4.6L into older Ford

I want to swap a 4.6L/AOD engine and tranny into my '60 T-bird.  The mechanics of it don't seem difficult, but I'm not sure about the engine wiring harness and computer use.

Anyone have ideas or experience in using OEM EMC and harness or aftermarket components?  

in my opinion... thats a lot of work to upgrade to a motor that will  not make as much power for the amount of time , labor and parts it takes to put it in and make it run...

it would be much better to spend the same amount of money to upgrade the FE motor in the bird currently and add a c6 tranny or some type of overdrive with an adaptor bellhousing to bolt it up to the back of the FE....    there's nothing wrong with an upgrade to the FM tranny thats in there already they used simular models up though the late 60's till the c6 replaced it...

there is a ton of new FE power parts available.. aluminum heads, new blocks in aluminum and iron,  cranks, rods, intake manifolds, electronic ignition systems

and you don't have to reengineer the car to install it..

bolt on fuel injection could be added at a later time if you wanted... but newer carbs will work really well..... there may be a problem with taller manifolds and hood clearance...

you might want to also be looking for disc brakes for it... and a dual system master cylinder so you can bring this monster to a safe stop....  it should already have a 9 inch rear end...so after  going through a freshen up  it should work fine....

but this is hot rodding so anything is possible and dont take this as a shoot down... i have worked on early 60's tbirds...  including making the retractable soft top function properly... with aftermarket relays without cutting the harness...  the owner was so amazed that it worked after so many years of him trying.. he burned out the pump motor... that was the biggest oops ever..  they use a large displacement pump and the normal top pumps move the top way too slow...  i did get the armature rewound and the speed back...

wayne...  

Hey wayne ... thanks for the reply.

I hear what you're saying about rebuilding the FE and have considered that, too.  I have a 6 X 2 intake for it and would like to see how that works out.   The '60 has an old 3spd manual on the column with overdrive.  There weren't many of those cars built and I kinda thought I had something until I talked to a T-bird affectionado and was told that, yeah its rare but its not the kind of rare that people want...lol.  Oh, well.  I didn't buy it for snob appeal anyway.

I have the 4.6L and AOD as a result of my daughter totaling my '96 T-bird.   I saw an opportunity and wanted to get some ideas on it and it has all the parts and electronics I'd need, so I'd save some expence there.  I also have a line on a T-45 tranny that I could use as well.

I'm not really looking for a go-fast result as much as a "relatively" economical cruiser.  I had a '66 Fairlane GTX, 390/4spd that was good on go but bad on passing gas stations.  The '96 was a real plasure to drive and had pretty good power.   Not sure how much the '96 weighs but I do know the '60 is nearly 4000lbs, so performance won't be quite what it was in the original car.  

Thanks again for the ideas.  

It seems like I always get the kind of rare that nobody wants, hahaha I guess sometimes life just works out that way.  

I purchased a 63 Ford Falcon Convertible with 4.6L V8 & tranny from a wrecked 94 T-bird.  We actually installed the independent rear end but, it really limited tire sizes. We went back to an 8 inch rear end from a Mustang.  What we have not figured out yet is how to configure the accelerator linkage and the pedal assembly.  If you want, I can send pics.  

I would like to see pics of this sngine swap set up. I have purchased a 1963 Fairlane with the in line six. I have the option of buying a 95 mustang 5.0 set up with 5 speed or a 98 with 4.6 and 5 speed set up. the 96 is much cheaper the the 5.0 but I do not know what it is going to take to do the set up for the car. Help and pictures would be great. I know the 302 will work a guy in Canada has posted some info.  

I just read your reply about the T-bird but was more interested in the Falcon.  I'm considering the same swap into a 63 Falcon, can you post or send pictures?  Would you be willing to field a couple of questions?
Thanks.  

without removing the shock towers via a Mustang II front end kit (abnout $2000 if the parts are new), its hard to fit something as wide as a SOHC 4.6 into the smaller Fords. And for all that, you have 281 cid where...289 cid used to live.

stick shift T'birds are valuable to some people, I'm surprised a T'bird afficianado would downplay the rarity...a stick shift anything is considered valuable, even in this day of paddle shift automatics.

Is that a 3x2 manifold?  Ford made two types, I think it was the Galaxy that slopes the carbs downwards due to the tilt of the engine.  

As for weight considerations, look at the new Mustangs, coupe and convertable.  They aren't lightweights, so test drive one to get an idea of what its going to perform like.