High Mileage Ford 5.4 - Stay Away?!

[telemeister62]

I have been searching for a “budget” truck (nothing is really budget these days) for months and have had a very difficult time finding anything in this insane market.

A 210k mile 2007 F-150 crew cab 4x4 popped up. One owner, he did all the maintenance himself (including spark plugs) and assures me oil has been changed every 5k miles with only Ford motorcraft.

I drove it yesterday and did not hear any tapping/knocking, or anything indicating it would have timing issues. Rust free as well. It seems very clean and seems to run well.

My only problem is buying that 5.4 with 210k miles. He’s asking $8k but based on conversation I think I could get a good bit off.

Any advice? I am almost getting desperate at this point.

 

[thastinger]

I would look for a 10th gen with the 2V 5.4, if you can find a 98 with the max tow package it'll have the 4R100 transmission, some early 98s had the E4OD tranny but they switched to 4R100s mid year. The extended cab 10th gens have a 6.5ft bed as well. 9.75 Sterling rear end and 8.8 front diffs make for a sturdy driveline.

Otherwise the 2007 should be fine, its going to have a 5.5ft bed though.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

As long as there's no indication that there are chain issues (rattle, sounds like a diesel) and the spark plugs have been removed - they aren't bad engines. I'd do an OE timing set , OE Phasers with the metal tensioners preventively.

My concern would be the 210K mile automatic transmission. The 4R75s weren't terrible transmissions (way better than GM's 4L60) but it's still a domestic 4 speed auto. Not the epitome of reliability.

A high mileage 2valve wouldn't scare me at all, however. Lately I've been in more high mileage 2valve engines than I care for. Realistally the only thing that wears out is the plastic timing guides and then you wear the chain through the tensioner piston.

 

[b_b]

if you can get him to come off by 2k that will cover a timing job, and the rest of the truck if taken care of will be ok.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

I would look for a 10th gen with the 2V 5.4, if you can find a 98 with the max tow package it'll have the 4R100 transmission, some early 98s had the E4OD tranny but they switched to 4R100s mid year. The extended cab 10th gens have a 6.5ft bed as well. 9.75 Sterling rear end and 8.8 front diffs make for a sturdy driveline.

Otherwise the 2007 should be fine, its going to have a 5.5ft bed though.

Unfortunately part of the way through the 10th gen, the 4R100 was dropped from what I could tell. Except the 5.4L expedition. Ford was pretty bug on pushing the 4r70/75E into everything that wasn't a heavy duty vehicle. E-350 vans with the 4.6/5.4 got it, f150s with the higher tow packages got it - even the 7 lug versions in the 11th gen had the 4R70. Friend of mine has a 7 lug, 5.4 and it has a 4R75. But it's held up to > 100,000 miles of towing so there's that.

 

[telemeister62]

if you can get him to come off by 2k that will cover a timing job, and the rest of the truck if taken care of will be ok.

Thanks! I was going to offer $6k. It needs 2 new tires as well.

 

[atikovi]

Do you really need 4x4 and a crew cab? And where are you looking? I see plenty of them under $5000.

Log into Facebook

Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

www.facebook.com

Log into Facebook

Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

www.facebook.com

Log into Facebook

Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

www.facebook.com

 

[telemeister62]

As long as there's no indication that there are chain issues (rattle, sounds like a diesel) and the spark plugs have been removed - they aren't bad engines. I'd do an OE timing set , OE Phasers with the metal tensioners preventively.

My concern would be the 210K mile automatic transmission. The 4R75s weren't terrible transmissions (way better than GM's 4L60) but it's still a domestic 4 speed auto. Not the epitome of reliability.

A high mileage 2valve wouldn't scare me at all, however. Lately I've been in more high mileage 2valve engines than I care for. Realistally the only thing that wears out is the plastic timing guides and then you wear the chain through the tensioner piston.

Good to know! I believe he said the trans fluid had been done around 120k. Might be time to do it again.

 

[telemeister62]

Do you really need 4x4 and a crew cab? And where are you looking? I see plenty of them under $5000.

Log into Facebook

Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

www.facebook.com

Log into Facebook

Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

www.facebook.com

Log into Facebook

Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

www.facebook.com

Outside Nashville, TN.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Good to know! I believe he said the trans fluid had been done around 120k. Might be time to do it again.

You can still get Motorcraft filters. Best to just do a pan drop and new Ford filter for it.

They aren't bad transmissions if you can keep them from overheating themselves to death.

 

[wavinwayne]

FWIW, I have a 2005 Ford Expedition with the 5.4L engine and 230K miles. It likes to eat a coil pack or two about every 50k miles, but the engine itself has been pretty much bulletproof. I change the oil when I think about it, but I've run conventional oil in it for 7-8k miles MANY times over the years, It doesn't seem to care.

 

[telemeister62]

FWIW, I have a 2005 Ford Expedition with the 5.4L engine and 230K miles. It likes to eat a coil pack or two about every 50k miles, but the engine itself has been pretty much bulletproof. I change the oil when I think about it, but I've run conventional oil in it for 7-8k miles MANY times over the years, It doesn't seem to care.

Great to hear. With so many being built I assume your story is the more common one than catastrophic failure.

 

[dfarr67]

I don't do fords, but from my experience the engine is easier to deal with than a trans.

 

[Fordiesel69]

That engine has 2 very major failures and worst of the two is about to happen.

1.) The roller followers on the cam will seize, then flatten out and wipe the camshaft lobe(s) flat. This happen at 100k ~ 150k. Without knowing when these were done, i'd consider that an emergency repair and do them now.

2.) Plan on doing a timing job up front.

 

[blupupher]

Me personally, I would stay away. Just too many issues with that 5.4 3v motor.
Phasers, VVT solenoids, timing chain tensioner, and oil pump issues just to start with.
Coil packs and spark plugs are also a big issue (although if plugs replaced with the revised 1 piece plugs, you should be ok on that part).
If transmission was taken care of (ie frequent fluid changes and not abused (no towing, not overheated)) the transmission should be OK.

In '08 that addressed some of the issues (I know that is when the spark plug revision happened), but still not a motor I would want.

I did maintenance on my brother in laws '04 F150 with the 5.4 and while it lasted to 182,000 miles without engine failure when it was sold, it was on it's way out. Every oil change had a ton of metal in the filter, and the engine knocking would come and go. Was better with 5w-30 oil.
I bought an 8 pack of quality COP (most out there are junk) to replace his coils, he had 3 known bad ones which he kept driving on, causing the cats to melt and clog.
After replacing cats, plugs and coils, the truck drove a lot better (done at 150,000 miles), but 4 of the replacement coils went bad over 4-5 years/30,000 miles (I replaced them with the still "good" stock coils I had saved).

 

[wolverine86]

I recently got a 2009 F-150 regular cab 4x2 with 143K on the clock for just north of $5K. It also has a 5.4L 3V engine, which so far seems to run fine without any unusual noises. The truck does have a hole in one of the exhaust pipes, which makes it a bit louder than usual, especially on startup when the engine tends to rev a little higher. It does have a few other minor issues, but overall it's a decent truck for the money and my 16 year old son drives it a fair bit. Gas mileage is actually fairly decent for a F-150 5.4L at about 16 mpg in mostly suburban driving.

I changed the oil in it over to M1 5W-30 upon the recommendation of folks here on BITOG and Scotty Kilmer. The general consensus is that 5.4L Tritons do better with a somewhat higher viscosity oil. I'm not sure what it had when I bought the truck, but it was probably 5W-20 because that is what the oil cap says.

Just another data point for you to consider - there are some good deals out there but you may have to wait a while to find them!

 

[IveBeenRued]

I have been searching for a “budget” truck (nothing is really budget these days) for months and have had a very difficult time finding anything in this insane market.

A 210k mile 2007 F-150 crew cab 4x4 popped up. One owner, he did all the maintenance himself (including spark plugs) and assures me oil has been changed every 5k miles with only Ford motorcraft.

I drove it yesterday and did not hear any tapping/knocking, or anything indicating it would have timing issues. Rust free as well. It seems very clean and seems to run well.

My only problem is buying that 5.4 with 210k miles. He’s asking $8k but based on conversation I think I could get a good bit off.

Any advice? I am almost getting desperate at this point.

I just paid $3K for a 2004 XLT 4x4 crew cab with 138K miles. It’s got the 5.4 Triton and is a Virginia truck so no rust anywhere including underneath.

BTW, if you need wheels and tires. Check this out (I did local pickup and can attest to the fact that they fit our generation of trucks):

OEM 17" Wheel and Tire Fits 2004-2023 Ford F150 PIRELLI SCORPION TIRE | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for OEM 17" Wheel and Tire Fits 2004-2023 Ford F150 PIRELLI SCORPION TIRE at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[cb_13]

1.) The roller followers on the cam will seize, then flatten out and wipe the camshaft lobe(s) flat. This happen at 100k ~ 150k. Without knowing when these were done, i'd consider that an emergency repair and do them now.

IME That doesn’t “just happen at 100-150k miles”. That happens when the owner ignores the ticking that started tens of thousands of miles ago or better yet they took it to someone who saw on YouTube that they all need phasers and slapped a new set of cam phasers in it, band aiding that noise temporarily but not fixing the lack of oil pressure to the top end which caused the phaser to fail in the first place.

The same lack of top end oil pressure will cause a roller seize, wipe out the cam or score a cam bearing. All because no one pulled the front cover to see that there was a tensioner seal blown they either ignored the noise or improperly repaired it.

 

[Cujet]

IME That doesn’t “just happen at 100-150k miles”. That happens when the owner ignores the ticking that started tens of thousands of miles ago or better yet they took it to someone who saw on YouTube that they all need phasers and slapped a new set of cam phasers in it, band aiding that noise temporarily but not fixing the lack of oil pressure to the top end which caused the phaser to fail in the first place.

The same lack of top end oil pressure will cause a roller seize, wipe out the cam or score a cam bearing. All because no one pulled the front cover to see that there was a tensioner seal blown they either ignored the noise or improperly repaired it.

Use 5W or 10w-30 M1 (or even 10w-40HM M1) and change regularly. The engine will be 100% trouble free. Even with leaky chain tensioners. Oil will flow to the heads and no

 

[panthermike]

IME That doesn’t “just happen at 100-150k miles”. That happens when the owner ignores the ticking that started tens of thousands of miles ago or better yet they took it to someone who saw on YouTube that they all need phasers and slapped a new set of cam phasers in it, band aiding that noise temporarily but not fixing the lack of oil pressure to the top end which caused the phaser to fail in the first place.

The same lack of top end oil pressure will cause a roller seize, wipe out the cam or score a cam bearing. All because no one pulled the front cover to see that there was a tensioner seal blown they either ignored the noise or improperly repaired it.

Well this may be the norm, I will say that what he outlined in option number one is exactly what happened to my 2010. Only had 106,000 mi, will maintained and no warning signs! Although from what I've read that particular failure is not necessarily at a high rate. However the timing components seem inevitable with enough miles anyways.