1997 Ford F150 5.4

[David Vandercook]

Hey y'all,
I've been looking for a vehicle to take across the country that gets better gas mileage than my old w250 and is capable of going 80mph without overreving lol
Well, my buddy is selling his 97 f150 5.4. I've known him a while, I'm familiar with the truck, and I know it gets around 20mpg when he drives it on the interstate, which is what I'm looking for. I'm not a Ford guy, but I don't want to pass up a good deal on a good truck. What are your thoughts on this truck, any engine or transmission problems I should know about? Just be blunt, I don't have to buy it lol

 

[star_deceiver]

What you’re going to be looking for isn’t ford related, it’s old vehicle related. The truck is 28 years old and everything has the possibility of needing to be replaced.

He should have a laundry list of regular maintenance. Every oil change, transmission, transfer case, diffs, ect. Plugs, wires, coils, and everything in between.

Any leaking fluid should be explainable, within your skill set to fix, and price negotiable.

Personally, I bring a pair of coveralls and my 12 ton bottle jack and do a front to back inspection with a cheat sheet of reminders to myself. If this is out of your scope, pay the $200 or whatever a local shop in your area charges to do an inspection.

 

[David Vandercook]

Well, here's my new truck. I'm enjoying the fact that it has cruise control, comfy leather seats, and a nice radio with a 6 CD changer, but not enjoying the fact that it slides around like crazy if I drive aggressively, even though the tires are new. My older trucks never lose traction for some reason. Also not a fan of the engine position. it's a pain to work on, everything is behind a shield and the whole engine is stuffed down low and far back in the engine bay. I guess I have to get used to it, that's how most modern vehicles are.
Overall I think it's going to be a good commuter.