85 F150 302 EFI upgrade/aftermarket modification

Hello all.  Figured I'd start my own thread here after discovering this section on the main forum page.  I'm mostly done with the installation of the big pieces, and unfortunately don't have good pictures of the disassembly or reassembly, but I will take photos of the new stuff installed.  Hope it is a good reference for anyone considering doing something similar.

First off, my truck is an '85 F150 XLT shortbed with the first year EFI on a 302 and an AOD.  I've had it for about 5 years, and it was running fine until last summer.  I started having electrical issues.  After swapping starter solenoids, the starter, changing battery cables and batteries, and the like, I got concerned about reliability.  It never left me anywhere for long thankfully, but the last incident had me pushing it into the garage for troubleshooting and modification.  

I knew I had some chafed wires in the harness underhood, and the air pump was long gone when I got the truck.  The emissions row of solenoids was still on the wheel well by the battery, and hooked up electrically but the vacuum hoses were suspect.  The EGR was also there on the plenum, but the pipes that went to the back of the heads from the thermactor were gone.  

Anyway, I began with the intention of stripping out the original EFI stuff and going back to a carb setup to simplify operations for the future.  Also thought I'd run a mechanical fuel pump since the timing cover seemed to have a provision for one (although I found out later that the casting had an indentation but no opening for the mechanical pump lever).  However I was faced with the need to buy a new intake manifold for the carb setup, carb, new distributor, pickup, accelerator cables and AOD kickdown cables since the EFI ones ran to the front and top of the plenum.  Then, how to run an ignition module for the engine interface.

Since the EFI tank also has a pump in the tank and lines exiting the top, I would have had to swap tanks to a gravity fed system or stay with a low pressure pump to get the fuel out of the tank and up to the carb
anyway.  So, all that to say I convinced myself that it was easier to go with aftermarket fuel injection now, rather than go from original fuel injection to a carb setup that would have been more than half the way cost wise.  I didn't want to be down the road a few years and kicking myself for not going all the way now.

I read some of the posts for the Sniper system, and it looked nice but I would have to have done more to get there from my original EFI than going with the Edelbrock ProFlo4 system.  The ProFlo4 comes in a box with the throttle body, fuel rails, injectors already installed on the intake manifold for plug in.  Distributor too, which is similar to the original distro. Wiring harness is of the GM weatherpak type connectors, and the ECU has Blue tooth connection for a tablet or phone for adjustments.  More to come on that front, once I get power hooked up again.    

Also a must have for me was a nice serpentine conversion system to get rid of the obnoxious bracketry on  the front of the engine.  I have been admiring these on the rod scene for many years, and I helped justify it to myself by liking the fact that the all-inclusive kit came with new water pump, AC compressor, alternator, and Power steering pump to replace the 35 year old components (more or less...some were likely replaced).   I went with CVF Racing's system for the Ford small block... called the Wraptor.  It came all in one box, and just has some nice components with the anodized aluminum covers and main bracket that bolts through the water pump with 4 bolts.  Had to buy some new hex head sockets for all the cap screws, but it does make for a nice look.  

OK, enough of the dialogue, time for some pics of where it sits now.  
 

Yes, I'm ready for pics!  Sounds like a really neat project, so I'm anxious to see how it is working out.  

Well, those don't look too good, sorry

I'll get some better ones, and closeups without the air cleaner

They look pretty good to me.  But you are running afoul of the poor picture handling system on this forum.  You'll need to rotate them in another app.  I rotated your top pic in Photoshop and then made it full width on whatever screen people are using:

Oh, thanks!  Yes that doesn't look too bad.  Things were nice and clean looking until I started running hoses and wires again.  Amazing how fast you run out of room

You should try a 460.  Then add hydroboost.  And an engine oil cooler.  And an auxiliary battery.  And, and, and.....  

Here's your other pic.  You should think about a shroud for your radiator.  The fan you have will only be pulling air through about 1/2 of the radiator, but if you had a shroud and moved the fan back to the opening of the shroud it would be pulling air through all of the radiator.


Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Dad's: '81 F150 Ranger XLT 4x4: Down for restomod: Full-roller "stroked 351M" w/Trick Flow heads & intake, EEC-V SEFI/E4OD/3.50 gears w/Kevlar clutches
Blue: 2015 F150 Platinum 4x4 SuperCrew wearing Blue Jeans & sporting a 3.5L EB & Max Tow
Big Blue: 1985 F250HD 4x4: 460/ZF5/3.55's, D60 w/Ox locker & 10.25 Sterling/Trutrac, Blue Top & Borgeson, & EEC-V MAF/SEFI

I do have the original shroud... would have to build some sort of bracket to mount the electric fan.  Hoping I don't have cooling issues with the new radiator.  Will be able to read digital temp on the tablet from the ECU supposedly.  I guess if I need a better setup, shouldn't be to bad to add at that point

Yep.  Shouldn't be too hard

What alternator did your kit come with?  You are going to need plenty of power with the fan.

It's a GM style one-wire, advertised as 140 amp.

Hard to imagine that little cable can handle 140A if called to. (That's it, coiled on the inner fender???)

Big change, Dave!  
It's really looking good.

How are you going to wire it in?  That's important as the shunt, assuming that your truck has an ammeter, is only good for about half of what your alternator can crank out.  So if you have a dead battery you'll fry that shunt if wired the wrong way.

71_badmach wrote

Also a must have for me was a nice serpentine conversion system to get rid of the obnoxious bracketry on  the front of the engine.  I have been admiring these on the rod scene for many years, and I helped justify it to myself by liking the fact that the all-inclusive kit came with new water pump, AC compressor, alternator, and Power steering pump to replace the 35 year old components (more or less...some were likely replaced).   I went with CVF Racing's system for the Ford small block... called the Wraptor.  It came all in one box, and just has some nice components with the anodized aluminum covers and main bracket that bolts through the water pump with 4 bolts.  Had to buy some new hex head sockets for all the cap screws, but it does make for a nice look.

That's nice, Dave. I know what you mean about those brackets and such too. As I have recently replaced my water pump, power steering pump, and am looking at doing something with my AC, and the fact that my alternator is the original OEM unit, might have been worth it to make that change myself.  That's really not a bad price for that system. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks guys for the inputs and feedback.  You're welcome John for the reference.  

The alternator wire harness is 8 gauge and will be wired direct to the battery.  There is a 200amp blade type fuse in the big plastic holder I have mocked up on the fender where the old voltage regulator used to be.  I'll also run a ground back to the case with the same gauge wire... I got the setup from Eastwood.  

I do have an ammeter (gauge) in the instrument panel... will have to do some kind of sense wire/idiot light to replace that eventually.  I think Kramttocs referenced a Rocketman setup, but I haven't found that yet.  

My mistake, the wire is 6ga... too many "gauges" running around my head haha

Check out our page at Documentation/Electrical/3G Upgrade and then the Ammeters & Voltmeters tab.  There's a link in there to Rocketman, and there's a wiring diagram showing how I wired Big Blue's voltmeter that replaced his ammeter.

He's closed for the month of July ....

https://www.rccinnovations.com/index.php?show=menu-volt-all

Thanks Gary, and Jim for the link.  He has quite a website.  I'll check it out.  

I had thought of using the "Emissions" bulb in the top row of the dash lights as a trouble light for a low voltage condition.  Saw somewhere that there is a inline circuit that will plug into a run hot circuit and tell you if the voltage drops below 11 or so.  

In my harness, the emissions trouble bulb has been taken out, I'm assuming when the air pump was removed.  I haven't found that circuitry referenced in the wiring diagrams yet, but it seems to have its own relay.  There is a brown "box" that has an opening that is marked "reset".  Does that ring a bell with yall for EFI trucks?  I can get pictures if you need a better understanding of what I'm referring to.  

Check out this TSB: http://www.garysgaragemahal.com/89-22-08-emissions-maintenance-warning-module.html.  Is that what you have?  If so, that might be a good use of that "window".  You could create a label to warn of Alternator or Battery.

Amazing, thank you Gary.  Yes, for my year it would be "Emissions" and I assume the brown box with a reset port is some sort of counter that converts to mileage.  Picture to follow.