Engine restart after prolonged storage

Hi Everyone. New member and new post. I apologize if this is out there somewhere or if I am posting in the wrong spot. Spent lots of time looking and thought carefully about where to put this.

I have just completed a 2016 F-150 engine swap into a 2011 Mustang GT (due to blown engine). The 2016 engine has only 7000k (~4400m) on it, but has been sitting for a good 3 years. Oil film is present on valve train and engine spins with breaker bar on crank - no issues. Just wondering if there are any special procedures I should follow before turning the key? Thanks in advance!

I'd suggest priming the oil system before firing it up

side note - how are you adjusting for the differences in the motor and engine management from the two chassis?

To prime it, you would have to turn the crank. So I you want to do this, pull all spark plugs and crank it over for 10 seconds.

3 years is not that long IMO, I would just start it.

Juice said:

To prime it, you would have to turn the crank. So I you want to do this, pull all spark plugs and crank it over for 10 seconds.

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Or pull the fuel pump relay and crank the engine over for 10 seconds. It's quicker than pulling out all eight spark plugs.

Well, if you dont pull the plugs you are putting compression pressure on the bearings. That is somewhat pointless, just start it then.

Juice said:

Well, if you dont pull the plugs you are putting compression pressure on the bearings. That is somewhat pointless, just start it then.

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Good point.

stkjock said:

I'd suggest priming the oil system before firing it up

side note - how are you adjusting for the differences in the motor and engine management from the two chassis?

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Thanks for the replies everyone! The local mechanic I've been talking to about it also suggested just starting it, letting it come to temp while ensuring I have the air out of the cooling system. I was going to disconnect the coil packs and injectors and turn it over, but good point about the pressure on bearings. I'll follow up with my final chosen approach.

As for the side question about how I'm doing the swap, I have one remaining question, but I'll create a post in the swap section describing what I've done and asking for opinions. Thanks again!

I hope you addressed the gen2 gen1 differences. Not sure when the trucks switched to Gen2 engimes.

I bought a new Mustang GT in 1986. When I went to Okinawa for a couple years, the Ford dealer recommended spraying a squirt of oil into the cylinders before firing the engine. I had no problems.

Juice said:

I hope you addressed the gen2 gen1 differences. Not sure when the trucks switched to Gen2 engimes.

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Same time as the Mustangs i.e. 2015. The Gen 1 F-150 was rated at 360hp & 380lbft, and that increased to 385hp & 387lbft for the Gen 2. The Gen 3 saw a further increase to 395hp & 400lbft.

Dino Dino Bambino said:

Same time as the Mustangs i.e. 2015. The Gen 1 F-150 was rated at 360hp & 380lbft, and that increased to 385hp & 387lbft for the Gen 2. The Gen 3 saw a further increase to 395hp & 400lbft.

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OP put a 2016 F150 engine into a 2011 Mustang. He had to change vct solenoids. Sure sounds like a gen 2 engine. Cant work without changing timing components.

Correct, and he would have also needed to swap the intake cams from the Mustang engine to the 2016 F-150 in order to keep the ECU happy.
Other Mustang items to swap over include the timing components you mentioned, the timing cover, oil pump, windage tray, and oil pan.

Dino Dino Bambino said:

Correct, and he would have also needed to swap the intake cams from the Mustang engine to the 2016 F-150 in order to keep the ECU happy.
Other Mustang items to swap over include the timing components you mentioned, the timing cover, oil pump, windage tray, and oil pan.

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And he did not go inside the engine.

OK. If he still has the F-150 intake cams, the ECU would need to be retuned to take into account the different intake valve opening/closing events. Not a big deal.

Dino Dino Bambino said:

OK. If he still has the F-150 intake cams, the ECU would need to be retuned to take into account the different intake valve opening/closing events. Not a big deal.

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Incorrect. Cannot fix it in the tune. Must swap to gen 1 timing components.

Juice said:

Incorrect. Cannot fix it in the tune. Must swap to gen 1 timing components.

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Interesting that a tune won't fix it.
Wouldn't he also need to swap in the Mustang Gen 1 cams?

It may work without swapping cams. Not sure on how picky the pcm is about cams.
The trigger wheels are different between the generations.

Roger Bell said:

I'll follow up with my final chosen approach.

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In the end, I did both. I attempted an engine start. It sort of started, but didn't run. I will cover that in my other thread. So I unplugged FPCM in spare tire well, disconnected fuel injector leads, removed coil packs and plugs, and ran a few start cycles, which primed the oil system nicely and confirmed that engine assembly is rotating smoothly.

Juice and Dino, I appreciate your input on the tech issues, and hope that you will check out my other thread here:
https://www.s197forum.com/threads/gen2-f-150-5-0-into-2011-gt.137761/#post-2472522

I have a lot more info over there, and received a showstopper response yesterday that hits the nail on the head. Let's move the tech discussion to that other thread.

Thank you