiser and Volvo have spent millions of dollars in research to make their engines do what they do. Believe me if they thought it would be a good idea to use that engine they would have used it.

 

[180shabah]

Re: ford trition conv

I do sometimes live in an "I/Ocentric" world. The straight inboard guys did use ford engines a little longer, but they were the 302 and 351 variants, and don't help pac in his endeavor. Also, neither PCM or Indmar offer ford engines in thier curent lineups. Again, this is NOT a reflection of the durability of these engines just a lack of supply from Ford.

 

[pac city]

Re: ford trition conv

didn't mean to get pi%^y my self, just that maybe a more modern platform wouldnt be a bad idea. ford or gm , if gm retires the push rod. maybe when the man requires such strict emissions everybody will have to redesign.

 

[uaw9fan]

Re: ford trition conv

didn't mean to get pi%^y my self, just that maybe a more modern platform wouldnt be a bad idea. ford or gm , if gm retires the push rod. maybe when the man requires such strict emissions everybody will have to redesign.

Well, the marine engine industry has always been a few years behind the automotive industry. They only change to meet newer regulations (emissions) or to meet the customer needs. In the last 10 years I've seen boat engines go from 70's tech (Carbureted and electronic ignition) to 90's tech (MPI and catalysts).
I agree that they could use advancements like variable valve train to make more power and run cleaner, but it's all about economics. They could build a newer engine but the retail would probably be more than most are willing to pay. So they keep building engines to fill the niche that most people want.

 

[rodbolt]

Re: ford trition conv

actually ford announced about 1995 that it was withdrawing from the marine market. some marinizers such as pcm,indmar and mastercraft had enough inventory onhand to allow new engine sales for a few more years.
personnaly I have seen way to many valve train issues with the 4.6 ford engine to suspect it would work well in a high RPM constant full load application.
will ford reenter the marine industry? I doubt it, the marine industry takes up about 2% of the engine production capeability from GM and makes up less than about 7% of GM engine sales market.
count the beans,cost for R&D,EPA compliance and product liability insurance and its gonna be tough.
I can see the 8.1L GM dissapearing in the next 3 years though.
you will see more hulls in the 26 to 36ft range with 300 and 350HP outboards and small diesel inboards.