Detroit 4-53T swap update.

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A310

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Apr 16, 2015
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Kelowna, BC, Canada
I've now got 400 miles on my Detroit 4-53T swap into a 2009 Ford F350 and so far it's been great. I'm now learning how to program the 5R110 to shift cleaner on full throttle shifts as well as locking the torque convertor in 3rd. All in all very happy with the power delivery and overall function. Here's a quick tube video going through the gears in town.:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cOgPjSE8sc&t=8s

IMG_7999.JPG
 
Originally Posted by 02SE
Screamin' Jimmy in a Ford. That will bother some blue oval fan boys.

I think it's cool.
cool.gif




Yes, thays the cats meow right there
smile.gif


Great work A310
 
How quiet it is in the cab makes me want to put my 4-53T into something newer vs older. I will be curious to hear how your starting aids work for you, I would imagine that the oil heater and coolant heater should be more than sufficient at the house. I'm curious if the webasto will be needed for afternoon starts at the shop or not, but I suppose you could plug it in there as well. Do you have your modulator hooked up on the rack, or are you using your foot for smoke control?

The compound turbos sure make big big airbox pressure! If you ever overhaul it, I'd be tempted to use Silver liners and silver cams with advanced timing. With all the airbox pressure you have those would do a better job of keeping that air in the cylinder. I'd probably stick with green trunk pistons over the silver cross head, mostly because of their ability to withstand more RPM.

Cheers!
 
I've toyed with the idea of putting one of those in a 1956 Chevy Bel-Air... Very cool that you were able to get it into such a (relatively) modern vehicle..
 
Originally Posted by 02SE
Screamin' Jimmy in a Ford. That will bother some blue oval fan boys.

I think it's cool.
cool.gif



Fords offered Detroits for decades...F-series had 2-strokes and 8.2s, OTR tractors offered 71s and 92s. The C-series offered the 6V53 and 8.2 Detroits (though most had Cat power). When I got my class B, one of the semi tractors the school had was a Ford L8000 with a 6-71 turbo.
 
Originally Posted by FlyNavyP3
How quiet it is in the cab makes me want to put my 4-53T into something newer vs older. I will be curious to hear how your starting aids work for you, I would imagine that the oil heater and coolant heater should be more than sufficient at the house. I'm curious if the webasto will be needed for afternoon starts at the shop or not, but I suppose you could plug it in there as well. Do you have your modulator hooked up on the rack, or are you using your foot for smoke control?

The compound turbos sure make big big airbox pressure! If you ever overhaul it, I'd be tempted to use Silver liners and silver cams with advanced timing. With all the airbox pressure you have those would do a better job of keeping that air in the cylinder. I'd probably stick with green trunk pistons over the silver cross head, mostly because of their ability to withstand more RPM.

Cheers!


It is pretty quiet as the road noise is almost the same as the engine at 60-70 mph. I haven't hooked the fuel up to the Webasto yet as I have to lift my box to complete that job. I've been using the 750 watt block heater and that works great. I don't plug it in during the day and it starts fine, so that's a good thing. I'm getting a fair amount of blowby with the full power climbs and hope that reduces as the rings start to seal up again. I made a temp catch can to see how much I collect and in 400 miles I've collected 2 ounces and the airbox drain is less than an ounce. I want a closed blowby system, but not if I'm getting large amounts of oil in the blowby.:) As for the pistons I think your right, the trucks are stronger so I'll be staying with those. I'm in the process of tuning the 5R110 and should not see anymore than 2300 rpm shift when I'm done.:)

IMG_8089.JPG
 
Originally Posted by nascarnation
What's the vintage on the motor? I remember the 6V53 in the M113!


It's a 1979 green 4-53T.:)
 
Originally Posted by Jarlaxle
Originally Posted by 02SE
Screamin' Jimmy in a Ford. That will bother some blue oval fan boys.

I think it's cool.
cool.gif



Fords offered Detroits for decades...F-series had 2-strokes and 8.2s, OTR tractors offered 71s and 92s. The C-series offered the 6V53 and 8.2 Detroits (though most had Cat power). When I got my class B, one of the semi tractors the school had was a Ford L8000 with a 6-71 turbo.


Well aware. But I was specifically referring to late model Ford pickups.
 
Originally Posted by A310
Originally Posted by nascarnation
What's the vintage on the motor? I remember the 6V53 in the M113!


It's a 1979 green 4-53T.:)




A 30 year throwback swap. That has to be incredibly rare. OK next you can put a flathead V8 in a Fox body Mustang!
 
Very cool, I loved the sound of two-stroke Detroits when they ruled the streets in buses and fire trucks. Even cooler getting it to work with all the Ford HMI.

It just sounds a little different driving a 5R110 instead of say, an Allison HT748 or Voith D863 series tranny when the 6V-92TA was en vogue with the local transit authority and fire department.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted by nthach
Very cool, I loved the sound of two-stroke Detroits when they ruled the streets in buses and fire trucks. Even cooler getting it to work with all the Ford HMI.

It just sounds a little different driving a 5R110 instead of say, an Allison HT748 or Voith D863 series tranny when the 6V-92TA was en vogue with the local transit authority and fire department.


It's definitely a different engine than the Cummins or the Powerstroke, but I really like it. The 5R110 is a beast of a transmission and I'm just learning how to tune it as we speak. I'm going very slowly as I don't want to destroy it. Today I finally got it to lock into third, so it's really starting to shift nicely. Next I have to tune the tow/haul mode so it shifts more inline with the Detroits torque curve.:)
 
Here in the US that would be an illegal swap I think? Since you are suppose to retain all the factory emission crap. So how does that work in Canada?
 
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