Clifford

The Big, Red, ’06 Frame-Swapped Ford With A Compound Turbo 6.0L And 800 HP…

At first glance, Chris Miles’ 6.0L-powered ’03 F-350 looks like it’s been treated to an ‘05 front clip—a common upgrade among early Super Duty owners. But once you get a bit closer it quickly becomes apparent that there is much more at work here. After you spot the coil springs and the radius arms up front, you notice the ’14 tailgate, tail lights, and rear bumper, the ’08 mirrors and—if you take a look in the cab—the ’05 dash and seats. “I like everything about the ’05-newer Fords,” he tells us. “This truck was lifted when I bought it and it rode awful, so after I came across a good deal on a donor ’06 me and my best friend, Mike, got started on a complete frame swap.”

Modern Frame, Suspension, And Looks

As the frame and axles were placed under the ’03 body, Chris performed a few inevitable upgrades. Among them was a set of 2-inch Rough Country coil spring spacers to level the truck, a Powertrax Lock-Right locker in the rear 10.5-inch Sterling for guaranteed traction, and PMF traction bars to ensure axle wrap is never an issue. Gloss black, 22×12-inch XD Grenade wheels, 33-inch Haida mud tires, custom badging, and the aforementioned 2014 tailgate, tail light, and rear bumper changes all served to improve the truck’s curb appeal. And then, of course, there were performance enhancements. Lots of them.

Warren Long-Block

In case you were wondering, yes the 6.0L Power Stroke has been pulled before, but it’s pretty safe to say that the last time it happened was the last time it will ever happen. The reason? Chris sourced a complete long-block from Warren Diesel. His specific build entailed Callies forged rods, coated Mahle pistons, a Stage 2 PSP Diesel camshaft, PSP ported and O-ringed heads, and ARP Custom Age 625+ head studs. A compound turbo kit from SoCal Billet crams plenty of boost through the CSF intercooler, the Odawgs Diesel S3R ported intake manifold, and ultimately into the cylinders. The system is comprised of an S480 atmosphere (low-pressure) charger paired with an S366 SX-E in the valley (high-pressure).

A Healthy HEUI System

To support of a set of 225/75 injectors from Holders Diesel Performance, Chris pieced together his own regulated return and fuel supply systems. Things get started with a Bean Machine sump at the factory tank. Then, using a factory lift pump off of a 6.7L Power Stroke, fuel is pulled through a Baldwin water separator, the aforementioned 6.7L pump, and then a Cat fuel filter before heading for the injectors. The regulated return system is regulated to 65-psi via an adjustable Aeromotive regulator. Because the injectors are conventional units and not hybrids, Chris upgraded the high-pressure oil pump to one of RCD Performance’s Thumper II units. The Thumper II HPOP is supported by a billet low-pressure oil pump (LPOP) from Warren Diesel.

Road-Ripping TorqShift

Keeping his transmission build local, Chris had Certified Transmission of Omaha fortify the 5R110 automatic. Coined its Road Ripper 3000, it’s held everything Chris has thrown at it so far‚ which is saying something for a truck that weighs 8,200 pounds on a quarter tank of fuel. Chris did add a four-disc converter from Diesel Performance Converters (DPC), a 13-inch billet front cover unit with a 2,200-rpm stall speed that he says matches the S366/S480 compound arrangement perfectly. Truck Source Diesel, by working its magic inside the TCM, ensures the five-speed slushbox’s shifts are always on-point.

The Big Payoff

Pieced together in his home garage over the winter of 2021-2022, Chris would get home from work, eat dinner, visit with the family for a few hours, and then chip away at the truck for several hours each night. It’s the kind of owner-built story we love to hear, the type of story that helps inspire countless others to dive into a fresh build or finish the one they’ve already started. The payoff for Chris is that all of the late nights and money has resulted in one of the more unique Super Duty’s you’ll come across, and with what is likely one of the most powerful 6.0L Power Strokes you’ll encounter as well.