Dan Long
Well-Known Member
After purchasing a new F150 a few weeks ago I've decided to sell my Sport Trac and move on to some other projects. Here are the details....
The truck is a 2001 Sport Trac 2WD (Job 2) that was pretty well loaded with leather, sunroof, power driver's seat, Pioneer 6-disc w/subwoofer, cruise control, keyless entry, power windows/locks, and tilt wheel. I purchased it in March of 2014 at 193K miles with a blown head gasket and swapped in a 5.0 V8 from the 2000 Explorer that I had been driving which had just under 134K miles on it. I had been very busy with work that year and didn't actually get around to the swap until December, but it only took a week or so once I started. Since the swap I've put about 45K miles on this truck, driving it all over the country, as I travel a lot for work and it has never let me down. I've been as far as Nevada, and I regularly travel from Florida to Tennessee/Kentucky/Ohio/Maryland in it.
I've only come across a handful of people who have actually done this swap, and in my opinion, mine is one of the nicest/closest to OEM that I've seen. The 2000-2001 Explorer was the closest match to the Sport Trac possible, and allowed me to avoid having to modify the fuel system at all. Also, since I had a complete donor vehicle available, I was able to just swap in any stock parts needed instead of trying to make the original Sport Trac parts work. Almost everything between the two trucks bolted up with exception of the wiring harness to the motor and the driveshaft due to length.
For the wiring harness, I went to the junkyard and chopped off about 18" of harness from another truck, as the problem was that the connection location had changed and would no longer reach. I cut the end from my 42-pin connector and then soldered and heatshrunk every single connection, then rewrapped it in loom and routed it as the Explorer did along the firewall. I had to change a few pin locations and add a ground connection in the connector as well.
For the driveshaft, I got an aluminum shaft from an F150 and had it shortened by a local machine shop to the length I needed. It's been on my list to have it professionally balanced, but the closest shop to me is 1.5 hours away and would require me to drop it off in the morning, with no guarantee on when they can get to it, and I just haven't had the time to sit around all day waiting on it.
In addition to the motor swap, I completely rebuilt and converted the front suspension over to a Fox 2.0 coil-over setup using a set of the brackets that copy the RCD design. The Fox coil-overs are paired with a set of King 700lb springs and were custom valved for mostly street use by Downsouth Motorsports. The rear suspension is essentially stock, but has a set of Monroe load adjusting shocks with the coil spring.
Due to a leaking pinion seal on the rear end, I took the opportunity to swap in a disc brake rear from a 2005 Sport Trac last year. I also opted to go for a 3.73 rear end instead of the 4.10, as while the 4.10 was fun around town I do A LOT of interstate driving and wanted to bring the cruising RPM's down a bit for comfort.
I could add a ton more detail, but suffice it to say that everything on the truck works as it originally did, with 2 exceptions. All the gauges work, the OBDII system works, the AC works (and is 100% new), etc. The 2 exceptions are that the O/D Off light doesn't light up when putting it in Tow mode, although it's possible that the bulb is just out, as Tow mode does work. The other is that I didn't wire in the old PATS system, as I really didn't care about it and knew I could just have it turned off in the custom tune for the ECU.
I have a detailed spreadsheet of all of the maintenance and work I've done over the past few years, and will gladly pass it along to an interested party. All of the parts I have for the truck will be included, with the exception of the Torque Monster headers, as they will have to be negotiated due to their value.
I've included a few pictures that I took after a quick cleaning recently. The paint looks decent from a few feet away, but there are definitely some blemishes. Interior is very decent, although the driver's seat is pretty rough as usual and there is some fading of the upper door panels. The sunroof cover's headliner material was sagging so I just peeled it off and left it as the black plastic panel for the time being.
Asking $6500.
List of parts replaced/added since purchase:
Black headlights/corner lights w/ SS Ultra bulbs
Black upper/lower billet grills
Fog light housings
Upper/lower control arms
Upper/lower ball joints
Inner/Outer tie rod ends
Sway bar end links
Front/rear brake calipers & pads
Front/rear brake rotors
Inner/outer wheel bearings & seals
Front/rear stainless braided brake lines
Fox 2.0 coil-overs w/700lb King springs
Method Race wheels (17x8.5) w/ Cooper Discover 265/70-17 tires
TCI Deep aluminum transmission pan w/drain plug
Baumann transmission recalibration kit/updated Sonnax bypass clutch control valve
Prothane body mounts
Engine/transmission mounts
A/C compressor, condensor, drier, evaporator core, upper/lower lines
Windows tinted
Dash cluster/climate control lights replaced with Sylvania LEDs
Reverse bulbs changed to Sylvania LEDs
Replaced 3rd brake light w/new F250 take-off
ARE fiberglass tonneau cover - sprayed with bedliner and poly coated for UV protection
WeatherTech in-channel window deflectors
Cam synchronizer
Oil pressure sending unit
Coolant temp sensor
Tensioner pulley
DPFE sensor
Water pump
Upper/lower radiator hoses & bypass hoses
Thermostat
Fuel filter
Spark plugs & wires
Serpentine belt
Magnaflow dual in/single out muffler, turn down before rear axle
Kenwood DNX-5120 DVD head unit with Garmin navigation
Kenwood 6x8 door speakers front/rear
ScanGauge 2 mounted left of steering column
Xcalibrator 2 w/custom tunes from Torrie @ Unleashed Tuning
Ford rubber bed mat
Bed extender
Wheelskins leather steering wheel wrap
Extras included but not currently on truck:
All aluminum, welded radiator w/custom aluminum fan shroud & Volvo S60 electric fan
OEM step bars & brackets (one end cap missing)
OEM roof rails
Extra set of interior door panels
Extra set of lower cab plastics
Front tow hooks
Extra lower billet grill
OEM Pioneer 6-disc radio
OEM Pioneer sub/amp for behind seat
CompuStar 2-way remote start/alarm system
All original torsion bar parts
Torque Monster headers/new ARP bolts/gaskets for split tube (these will be negotiated)
The truck is a 2001 Sport Trac 2WD (Job 2) that was pretty well loaded with leather, sunroof, power driver's seat, Pioneer 6-disc w/subwoofer, cruise control, keyless entry, power windows/locks, and tilt wheel. I purchased it in March of 2014 at 193K miles with a blown head gasket and swapped in a 5.0 V8 from the 2000 Explorer that I had been driving which had just under 134K miles on it. I had been very busy with work that year and didn't actually get around to the swap until December, but it only took a week or so once I started. Since the swap I've put about 45K miles on this truck, driving it all over the country, as I travel a lot for work and it has never let me down. I've been as far as Nevada, and I regularly travel from Florida to Tennessee/Kentucky/Ohio/Maryland in it.
I've only come across a handful of people who have actually done this swap, and in my opinion, mine is one of the nicest/closest to OEM that I've seen. The 2000-2001 Explorer was the closest match to the Sport Trac possible, and allowed me to avoid having to modify the fuel system at all. Also, since I had a complete donor vehicle available, I was able to just swap in any stock parts needed instead of trying to make the original Sport Trac parts work. Almost everything between the two trucks bolted up with exception of the wiring harness to the motor and the driveshaft due to length.
For the wiring harness, I went to the junkyard and chopped off about 18" of harness from another truck, as the problem was that the connection location had changed and would no longer reach. I cut the end from my 42-pin connector and then soldered and heatshrunk every single connection, then rewrapped it in loom and routed it as the Explorer did along the firewall. I had to change a few pin locations and add a ground connection in the connector as well.
For the driveshaft, I got an aluminum shaft from an F150 and had it shortened by a local machine shop to the length I needed. It's been on my list to have it professionally balanced, but the closest shop to me is 1.5 hours away and would require me to drop it off in the morning, with no guarantee on when they can get to it, and I just haven't had the time to sit around all day waiting on it.
In addition to the motor swap, I completely rebuilt and converted the front suspension over to a Fox 2.0 coil-over setup using a set of the brackets that copy the RCD design. The Fox coil-overs are paired with a set of King 700lb springs and were custom valved for mostly street use by Downsouth Motorsports. The rear suspension is essentially stock, but has a set of Monroe load adjusting shocks with the coil spring.
Due to a leaking pinion seal on the rear end, I took the opportunity to swap in a disc brake rear from a 2005 Sport Trac last year. I also opted to go for a 3.73 rear end instead of the 4.10, as while the 4.10 was fun around town I do A LOT of interstate driving and wanted to bring the cruising RPM's down a bit for comfort.
I could add a ton more detail, but suffice it to say that everything on the truck works as it originally did, with 2 exceptions. All the gauges work, the OBDII system works, the AC works (and is 100% new), etc. The 2 exceptions are that the O/D Off light doesn't light up when putting it in Tow mode, although it's possible that the bulb is just out, as Tow mode does work. The other is that I didn't wire in the old PATS system, as I really didn't care about it and knew I could just have it turned off in the custom tune for the ECU.
I have a detailed spreadsheet of all of the maintenance and work I've done over the past few years, and will gladly pass it along to an interested party. All of the parts I have for the truck will be included, with the exception of the Torque Monster headers, as they will have to be negotiated due to their value.
I've included a few pictures that I took after a quick cleaning recently. The paint looks decent from a few feet away, but there are definitely some blemishes. Interior is very decent, although the driver's seat is pretty rough as usual and there is some fading of the upper door panels. The sunroof cover's headliner material was sagging so I just peeled it off and left it as the black plastic panel for the time being.
Asking $6500.
List of parts replaced/added since purchase:
Black headlights/corner lights w/ SS Ultra bulbs
Black upper/lower billet grills
Fog light housings
Upper/lower control arms
Upper/lower ball joints
Inner/Outer tie rod ends
Sway bar end links
Front/rear brake calipers & pads
Front/rear brake rotors
Inner/outer wheel bearings & seals
Front/rear stainless braided brake lines
Fox 2.0 coil-overs w/700lb King springs
Method Race wheels (17x8.5) w/ Cooper Discover 265/70-17 tires
TCI Deep aluminum transmission pan w/drain plug
Baumann transmission recalibration kit/updated Sonnax bypass clutch control valve
Prothane body mounts
Engine/transmission mounts
A/C compressor, condensor, drier, evaporator core, upper/lower lines
Windows tinted
Dash cluster/climate control lights replaced with Sylvania LEDs
Reverse bulbs changed to Sylvania LEDs
Replaced 3rd brake light w/new F250 take-off
ARE fiberglass tonneau cover - sprayed with bedliner and poly coated for UV protection
WeatherTech in-channel window deflectors
Cam synchronizer
Oil pressure sending unit
Coolant temp sensor
Tensioner pulley
DPFE sensor
Water pump
Upper/lower radiator hoses & bypass hoses
Thermostat
Fuel filter
Spark plugs & wires
Serpentine belt
Magnaflow dual in/single out muffler, turn down before rear axle
Kenwood DNX-5120 DVD head unit with Garmin navigation
Kenwood 6x8 door speakers front/rear
ScanGauge 2 mounted left of steering column
Xcalibrator 2 w/custom tunes from Torrie @ Unleashed Tuning
Ford rubber bed mat
Bed extender
Wheelskins leather steering wheel wrap
Extras included but not currently on truck:
All aluminum, welded radiator w/custom aluminum fan shroud & Volvo S60 electric fan
OEM step bars & brackets (one end cap missing)
OEM roof rails
Extra set of interior door panels
Extra set of lower cab plastics
Front tow hooks
Extra lower billet grill
OEM Pioneer 6-disc radio
OEM Pioneer sub/amp for behind seat
CompuStar 2-way remote start/alarm system
All original torsion bar parts
Torque Monster headers/new ARP bolts/gaskets for split tube (these will be negotiated)
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