I have a 1989 F-250 XLT Lariat 4x4 Extended cab with the 460 and automatic. I really love the truck. It's in great shape and has 69,000 original miles. I currently tow a 3,000lb pop-up camper and hardly know it's back there except on hills. If the terrain gets steep I get deeper into the peddle. Next year we're planning to get a larger trailer and do more traveling. I know my truck is rated to pull over 9,800 pounds, but I just don't see it happening with any efficiency. So, we're trying to decide what to do. I don't really want to spend $70k plus on a new truck, but I want to get more power and perhaps better economy than the 9mpg I'm getting now with a 3K pound trailer. I see a couple of options. First would be to do something to this engine. I know these engines are tough and long-lasting. One option would be to put either a turbo or supercharger on it. I suspect that although I'd get better power I imagine it would also shorten its life. But would it give me better economy and enough power to easily pull the larger trailers? The second option would be to rebuild this engine and give it more power - cam, bore, stroke, pistons, crank, etc. The third option is another engine - newer, more powerful, probably better mpg as well. The final option I see, and one that intrigues me the most is to swap the 460 for a diesel. I realize it's a bit of a bother, and would require new fuel lines, fuel tank,etc. But the question becomes what engine? I watch a lot of Roadkill on Motor Trend and know they've built some monster Dodge diesels, and I know that they're pretty tough, but I'm not a Mopar fan. I've had the old 7.3 Ford and it was a great truck but I never thought of it as a powerhouse. I'm not looking for a tire-shredder, I just want a good, reliable truck that will pull the load easily with some economy. Anybody out there have any suggestions and/or experience with this?

 

What kind of maintenance has been done to this vehicle?
There could be a reason among the answers.

 

The truck has been regularly maintained and well taken care of. I change the oil every 3,000 miles with full synthetic. I just recently tuned it with new plugs, wires, cap and rotor. I've had it about six months. We've towed the trailer on three occasions so far, less than 200 miles each way. The truck seems to burn about a quart of oil per trip, although it never smokes and there's just a very small spot of oil under the engine. My mechanic tells me that this is pretty common with this engine. I've never had the 460 before so can't speak to that. Frankly, I expected better performance from it pulling a 3,000 pound trailer, and it pulls it without a problem unless I hit a steep hill. I've never been in it to the floor, but have had to use more pedal than I expected. I looked up the hp and torque after I bought it and was a bit disappointed at 230 hp and 380 ft lb of torque. But I still think it should do better than it does, and don't have a lot of confidence if I try to pull a 7,000-8,000 lb trailer.