Recently purchased a 96 f150 4.9 liter. 155,000 miles. Truck runsgood but maint. history is unknown. I have completed or am in the process of the following:
Oil and filter change
Manual 5 speed fluid change maxlife syn. ATF
Rear end 85/90 and limited slip additive change
Antifreeze drain/refill (scared of flush, OLD antifreeze and grime)
New radiator cap
New thermostat/gasket
Front brake pads
rear brake shoes
New pcv
Motorcraft plugs, cap & rotor and wires
Air filter
New fuel pump (sending unit was bad)
Fuel neck (original was punctured/leaking)
Fuel filter
4 new monroe shocks
New drive belt
Refurbished:
Ac compressor/drier/oraface tube, flushed and recharged system.
Windshield washer pump replaced
Door hinge repair kits for sagging doors
New side mirrors for mismatched mirrors
Anyway i need a salvaged bench seat, but other than the above what would aid reliability\longevity?
1996 f150 4.9 recommended preventative maintenance
- Thread starter Clubber_Lang
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Brake fluid flush. If the clutch actuation is hydraulic, include the clutch system in the flush.
I had a 1986 F250 with the 4.9. Loved the engine. Very reliable and torquey. Super easy to work on.
The fibre timing gear went out on me twice. I replaced it with an aluminium gear and had no more problems.
Originally Posted By: George7941
Brake fluid flush. If the clutch actuation is hydraulic, include the clutch system in the flush.
I had a 1986 F250 with the 4.9. Loved the engine. Very reliable and torquey. Super easy to work on.
The fibre timing gear went out on me twice. I replaced it with an aluminium gear and had no more problems.
Check hoses and tires. Way to go. Ur truck should run good for another 155k
Originally Posted By: maximus
You put ATF in a manual??????
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Originally Posted By: barkingspider
Check hoses and tires. Way to go. Ur truck should run good for another 155k
Side note:
Im sure some would mock fixing up a beater, but i say cheap taxes, cheap ins, and title in hand cant be beat. Plus i love the 4.9 motor even if its thirsty. This is not to be a commuter vehicle anyway.
I picked this truck up due to the motors reputation and the fact that its totally stripped down, crank windows, ect mean less to go wrong.
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Originally Posted By: maximus
You put ATF in a manual??????
Originally Posted By: Clubber_Lang
Originally Posted By: maximus
You put ATF in a manual??????
Originally Posted By: Chris142
Originally Posted By: maximus
You put ATF in a manual??????
Rubber plugs on top? We drained out the drain hole, closed that up and filled from the cabin, you can do this by lifting up the shift boot and unscrewing. Also replaced shift "spring" around shifter which had deteriorated.
Yup. Thats what the owners manual calls for. Seems thin but my old bmw 318 manual called for atf too. Went full synthetic
Watch for the rubber plugs on top of the tranny. They shrink/rot and out spills your tranny fluid causing your tranny to run dry, a common problem with these. There is a way to replace them with brass plugs, look on the internet. My 1989 F-150 with your engine tranny combo ran fine on ATF. My 2002 F-150 with the 4.6 V-8 and the same manual shifted horribly with ATF. Finally went with a manual tranny fluid with the same approximate viscosity as the ATF and the shifting is so much better. No more crunching and grinding like it did with the ATF in anything but cold temps.
Whimsey
Originally Posted By: Whimsey
Originally Posted By: Clubber_Lang
Originally Posted By: maximus
You put ATF in a manual??????
Nick1994
$100 site donor 2023
Originally Posted By: Clubber_Lang
Originally Posted By: barkingspider
Check hoses and tires. Way to go. Ur truck should run good for another 155k
I fixed my beater commuter car. Nothing wrong with that. I love how it less than $40to fill it w gas, insurance is cheap, registration is nothing, and the vehicle has a good reputation of lasting. Post pics of this find
Originally Posted By: Clubber_Lang
Id love to put in metallic timing gears. How hard are they to install and how much noisier are they?
Would steel gears be better than aluminum? Also i dont believe there are ball joints there. Friend is an ase mechanic and sais front suspension looked good, i will bring up greasing. I want to grease u joints also.
Aluminium was what was available, so that is what I used.
Perhaps aluminium is preferred in that application because if any issues arise the aluminium will sacrifice itself and save the steel crank gear.
Check motor mounts.
If your truck has any slop in the shifter at all put a shifter bushing kit in it. Cost like $14 and mine shifts like a new one now. Other than that I think you're on the right track. I've had no problems with my truck and I drive it every day and have no intentions of ever getting rid of it.
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