2004 F150 5.4

[krismoriah72]

I am always on the lookout for a car/truck to flip and i pass on alot...but locally I found a guy that had a 2004 F150 and also a 2005 F150. Both trucks have brand new tires (about $400 worth on each truck).. both trucks have 5.4 engines and automatics. Here is where it gets interesting. I paid $1200 for both..so i only have $600 in each. The 2005 engine sounds like there is something broken in the upper part of the engine..could be a broken valve spring or a cam. The 2004 engine runs ok, but the transmission only goes in reverse. After reading on the net it looks like both are common problems with these trucks. My intention was to fix both..sell one as a flip and keep the other for pretty much free...but at this point i feel as if i fix the motor in one the trans may have the same issue, and if i fix the trans the engine may get the problems...so are these years lemons as far as power trains? My estimate to fix are as follows- Used engine $600 with a $550 install price. Used Trans $350 with a $250 install price. This is a very small local garage with a good reputation that ive used before and warranties on labor and parts. Would you keep one and flip one? or flip them both? I need a pickup but im in no hurry.

 

[andyd]

Good luck with your Plans. A note of caution however. Fords are engineered to be assembled and sold. Not to be taken apart and repaired.

 

[DSparks]

Fix the engine...prob just phasers...super common fix....and if you can find a good running 5.4 3v for $600 let me know Ill buy it...

 

[BigD1]

If I needed a truck, I would keep both, and use the best as a daily driver, and the other as my parts truck assuming the majority of the parts interchange from those two different years. Trucks are at goofy prices in my area. Trucks sitting on dealer lots with over 200,000 miles for ridiculous prices.

 

[Chris142]

$400 for brand new truck tires? Try closer to $1000!

 

[Tdbo]

If I were in that situation, I would simply keep the one that is in the best condition.
Assuming that condition is comparable, I would keep the 2005.
My rationale is that unless the 2004 is a Heritage model, the 2004 would be a first year of a redesign.
Buying the first year of a redesign, in my experience, generally can have bad results.

 

[MNgopher]

If you can find an engine for $600 that is running well, then I made an awful choice to dump my '04 F150 this year. Despite the huge popularity of these trucks, used engines were not easy to find, were overpriced, and no guarantee they also didn't have problems.

You didn't state mileage, but if it's the upper 100,000 mile range, odds are the cam phasers, timing chains, and tensioners are all shot. Hopefully neither skipped teeth. I was at $450+ tax on parts (and not necessarily the good ones either) to make the necessary repairs on a 10.5 hour job ( book time). All on a truck that rust was taking overy, had some other issues that would need attention.

Best of luck.

 

[artificialist]

Find out of a transmission from a later production date can be used in your 2004. Sometimes early production car parts are failure prone, but over time the auto maker fixes flaws. Often they don't even say anything about fixing flaws.

 

[krismoriah72]

Well i only paid $600 for each truck so its hard to go wrong. I guess what i was saying is that since its a super common problem...if i find a good running engine...its basically going to do the same thing at some point. So even if i put in a low mileage engine its going to most likely have the cam phaser/timing chain/rocker arm breaking deal right?

 

[MNgopher]

My only point is that your budget of $600 will likely not get you a running engine in this platform - the going price for a running engine on these in this area was north of $1600 when I was looking. You may find some for less, but they are usually locked, no guarantees on running, or haven't been run by the seller.

And yes, if the phasers, tensioners, and chains have not been done, you can bet they will need attention at some point... Easiest to deal with it while the engine is out of the truck, but that assumes you've got a running engine to start with...

Odds are you are looking at spending some decent coin to get the engine running in the one (or replaced).