03 HD IRS swap

Aaron175617

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I am thinking about swaping out the rear axle in my 03 HD for an IRS out of a Navigator. Yea I know it is a dumb idea (that is what everybody has said) but I want to do it anyway. Has anybody else done it?
 

Mystic-SVT

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If the IRS in the navigator is anything like the IRS in the aviator and explorer then I'm sure you will be in for a hell of a time getting things to work. Would be an interesting swap though.
 

ColorMatched

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I'm sure if you ask anyone who has taken on a project out of the ordinary (big or small) that at least one person has told them it was a dumb idea.

If you wanna do it, do it. It's your money/truck/decision, don't worry about it! I say do it cus I wanna see what it looks like!
 

Aaron175617

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Thanks for the support and comments. It seems that this project will be a bit more involved than I thought it would be at first. I was hoping that I would just need to weld on some brackets and maybe drill a few holes to accommodate the IRS. That’s not the case. The frame on the IRS equipped Navigator is narrower than the F150 frame in the area of concern to give clearance for the control arms. Therefore, in order to adapt the IRS to the F150 will require splicing in the rear part of the Navigator frame to the F150 frame. The good news is I am not the first guy to do it. However, as this truck is my main transportation and I don’t drive my other stuff much, I will take a lot of time planning this change over.
Here is a link to another guy that did it. He did a very nice, clean job.

FSTFord  F-150 IRS SEMA Show Project Truck
 

C-Phil5187

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Kinda curious about this idea.. I don't wanna be the ass to just jump out and say it's dumb. What are the reasons behind trying this swap? Is it a "just because I have too much money" idea cause if it is I have plenty of ideas for my truck that you could throw money at haha. Or are you wanting better road handling, doing autocross... really interested on how it plays out.
 

kyoshosp2

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I would hope that if u don't tow a lot it would be for a better ride . My 2012 sucks over bumps . My kid in his car seat bounces around like an amusement park ride . If it were a direct swap from an expedition I'd do it ..
 

IUP99snake

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You have your work cut out for you. I have no idea about what is involved, but I'm sure it's not impossible.

Do you ever watch Trucks during the Powerblock on Spike TV on the weekends? One of their project vehicles is a Terminator powered Ranger that started life as a Mazda B2300. They even managed to swap the IRS from the Cobra to the truck frame. It took a lot of fabrication, but they managed to do it without defeating the purpose of starting out with a Cobra IRS instead of going completely aftermarket.

I found one other thread where this has been attempted before. F150 IRS Conversion - Ford Explorer Ranger Enthusiasts "Serious Explorations"®
But the link to the project website was down, so there were no pics.

As a Cobra owner, I think it's an awesome idea to swap an IRS into your truck using a donor vehicle that has the closest architecture to your own.

I always wanted to get a Fox Mustang and swap a Cobra IRS into it. Since the Cobra IRS was such an afterthought to the chassis, it bolts in as an assembly to the stock solid axle mounting points and as a result, you can fit it into any Fox-chassis vehicle from 79-04 with minor modifications.
 

Krooze

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Dear, I don't think so that you are talking right. May be its your perception but I think it can be done. Although this is not easy but man with letters can do it. Everyone person has his own thinking. So, don't mind it.
 

Steve@TF

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You have your work cut out for you. I have no idea about what is involved, but I'm sure it's not impossible.

Do you ever watch Trucks during the Powerblock on Spike TV on the weekends? One of their project vehicles is a Terminator powered Ranger that started life as a Mazda B2300. They even managed to swap the IRS from the Cobra to the truck frame. It took a lot of fabrication, but they managed to do it without defeating the purpose of starting out with a Cobra IRS instead of going completely aftermarket.

the one with TF wheels on it? :thumbsup:

its been done many times before with various trucks/IRS set ups. almost 20 years ago i saw a bagged truck at a car show with a jaguar IRS in the rear. it was pretty badass. rear wheels were cambering in like crazy.

you probably wont be able to tow shit or carry any kind of mildly heavy payload but it should ride and handle nice.
 

sneakysnake03

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I would suppose it would be easier to cut the back half of the frame off the nastigator, and attach it to your truck.
 

sneakysnake03

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As long as they are the same width it should not be hard to mount the bed. However the main problem I see in the swap is the width difference between the two frames. The bed is no sweat because all the takes is drilling some holes or making some brackets. Also just an FYI the expeditions have the same IRS in them as well, and it will probably be a little cheaper to obtain. Another one is I don't know how hard you have looked into the IRS on them but they don't completely unbolt like a cobra does.
 

Ruslow

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here is one that I did years ago.uses an 8.8 from a cobra.Bolt in where the leafs were.4 bolts and it is in.Stan

IRS_005.jpg
 

relykz

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here is one that I did years ago.uses an 8.8 from a cobra.Bolt in where the leafs were.4 bolts and it is in.Stan

IRS_005.jpg

I want this exact setup in my 6-speed Lightning... it would be killer! I am seriously willing to pay $$$ for a bolt in setup like this... I can source the Corba 8.8 IRS and get a custom driveshaft. I just don't know anyone local with the fabrication skills to pull that off as cleanly as you did. Would be a blast to row the gears in I am sure!
 

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