Coyote Engine Modifications

In this post I plan to share the various engine modifications necessary to make the Coyote fit into the Pantera. This post will change from time to time as I find and fix those fiddly bits and pieces that make the Coyote marry up to the Pantera.

One thing to keep in mind when considering the F150 Coyote engine in the Pantera is the oil cooler. The F150 cooler sits in a way that makes it necessary to trim the spot welded lip on frame to make room for the filter and the cooler itself. No big deal but something to consider - see my post on Engine Mounting to see what was trimmed.

A bigger issue with the oil cooler is the fact it happens to completely block where the transaxle shifter linkage will run. This is a problem. I haven't worked to solve this issue yet but a quick search on line has resulted in the possibility of using a Boss 302 Engine cooler system (Summit Racing $140) to replace the F150 unit. I'm not 100% positive it will fit and/or completely clear the interference problem for the linkage but it seems to be an alternative that I'll try in the near future. I'll blog more on that issue in this post at a later date.

In the meantime, there are two issues with the cooling system that needed some attention the way I have the engine positioned in the Pantera. The hose assembly that runs from the thermostat housing what would be the upper radiator hose on the F150 turns in a way that it sticks out into the passenger compartment. The other issue with the cooling system is the fact that the heater hose assembly is pointed in a way that will make the hose come very close to my proposed firewall. It would be nice if the heater hose assembly could be turned a bit to make the hose hug the head much tighter. Here's a shot of what I'm dealing with.

I decided to take on the heater hose first. I removed the radiator hose assembly. The clips on the hose assembly make this an easy thing to do. The heater hose assembly is held on by a single 9mm bolt. The tube in the block has an o-ring on it to keep leaks from happening. I was careful to protect this o-ring with the changes I made. Here's a shot of the heater hose assembly removed.

The assembly will rotate with no problem in the hole on the block. Problem is that the mounting hole will now be in the wrong place and it interferes with the radiator hose assembly when the heater hose is rotated to where I want it to be. Here's a shot showing the problem.

I decided that by cutting down the mounting bracket and welding on a new tab with a mounting hole I can rotate the heater hose assembly to where I want it. Here's a shot of how much I remove from the heater hose assembly tab.

I cut a piece of same thickness metal and welded a 1.5 inch long tab to the side of the old mounting plate on the heater hose assembly. This let me rotate the assembly the amount I wanted and removed the interference issues with the radiator hose assembly. Problem solved. Here's a shot of it bolted up in the block.

The radiator hose issues is a bit more of an issue. As you can see from the photo above the housing for the thermostat has a special clip on hose connector that makes the fix on this one a bit of an issue. I need a hose assembly that will enable me to attach to the thermostat housing while turning the radiator hose port back towards the engine.

A quick search on Google found that both the F150 and Mustang GT have this same assembly. Totally expected since the radiators for both the truck and car are right in front of the engine. As you know on the Pantera that isn't the case.

I'll have to do a little research to see if there is anything I can put together to make the problem of the radiator hose protruding into the passenger compartment fixable or not. After a lot of research It looks like I'm going to have to incorporate a bubble in the firewall to allow the radiator hose to protrude into the passenger compartment.  Not a big deal, just some more fabrication. Check out this modification in the separate post called Firewall Build.

Now back to the oil cooler issue. As I stated earlier, the oil cooler on the F150 is very much in the way of where the shift linkage will eventually go. Here's a couple shots of where the F150 oil cooler is in the way.

In this shot my finger is pointing the basic direction where the shift linkage is suppose to go. You can see the cooler is right in the way.

After some extensive research, I decided to order two parts, the Boss 302 oil cooler (Ford Racing: M-6642-MB $140 from American Muscle). Here's a shot of this assembly.

This assembly fits onto the stock Mustang GT oil filter assembly that bolts onto the block. I found and ordered the Mustang GT oil filter assembly from Ford ($96 P/N BR3Z6881M). Bad news is that the Mustang GT oil filter neck will not bolt up to the F150 block - wrong bolt pattern. I found that out the hard way - special ordered the part and Ford won't take it back. Oh well, not that big of a deal.

Next I'm going to try using the Ford Racing 90 degree Oil Filter Adapter (Item No. 50449 American Muscle - $99). I will see if this adapter can fit onto the F150 oil filter assembly. After I received the part it looked very promising.

I first removed the oil filter then took off the oil filter cooler using a 1/2" allan wrench to unscrew the threaded shaft that holds on the oil filter. When the shaft is loosened the entire assembly comes off the adapter. Here's a shot of the entire assembly removed but laying in place.

With the original cooler removed I could now bolt up the 90 degree adapter. Problem is that the adapter needs a length of threaded shaft that normally holds on the oil filter to enable the 90 degree adapter to bolt into place. Unfortunately the shaft that holds the oil cooler on is too long all that is needed is the small piece of threaded shaft at the end of the long oil cooler shaft. Out comes the cut off wheel. Here's a shot of how I cut the shaft to use the small threaded piece to hold on the 90 degree adapter.

The piece on the left is what I will use to allow me to attach the 90 degree adapter. Once this was installed in the original oil filter neck on the Coyote engine I could then bold up the 90 degree adapter. Just so you know, this threaded piece is a metric sized 22x1.50 thread. This is important to know if you need to make this modification. Here's a shot of how it looks all assembled.

Notice no oil cooler. I intended to use the Boss 302 cooler mentioned above to fit on the end of the adapter. Guess what? The Boss 302 filter has a 22x1.50 oil filter thread. The thread on the 90 degree adapter is 3/4-16. Big problem. After doing a bunch of research it looks like I'm out of luck at making this adapter take an oil cooler. No big deal - I don't think this is going to be such a big deal in the long run.

I have to tell you, I really like where the oil filter ends up. Changing oil is going to be so much easier in that I can get to is in the space just under where you see the Fram has ended up. Also, this modification really opens up the area where the shift linkage will be located. Here's a shot with my hand showing how much space I was able to free up.

Bottom line with the oil cooler is that the filter needs to be relocated to make room for the shift linkage. I'm a little bummed that I couldn't get the Boss 302 cooler to work. I think the engine will run cool enough. If changes need to be made I will consider them in the future.

I finally got my hands on the engine wiring harness and computer. I installed the wiring harness and settled on mounting the computer on the fire wall behind the driver's seat. Here's a shot of the computer mounted in place.