High-Mileage Preventative Maintenance Helps F-150 Go the Distance

By Brett Foote - September 20, 2017

When your truck’s odometer rolls into six figures, here are some things you’ll want to consider.

While some of us are lucky enough to get a new truck every couple of years, others, well, aren’t so lucky. For most, keeping a truck well past the 100,000 mile mark is a necessity. Which, by the way, modern trucks are well equipped to handle. That doesn’t mean you can skip out on maintenance, of course. But with proper high mileage preventative maintenance, a modern F-150 will run for a very long time.

The problem is, many manufacturer maintenance manuals rarely go past 100k. So if you want a definitive list of what should be done on your high mileage truck, you have to look elsewhere. Thankfully, that’s exactly what resources like the F-150 Online forums are for. And this thread, started by member Vroom Vroom, contains some very valuable info on the matter.

The OP starts out with a basic request, along with a list of the things he’s already done.

“Wondering if I’m missing any know issues I should jump on with this truck. Has 150k on it but runs good and I got it for 2k so it’s pretty much the dedicated camping truck.

’04 screw 2wd 5.4
So far I have replaced:
Oil
Coolant
Oil filter housing & gasket
Rancho shocks
Sway bar links & bushings
New trail D.C. Trail country’s
New rotors and pads
Brake fluid
Power steering fluid
Battery

Still need to order in more Scheaffer’s diff fluid and trans fluid, then all the fluids will have been changed.”

Member glc quickly chimes in with some basics – “Spark plugs and possibly coils. Fuel and air filters.” But Labnerd has some useful suggestions to fix common cosmetic issues with this generation of F-150. Like those darn cowls that seem to almost immediately fade in the sun.

“FWIW, Krylon makes a black paint for plastic. It comes in gloss, satin or flat. It’s great for painting the bed rails black again. No need to take them off, just tape, mask, and spray. The cowl most likely has also turned white. I removed mine and painted it. If the very ends are missing, you can buy them off of eBay for about 20 bucks. I even painted the wiper arms. I used satin on mine. Looked right when done. One can goes a long way and covers quick. Only one coat required. Pretty tough finish as the tailgate rail got lots of junk dragged over it.”

And of course, he has some handy suggestions regarding the mechanicals as well.

“FWIW, mine was sitting down in the front and it looks like yours is too. I replaced the springs and struts along with the sway bar bushings. I used the Monroe Lifetime units. The spring rate is higher than factory. It made the truck sit level but it was a little firmer ride. I liked it. I thought the truck handled a lot better.

Mine did not have a rear sway bar. The 2014 I have didn’t either. Best money I ever spent on the 2014 was a Hellwig Sway Bar. Completely changed how the truck handles wet and dry conditions. Might consider one if there isn’t one on your truck.
2004 F-150 Supercrew 4.6″

All of which is very useful information. But we’d like to hear what you suggest for making a well-worn F-150 future proof. So, head on over here and chime in with your thoughts! The OP, along with a lot of other folks, would certainly appreciate the help!