My buddy did the cam phaser phase out on his 5.4... It wasn't TOO expensive and his truck runs really good. I'd look into it, bud...

Sounds like the CMCV on the back of the intake to me, or possibly plugs. That's what the problem was with mine.

4/16 - You're running synthetic in a 14 year old truck? Unless your mileage is under 80k I wouldn't recommend synthetic. If your mileage is over 120k (or 140 or whatever they suggest these days) I'd go to high mileage oil.
5/16 - Did you reset the computer so it can relearn how to run the truck with the fixed VCT?
9/16 - Have you had a code reader put on it? If not, any of the parts houses will do it for free. I'd do several reads from a couple different parts houses just to keep everybody honest.

Well, on 5/29 it will be 11 years since I bought my truck new 2007 F150 Lariat 4x4 with tow package and she is still going strong with 205K miles! I have stuck with Motorcraft oil 5W-20 since new and changed oil roughly 5-7K miles, i have changed the spark plugs 3 times, original ones were a pita to remove I broke 3 of them during removal. Flushed trans once at 100K miles and replaced drivers side cat at 120K miles. Been running power hungry tune since 20K miles with air-aid cold air intake. It goes thru about 1 quart of oil every 5K miles and has been lifted on 35" for the past 50K miles. No phaser tick so far. Only issues I have is my sunroof does not close with button only opens. Other than that its been great for me.

great
 

Well after 14 years and 210,000 miles, my 04 FX-4 gave it's one final act and saved my life. During a trip to GA I hydroplaned and hit a guard rail which launched me in the air. Obviously F150's weren't meant to fly and I rolled 2 and a half times ending up on my top. My injuries were minor and I'm recovered now but my truck not so much. I'm dropping a couple picts here so you can see what happens in a roll over in one of these trucks. I replaced it with a new 2018 FX-4.
Before
https://i187.photobucket.com/albums/...720_122329.jpg

After
https://i187.photobucket.com/albums/...79490048_n.jpg

https://i187.photobucket.com/albums/...18616576_n.jpg

Replacement
https://i187.photobucket.com/albums/...826_102930.jpg

Thanks. I really had planned on keeping that thing for longer, but I guess it was time to go. It hit a deer about 10 years ago and tore the front up pretty good then in 2015 a BMW came flying through my yard and landed on the bed and rolled off. The truck kept the car out of my house. I was able to recover it each time, but not this one. I can't say enough about the structure of it how the roof held its shape over the seats.

Going strong
 

It seems like the trucks that last the longest, with the highest number of miles & engine hours, are stock. No go fast mods under the hood. No lift kits. No aftermarket wheels & tires. No computer tuning.

Commercial trucks. Trucks that drive over 50,000 miles a year. Trucks that start in the morning & the engine stays on all day. Not that these commercial vehicles operate like that for 15 years. But a 5 year old commercial truck can have 250,000 miles. I drive my company truck over 200 miles a day. 50K- 60K miles annually. We trade them out every 5 years, with approximately 250,000 miles. Body will usually show signs of commercial wear & tear. Driver's seat is torn up & passenger seat is pristine. Stock AM radio. Fleet maintenance ensures that oil was changed every 5K, or about once a month. Paper air filter & fuel filter every 3 months. With those kinds of miles, the transmission fluid was flushed annually. Rear differential gear oil annually. Tune up parts like spark plugs, wires, coils, while the truck is in the sop for the transmission flush & gear oil change. OEM spec brakes as needed. OEM spec tires as needed. Suspension wear items like shocks as needed. Thermostats, belts, hoses, water pumps, starters, alternators, batteries, power steering pumps......all wear items as needed. Seldom, do we see major catastrophic repair.

I sometimes wonder what happens to those trucks, and what the next owner gets it into. My own truck is 12 years old. I can't afford a new truck every 5 years. At 86,XXX miles, I wonder if I can go up to 250,000 miles.

My Explorer, which I bought used with 100,000 miles, went all over the country on multiple road trips. The odometer froze at around 300,000 miles. I'm guessing that it went close to 500,000 miles by the time I got rid of it. And it wasn't for mechanical failure. Sure, belts hoses, a water pump, a fuel pump, a thermostat, a starter......all wear items. Engine & transmission were good. I just couldn't justify $10,000 into fixing the body. All of the leaks when it rained, rusted out the metal from the inside. Common with sunroofs. The entire body would have to be removed from the frame and replaced. The interior was completely worn, requiring new seats, carpets, headliner, trim panels. Even the steering wheel looked like a dog chewed on it. The odometer, speedometer, & several gauges didn't work anymore. Big fun guessing how fast you're going and how much fuel is in the tank. Deluxe top of the line tape deck chewed up my favorite disco mix tape. Chip Foose did not offer to OverHaul the car. And i just couldn't keep driving a car which continued to leak for days after it stopped raining. Same way I would still have soap foam dripping on my head the day after I washed the car.

I think it just depends on how the truck is taken care of and what your willing to fix. Nothing on the truck has been very hard to work on and I've been through almost all of the various 5.4's common issues, some twice. Fortunately I am able to do my own work, and have saved a ton of money in doing so (Or this would probably have been a different comment) I've even rebuilt the transmission at 173K due to torque converter failure.

As I was forced to do work to the truck over the years, I've bolted on lots of aftermarket parts. Banks high Ram intake, shorty headers, custom exhaust, wider aftermarket wheels and tires, E-Fans, Under drive pulleys, Bilstein shocks, SCT tunes from both 5 star and MPT. The truck has 227,000 miles on it and runs strong. I even still get lots of comments from people on how nice it looks. I would go so far as to say it runs and rides as good or even better than the wife's 2010 Expedition with the 5.4 in it. Only thing I wish it had was a 6 speed trans and manual shift mode. I tow a 33ft 8,700 lb travel trailer with it every summer with no issues.

I certainly cant say its been a maintenance free 227K, Its now in need of some power steering lines and here recently sounds like it might be time to do the timing set for the second time. However, its been a reasonably reliable truck despite its issues and always gotten me where I needed to go. With no room in the budget for a new truck I fully anticipate going well past 300k+ before "Ol Blue" finally gets retired. Even then in a few years my son will need a vehicle to drive. I would have no hesitation passing the 04 on to him.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...5de977d905.jpg
2005 4.6L 95,000 miles replaced 3rd ignition coil, 2 in the last few months. front end feels shot, time for repair.

One of my neighbors has a lawn service. He bought a new 04 Supercab with the 5.4 and it now has over 140,000 miles on it and the engine still sounds good. He is always towing a trailer with his equipment and yard debris which he said could weigh up to a combined 15,000 lbs according to the scales at the landfill. He says he uses 5w40 synthetic oil in it.

Just over 150k on my truck now. Just had about 4k in repairs including phasers, chain, tensioners, transmission line replaced, power steering pump replaced, rear axle seals (i think) and brakes.
Thing feels like a brand new truck.
Oil pressure was spot on and compression was great.
Daily driven to shop 12 minutes away and occasionally 2 hour trips to farther jobs. Tow boat, camper, on vacations.
I am second owner.
Always motorcraft filter and up until this year mobil 1 oil. Now i started switching to blended stuff.
Been a long time since i was on here but this is a good check in!

Have had to replace my fuel level sensor, my cams on my Rize 8” lift, and my Toyo open country 37.13.5R20s due to dry rot. This all being done over the last few years. Have had the truck since 2010 and the tires have been on it since 2009.

No more 2004
 

My 2004 5.4L V8 had 176,000 on it when I decided to get a new one. The A/C was not cold anymore and I had @ $1,000 of troubles in the first 3 months of 2019. I didn’t know what was next to fix and I had some down payment money for a new one. I loved my 04 and that prompted me to look towards another F150. I did research for 3-4 months on the new 2.7L and 3.5L V6 twin turbos. I haul kids to school, tow a smoker and get an occasional load from the home improvement stores so I don’t do much. After my research, test driving, car lot pursuing I decided on a 2019 2.7L XL w/ STX package eco boost. I’ve had it for 2 weeks and couldn’t be happier. The F150 is the most practical, well designed truck out there. I’m happy to say i’ll get to stay on the F150 forum but will have to head to a different thread. If you have the truck knowledge to keep your 04s running go for it. I have the maintenance knowledge of a broom when it comes to vehicles. I’m getting 21.5mpg through back roads to work. I have yet to tow my smoker but shouldn’t have a problem as it is only 1,800 pounds. This isn’t the best picture of my new one
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...c097cef8f.jpeg
but I snapped a quick one for my brother-in-law when I got it home. Here is my last picture of my 04 too.
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...ec29fac90.jpeg

Bought my FX4 new in 2005. I haven't had to spend a lot on it. Replacing the plugs and upgrading shocks/struts has been the most expensive thing I've done. I only have a little over 100k miles on it currently.
I will say my AC never has worked right. Will not cool unless the truck gets moving. Had both driver and passenger window regulators die. Sunroof parts failed due to UV wreaking havoc on the plastic parts. I've got the replacement parts for the sunroof, but to properly get at everything you have to pull the headliner and I just don't want to mess with that. I can't say I would buy a new one simply because the prices are insane. I think to get something similarly equipped to what I have it's around 1.5 times more than what I paid.

My 2004 FX4 was the slowest ripening lemon, so it didn't hold up well at all. Had 11 miles on it from the lot. I spent all the money to fix it as it broke, and now it is tight. Bought May 2004. Will not be buying a Ford again however.

April 2007- 35.9K Had rear end rebuilt. Dealer kept the truck for a week. Felt like the truck was in 4 wheel drive all the time while turning on pavement. LS failed. (Note: This is the ONLY repair under crappy warranty.
Sept. 2010-77.6K Transmission failed. Not sure how ford can explain this after doing 30&60K fluid changes. (Note: Tranny failed while tech was road testing after an alignment after new lower ball joints installed. Never towed ANYTHING with my truck. NOT.ONE.THING. THIS is the point I should have TOWED this thing over to Toyota and got into something new.
Aug.2014- 107.1K Engine failed. Being I made a bad decision when the tranny went, why not another bad decision and throw a reman long block at it. (Note: I knew it was a matter of time due to the notorious cam phaser ticking. After E-searching the success vs failure of the timing repair plus the spark plug issue I opted for letting it fail.

Along the way I've replaced numerous window regulators. The window just falls into the door while driving. Lovely.
I also did the shift cable before engine failure. Thing wouldn't shift into gear.
Since I'm ALL IN on this lemon, I fixed the IWE's, solenoid, front wheel bearings, gas tank door, sway bar bushings(urethane) and new end links.
Had the oil filter adapter fail while on vacation in Montana. I know those idiots re-used the factory piece on my reman install. They repaired a minor leak on this part under warranty shortly after reman install.
I just did the 3rd set of lower ball joints, and at the time did the uppers for the 1st time along with inner and outer tie rods. New KYB loaded struts with leveling along with rear bilsteins.
Had passenger side e-brake friction material come apart and cause all manner clicking and clanking and squealing. Replaced drive shaft when I realized the u-joints were staked in chasing this squeak and squeal and clank. New e-brake shoes and rear service pads at the time of this solved this drivetrain nightmare of noise.

Got to give this thing some credit here now, I was on vacation in Minnesota and got caught in a blizzard and had an accident on I-94 outside of Fergus Falls. Went across the median after losing the rear traction and hit the backside of a barrier post square on the front bumper. LOL thank heavens the 4 wheel drive worked because I drove away at a slow speed, stopped, inspected the damage, and continued to drive with a v shaped bumper for a little over a year. This is the only wreck this truck was in and the only damage was the bumper with a small tear in the plastic above the bumper. Came close to the tranny oil cooler but it made it. No airbag deployed thank the Lord or I would have been screwed out of state hundreds of miles from home. Had all that repaired at a body shop and put in new head and fog lights at the time. This wreck was LONG AFTER all the hard part failures I've experienced, late 2017, body shop repairs late 2018.

I just went through all the coils chasing a small rough idle. I was surprised that the boots and springs were in great shape, as I was convinced the idiots installing the reman reused my factory stuff. Had a little green crust on a couple of the coil blades. Cleaned every coil blade with foam battery cleaner, put some electric grease on each one. Cleaned the throttle body, it needed it. Sprayed MAF sensor with MAF cleaner. Engine runs well save for the noisy ass fuel injectors, which to a layman it sounds terrible.

All in all now the truck is tight, everything works, handles great with new front suspension parts

I bought my 2007 Super Crew Lariat 4x4 in 2015 with 112,000 miles on it. At 140k I did the phasers, timing chain, plugs and new coils. It runs great wiht no problems, I call it the Jolly green Giant. I really love this truck!

04 4.6 single cab mine has 175,000 miles it has had the transmission rebuilt once and had to pull it again for a busted sun gear. Had to replace the front hubs and CAD's due to bad vacuum check valves. the bed supports are rusted out, the other day I found a small hole starting to rust in the frame Steering shaft replaced, shift cable burnt into due to tight clearance against header. one Bolt fell out of the Ring gear in the rear differential putting a hole in the diff cover found 4 others backing out but hadn't fell out yet. The front coil springs broke at the bottom, fuel pump driver module burnt up leaving me stranded. Starter and alternator have been replaced, Engine uses about 1 quart every 5k miles was up to 3 quarts but after changing PCV valve it went back to its usual 1 quart usage. I have had 3 spark plugs blow out of the head. instrument cluster has a short causing the park brake light to illuminate. I have has this truck since 2007 with 18,000 miles on it

04 fx4
 

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...a2ecb347a.jpeg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...356159d35.jpeg

2004 F150 ​​​​​​​Has less power than my 90hp VW diesel!
 

2004 F150 = Fix-Or-Repair-Daily

The worst vehicle I've ever owned -
But the FX4 has so many cool features! Too bad I like it so much or I'd do the smart thing and unload it on some other idiot but I guess I'm going to replace the timing chain & oil pump to hopefully make it run right...

I just traded my '06 for an 2018 STX 4x4 with the 2.7 ecoboost the other night.

My 04 STX still goes down the road, has 110k miles on it. I had the transmission go out on it last year though and ever since i've had problems with it. Before then I hadn't had any major issues.

I do have some sensor problems though the e-brake light comes on and off on the dash depending on the temp outside, it's off of course but the light comes on anyway. And i somedays have a passenger airbag warning light on too. The gas cap door is lose now the ribber bit that held that closed has broken with age and the gas cap itself is no longer physically connected to the truck, that plastic hanger bit that held it there when filling up is busted. So... a few little things here and there but nothing major, at least not until the tranny went out.

I'm eyeing a 2021 Ranger at the moment, i think it's time to say goodbye to this ol'truck. It's served me well, can't complain.

I'm actually waiting for the Maverick.

'04 xlt heritage 4.2 manual.
 

Not even 75k miles yet. But ac clutch just magically disappeared after my ac electrical got fried when jumping someone else's vehicle. Have hauled Way more than supposed to with this light truck, no brake controller, haul my 2005 Thor travel trailer (not on bumper ball) over 5500 pounds, with only issue being "pushed" as I crest hills. Hit 90 plus with fully loaded 6.5' bed, had to make sudden aggressive lane shifts and barely got a squeal from tires. Got a bit of a disappearing engine oil truck going on right now, assuming it's hitting the exhaust and going"poof".
for a free vehicle(not really, I had to put up with a 65 year old alcoholic who thought it would be awesome to adopt an African American 1 year old ((and what state agency thought it would be a great idea too???)) California!!!
Lost my train of thought... Laters

'04 xlt heritage 4.2 manual.
 

Not even 75k miles yet. But ac clutch just magically disappeared after my ac electrical got fried when jumping someone else's vehicle. Have hauled Way more than supposed to with this light truck, no brake controller, haul my 2005 Thor travel trailer (not on bumper ball) over 5500 pounds, with only issue being "pushed" as I crest hills. Hit 90 plus with fully loaded 6.5' bed, had to make sudden aggressive lane shifts and barely got a squeal from tires. Got a bit of a disappearing engine oil trick going on right now, assuming it's hitting the exhaust and going"poof".
for a free vehicle(not really, I had to put up with a 65 year old alcoholic who thought it would be awesome to adopt an African American 1 year old ((and what state agency thought it would be a great idea too???)) California!!!
Lost my train of thought... Laters

I've owned my 04 3 years. I must say, I wasn't aware of all the issues that plague some 04 trucks. I had heard stories about the 3 valve engine's cam phasers and the ridiculous spark plug design. My truck had 186k miles on it and a lit check engine light when I bought it. Truck had spent its life within 75 miles of where it was purchased, so no rust issues. The paint looked good, minus some fine scratches, no accidents or signs of repairs, and a clean interior, so I bought it. CEL was the knock sensor wires that had been chewed into by mice. Engine had the original phasers, and they would knock at hot idle. I weighed the idea of doing a timing job and upgraded oil pump versus replacing the engine with a new one. Drove it 10k miles, decided on a new engine from Powertrain, while the engine was out I had the transmission refreshed. I've upgraded the shocks and struts changed the wheels, and lowered it. The OEM paint quality on this truck is amazing. I clayed it, did a two step polish and waxed it. I like my truck and I really like not having a truck payment.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...f9dc382be9.jpg

04' f150
 

Update on my 04' She's still going strong at just under 300K miles. Getting ready to do some much needed PM's. She's getting a Melling high flow oil pump. New timing set while I'm in there, New roller followers and lash adjusters, New power steering pump and hoses, spark plugs, and all the Idler pulleys. She still pulls our 8500# travel trailer up the mountains without too much protest. All in all she has had her problems but been a solid truck. I fully expect I will see 500K out of her.

Lost reverse at 220,000 miles. Paid 5500 to rebuild trans,engine, and timing with Ford parts. Upgraded oil pump with melling. Motor was still good but wanted to rebuild it since trucks are too expensive now. Before that only had to change the normal stuff oil, brake pads, battery, plugs.

Love your truck buddy. I've seen you post in the 11th gen FB group. Had my truck for almost 14 years. Long journey modding mine over the years, and I've been toying with painting mine your color combo. Actually had saved a picture of your truck haha. Eventually be adding a fog bumper, cowl hood and some other items to get it where I have enivisioned it over the years. These trucks don't need much to look classy imo. Lots of HD parts on mine.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...6458c9a38e.jpg

nice grill, is that a Harley grill

Thanks, yes it is

getting ready to pull the engine for the first time
 

i have had my 04 for about 13 years now. it is not my daily driver and overall i've only put about 41k on it in all that time. it has 134k now. i've been real happy with the truck though and the only time it let me down was when it spit the #2 plug. (4.6 engine)

ever since i bought it though, it's always had a persistant oil leak up near the valve cover or the front cover on the passenger side right near the a/c compressor. i tried to fix it a couple of years after i bought the truck by doing the front cover, oil pan, and vc gaskets, but the leak returned. meantime i just lived with it. but the last couple of years i have pulled the engines out of my mustangs for the first time, and have learned alot, so now i am going to try it on this truck. looking forward to it!

goal is to all gaskets (including head gaskets), upgrade all spark plug threads, and of course clean it all up. truck doesn't burn any oil or water and runs great, so i doubt if i will do valve stem seals or anything else, but we'll see how it all looks. cheers -

Need Help ASAP
 

Yesterday truck kept dying on me while driving. Long story short, have to remove the intake manifold and replace the runner valve on the back. Got everything out runner replaced but here's MY issue. I don't know where this coupler came from. I literally found it in a bunch of wet rags that I using to sop up the antifreeze on the passenger side where a heater hose was plugged into. Now I know it will fit in metal portion that the hose was plugged into, but I believe that any pressure would move the part/coupler up in the hose. I noticed that there are some marks around the edge so that tells me its attached to something that's clamped onto it. Can someone PLEASE help me with this one? 04 F150 5.4 3V.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.f15...70e443ef97.jpg
some type of coupler

Never mind, figured it out. Spacer on the front of the intake for a bolt.