The big deal is alot of people like me buy used trucks and little things like this can turn into a nightmare for the guy that does't take or can't afford to take his truck to the dealer. To have a independent shop repair this might get a little costly. Unless they have the extractor or have dealt with this before. By the way does any body know how many miles you can get out of a 5.4L. My 2000 F150 has 227k. I would like to know what max life is on the engine?

 

It's all good. I was fine with his post even when he criticized Ford quality. When he mentioned the Tundra the gloves hit the floor.

 

My '04 has 58,000 miles. I have had two minor problems... 1. I have a parking brake that sticks and causes a vibration. The Ford dealer couldn't figure it out while under warranty so I fixed it by not using the parking brake anymore. 2. The third brake light has started to leak on two occasions....both times I have removed the light, repositioned the seal and put the light back on, fixing that problem. I haven't had to replace brakes or tires yet. I am thinking about replacing the shocks with some Billstien shocks as the truck is starting to ride a little bit rougher than when I bought it. I have about three more years before I hit 100K and I will trade before then so I am not concerned about spark plugs.

 

Good point. Taking it to the dealer would become far more costly then a good, reputable independant shop, in most cases though. Either way, doing it yourself, or having someone else do it, it can become a PITA. Either costing you lots of money, or costing you plenty of time, sweat and tears.

As for the life of the engine, that in completely relative, and a very hard question to answer. It all depends how you drive, where you drive, how well you take care of your vehicle, what you use your vehicle for, how often ?
The engine block itself can last you damn near forever. When it gets real bad, you can bore it out, making it a "larger engine" and also giving you a "new surface" to be working with. Parts can be replaced, and things can be fixed. I have customers with gas engines nearing the 500k mark here at our shop, and there is the "Million Mile Van" which is a Ford van, with the 5.4, trying or has gotten to the 1 million mile mark. Engines last longer then most people can even dream of, just depends how much money and time you have to dump into it.

 

What do you mean it "sticks" ? When you release it, it doesn't disengage all the way ?? Then that causes the vibration ? Or what ?
I would look into getting that fixed. If you ever park on a hill, or need it in a bad situation, its better to have it. Plus, takes some strain off the transmission parking brake.

For the 3rd brake light, next time it starts leaking, take it off, and put a bead of silicone around the seal. That should be the final fix. Keeps the water out.

 

I used to live on a street that was hilly and I would set the parking brake when parking on the street. The next time I would drive the truck I would get vibration that would start at around 30mph and would progressively get worse. I could feel it in the steering wheel and I could see the windshield wipers shaking. I took it to the dealer two times and they could not duplicate the vibration (the vibration would occur on the way to the dealer and then when I came to a stop it wouldn't do it again until the next time the parking brake was set). Once I realized it may be the parking brake I stopped using it and the vibration never occurred again.

I will probably have it fixed one of these days. I wish I knew how to do it myself because whenever I have the dealer look at it they can't find any problem with the parking brake releasing.

 

My 04 with 90,000 has had no problems besides from my abuse. I ground the brakes down to metal on metal doing brake stands and had to replace the rotors. The front end makes kind of a clunking noise when turning (intermittent). That appeared after abusing my truck in some rutted and semi muddy fields. The 2.5" leveling kit added to that stress. No complaints here.

 

The problems ive had with my truck: Brakes as always, drive line vibe, problems with the tires, something about the intake which caused the truck to go into safe mode, also the rear window slider, drivers window control light out, headlight switch light out, the leather front seat (drivers side looks like sh*t, passenger getting there), theres currently a squeak in the front pass side dashboard. I cant stand dealerships, Ive dealt with a couple up here in Brooklyn. I would definitely suggest do not take it to Popular Ford. Ford warranty had my truck towed there, and they would not accept it, even when Ford told them to. I had to have it towed (on Fords expense) to another dealership, whom my grandfather bought his old cars from. These dealerships just want to say they cant find the problems and charge you to fix it. Ive had problems with my 03 excursion, huge driveline vibration, and noone could give me a fix for it. Im going back to Chevy or Japanese next time around.
PS
My battery is dead, so now I have to get a new battery today.

 

obviously you haven't read on here, or you are just stirring the pot.

Go back to Chebby or Jap crap ? Are you serious ? I am sorry your dealership blows a fat one, but that doesn't mean Ford is bad. You need to find yourself a good, honest independent shop. Dealerships are all crooks, no matter which company you choose. Some are better then others, but I wouldn't, unless in a desperate situation, ever take anything into the dealership. Independents are generally more honest, don't work on commission, take pride in their work, and want you to spread a good word for them, so they bend over backwards for you.

Or better yet, quit relying on other people to fix YOUR truck. Learn about your vehicle, and fix it yourself. Then if things go wrong, all you have to blame is yourself. You get a better feeling of pride, and self accomplishment. You may also realize how hard it is to diagnose cars, and fix them to customer's standards (which are usually above the vehicle's standards).

Battery is dead... are you sure the problem is the battery ? Make sure. Dropping a new battery into a problematic charging system is going to be a waste of money and time, and force you into needing a new battery sooner. Batteries today should last roughly 5-7 years. You can buy better quality ones that last even longer. I'd suggest Interstate or Optima.

 

2004 FX4 Scab, ~37,000 miles, original owner

No real problems really. Had the rear end clunk a while back, dealer changed the drive shaft under warranty. I can still notice it a bit, but it's not as bad as it used to be.

Thought I had a window regulator going bad, but I think it was just a bad electrical connection at the push button. My window would not roll up every once in a while, so one day I just pushed on the button very hard and it's worked fine ever since.

Other then that, truck has been great. I did replace my brake pads at 20k to carquest blues, changed to a gatorback belt at 15k, replaced battery at 30k, and I had the stealership install new plugs at 30k just to be on the safe side.

 

Check this thread, complete with pictures! There is a recent TSB referring to the park brake cables causing the problem, but I'd bet this will cure your issue.

 

Wouldn't that be covered under warranty, not to mention the fact that if it was in fords hands and they screwed it up, wouldn't they have to pay?

 

This is where is gets tricky, and really comes down to the dealership. Each one will be different.

Generally, they say the plugs are good til 100k. Ford's warranty does not go that long. (3year/36k normally). Also, spark plugs are considered a normal "wear and tear" item, something not normally covered under a normal warranty (especially with Ford aware of the issue).

That being said, once you do pay for a spark-plug swap, and they break it, some shops will step up to the plate, and either give you a discount, pay for it in full, or let you down and tell you "sorry". I see customer service falling more and more to the curb side, in favor of the " i'm sorry " attitude. In this shop, if we were to break a plug off in the head, we would fix it at no additional cost to the customer. Some shops will tell you before even touching the truck, that this is a known problem, that a broken plug is a possibility, and that you, the customer will have to pay for any further work needed if this happens. Be a smart customer, ask ahead of time "what if" and see what they say. See how well they stand behind their work, and see their willingness to step up when needed. With their fancy lawyers, and small print, they are able to skirt around most things, so make sure it is clear to YOU.

As a side note, Ford has reportedly "remedied" the spark-plug problem once and for all starting with a specific build date in '06. I am not sure which month it started, but they are saying they have fixed it. I guess we will see.

 

It's not really in Ford's hands, it's in the dealer's hands. The dealership is a private enterprise that has entered a contract to sell and service Ford vehicles and while they have certain obligations, Ford does not control their retail business.

 

Ford has tons of control over the retail end. If the powers that be at Ford HQ determine that a particular dealer isn't providing adequate service to their customers Ford can pull their license to sell Ford vehicles and shut down the dealer.