What to look for - 2001 F250

[Trav]

Like you say you live in Al come up here and see how well they do. I have had to cut the brake rotors off with a sawsall on some Fords, torsion bars so rotten they break in two on the 150, spring perches through the bed, gas tank strap mounts on the frame rotten, all sorts of stuff i never see on a GM.

They are so bad i don't even work on them anymore, i pass every job, most of these things are beyond welding anyway. True GM is not prize either by any stretch but no where near what these Fords are.
Just telling it as i see it every day.

 

[hattaresguy]

My trim guys 03 or 04 F250 is so rusty the bed is falling off the mounts. It's used as a plow truck.

 

[Jarlaxle]

Super Duty beds rot, usually at the wheelhouses first. GM trucks lose rockers & cab corners. Rams rot the rear bumpers, doors, & the bed sides (nowhere near as badly as the SD's).

 

[01rangerxl]

Originally Posted By: Trav
Like you say you live in Al come up here and see how well they do. I have had to cut the brake rotors off with a sawsall on some Fords, torsion bars so rotten they break in two on the 150, spring perches through the bed, gas tank strap mounts on the frame rotten, all sorts of stuff i never see on a GM.

They are so bad i don't even work on them anymore, i pass every job, most of these things are beyond welding anyway. True GM is not prize either by any stretch but no where near what these Fords are.
Just telling it as i see it every day.



I see it everyday too since I run parts to about eight shops during the week, I just don't get to see the effects of rust like you do. Seems like we sell a lot more GM truck fuel pumps, starters, door hardware, knock sensors, etc. When a Super Duty pulls up it's usually Jim Bob and/or Jamarcus putting a can of R134a and a pack of air fresheners on the company credit card.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: 01rangerxl
Originally Posted By: Trav
Rust, rot, more rust once it gets in the salt belt it comes fast. I owned a 5.4 2V this vintage and honestly i don't understand where this "great engine" thing comes from.
IMHO it's far from a great engine, with its long timing chains, frequent bad cam tensioners, duff spark plug threads, piston slap, 6mm exhaust manifold studs that rot off, rotten exhaust manifolds, frequent coil failures, PCV issues,etc, etc.
Ford built some truly great engines over the years but this refugee from a scrap yard isn't one of them.

On top of that its under powered and a gas hog to boot. If this is a great engine i don't want to meet up with a bad one. LOL
TC shudder is nothing new in the 4R100 either, it happens when driving about 40 mph and the truck hits a slight long grade and the TC unlocks under load. Good transmission otherwise.

I would take a GM 6.0 with a 4L80E any day. I have lived through 2 ford trucks from this era both bought new and will personally never buy another Ford truck.

I have never seen a rotted Super Duty, not even pictures. I am sure it happens where you live, but it's probably just as common with any other pickup.

I have only seen one Super Duty that was junked for mechanical reasons. It had nearly 400K miles on it and was a 5.4L regular cab XL. The engine was completely covered in oil, so it had some sort of major oil loss catastrophe that put it in the yard. The exterior and interior were both trashed all over, and the bed was pretty mangled and had a large steel rack in it, so it had been some kind of work truck. Not that many vehicles can take that kind of a beating for 400K miles, and I'd bet whatever caused the oil loss was preventable.

GM trucks are good too, but they have their own set of potential issues. I have seen a rotted '99-'02, and many need knock sensors and/or IM gaskets. Piston slap is well documented with their engines as well. Things like door handles and tailgate handles seem to fall apart on GM trucks too. It can happen with Fords, but there's a reason every parts store has GMT800 door/tailgate handles on the shelf.



I can get you a picture of my Dad's 2001. Wheel well rotted through on the right side, bottom of the passenger door rotted off and there is a hole in the floor of the bed.

I like Ford products, but they seem to rust way worse than anything out there.

 

[cchase]

I have to chuckle at the concept of Ford trucks losing their beds due to rust after Fords massive ad campaign about how much bigger their bed bolts are than the competition.

I always thought it was amusing since I've never heard of a bed bolt failing anyway, but the concept that the bed rots away and the bolt is worthless at that point is too much.