2003 with the V6. Largest repair money was the Rear main seal. I ain't complaining with that being the only significant work done to it in 3+ years and 33,000 miles. 169,000+ and still going strong. And just for the heck of it, here is mine...

 

Real nice SCREW! Gives me ideas!

 

COPS & plug change real important around 100k miles. 2 valve engines, 4.6 & 5.4 will blow plugs out of cylinders! This requires nut-serts, not coil inserts, to be installed. Over drive pack in auto trans may wear out around 100 - 120k miles. I had 3 plugs blow out when they were changed @ the 100k mile recommended maintenance interval. Had to remove heads take to head shop, have nut-serts put in all cylinders, replace water pump, timing belt, chains etc., good time to do with heads off, didn't have a problem, preventative maintenance. I had my trans rebuilt when over drive pack quit.
131k on it now. Purchased new. Luv my SCREW! I would have an extended cab now if given the choice because of the longer bed. Search AUTOTRADER, CARS.COM etc. for low mileage deals, they are there!
4.6 4x4 is a slouch! 5.4 4x4 is BAD! Lariets are loaded wi. th options. XLTs are next down. XLs are basic. An XL low mileage, all power windows etc. good project truck in ext. cab. Buy cheap & customize on budget!

 

Well my last one was great, hope this new one is just as good. Would have bought a Screw, if the dealer would have held it.

 

Timeserts work very well without pulling the heads.

Torquing the plugs to 28 ft/lb without antiseize prevents blowout. The reason yours probably blew out after the change is whoever changed them used antiseize and followed the factory torque spec.

 

255,000 miles on my 97. Owned since 2001 when it had 65,000 miles on it.

Just put on it's 4th set of new tires. Original cops, O2's, ball joints, bearings, trans, engine. Have had to replace the battery a couple of times so far, alternator, starter, rear axle seal, IAC. I've changed the plugs twice myself and no blowouts.

Been towing a #5000 TT with it since 2002 and looking forward to another camping season.

Good luck with whatever you end up with!

Mitch

 

Good solid trucks. 03 should have the updated heads with 8 threads. And both my trucks are recall free since they rolled out of the factory.

 

Only the very late ones. I even know someone with a very early 04 4.6 NBS that came with 4 threads.

 

As already stated the spark plugs are not a problem if they are torqued properly.
My factory manual states torque the plugs to 8 ft lbs, no where near enough. 28 ft lbs is the correct number.

 

Speaking of recalls, you need to see if the cruise control recall has been done.

 

Thank you!

 

my red truck is earlier-mid 03. And Fiddy (silver) is later 03. both are Windsor, both have 8 thread heads.

Both don't have CC recall needed because they have updated harness from the factory

 

Right, my 03 wasn't recalled either - but there's no harness, it has the updated switch.

There definitely was an overlap in 03 which engines got which heads. You have to go by casting numbers or actually look down the holes.

 

I have a 1999 V6 4.2 with 209,000 miles on it. I bought the truck new with 6 miles on the clock. I have had two vacuum leaks. 1 cam sensor go out. Replaced the wheel bearing at 200,000 miles. Rear abs sensor and the transmission starting to slip at 180,000 miles. I was able to fix it myself because of the info here. The tranny I had it done. Some lady crashed into me last year and the truck was totaled out because of the repair bill cost. I bought it back and had it repainted and new wheels for $1600. The insurance company gave me $4800 for it. The reasons I kept it is because I didn't want a new truck payment and I trust my little v6 so much and the tranny was just rebuilt. Just a plain good motor. I LOVE MY OLE TRUCK. It still look good runs good and still gets 17 mpg on the highway. If you try to find a low mileage truck in cali thats going to be a little hard. everyone has to drive her. Look in Arizona you will find lower mileage and cheaper priced truck. It should be worth the drive for the savings.

 

I guess that's a concern, but that depends on what you plan on driving head-on into as well.

I'm not going to cringe at taking on most anything short of a Super Duty or semi. Consider what I can find on the barrier weight for that test, that tips in at about 5500 lbs. Most vehicles don't weigh near that much.

Jeeps are getting recalled now because they get hit from behind and spontaneously combust.

YOLO?