Hey everyone, new member here.

I purchased a 2004 F150 FX4 in Vermillion Red about a month ago. First time owning a truck. Mostly had SUVs, coupe and sedans.

Anyways, I plan on doing a lot of things with the truck so I thought I'd create a thread and post all my updates on here.

Specs:

2004 F150 FX4 5.4L V8
Had 315,280 km (197,050 miles) on it when I got it. Almost at 318,000km now.

Work completed by previous owner:
- New Front shocks
- New Serpentine Belt
- New Alternator
- New Battery
- New Air Filter
- New U-Joints
- New Windshield.

I paid $1000.00 for the truck so I thought it was a pretty decent deal.

Issues with the truck:
- Body rust
- Front metal bumper dented
- Center console does not close
- Driver's seat is torn and has a hole in it
- Cam Phaser issue (Diesel noise).
- Crossmember dented.
- No reverse lamp

Upcoming To-Dos for the truck:

1. Rust hole repair + paint.
2. Cam-phasers including timing chain tensioner, etc.
3. Transfer case Swap
4. Transmission cooler upgrade install
5. Throttle Body Cleaning
6. Passenger-side Window Regulator + Motor Replacement
7. Driver-side window switch replacement

Other non-priority things to take care of:
- Fix botched remote-starter job.
- Leather seat swap.
- Front bumper.
- Rear bumper.
- B-pillar replacement.

To-Dos Completed:
- Interior detail (This Saturday/Sunday). *Completed*
- Front + Rear Differential + Transfer Case Fluid Swap *Completed*
- Does not go backwards. (Acts like it's in neutral). *Completed*
- Transmission Full Rebuild with Kevlar and Steel replacements *Completed*
- New Transmission Fluid *Completed*
- Transmission R&R. *Completed*
- LED Turn Signals with hyper-blinking fixed. *Completed*
- HID Bi-Xenon Lights (With projectors. The oem reflectors blind everyone and I hate drivers with reflector HIDs installed). *Completed*
- Driver's Window does not go up or down. *Completed*
- Replace cracked passenger-side tail light *Completed*
- Install Tonneau cover *Completed*
- Interior dome bulb replacement *Completed*
- Reverse bulb replacement *Completed*
- FX4 to Lariat Grille Swap *Completed*
- Fix stuck O/D Off Button *Completed*
- Fix Cruise Control (PRND bulb swap) *Completed*
- Front Turn Signal LED Bulb Swap to Switchbacks *Completed July 22, 2015*
- Wheel alignment *Completed July 23, 2015*
- New Key Cut *Completed July 23, 2015*
- Cold Air Intake Install *Completed July 24, 2015*
- Spark Plug Replacement including new spark plug boots *Completed July 28, 2015*
- Fuel Filter Replacement *Completed July 28, 2015*
- Replace sidemarker bulb to LEDs *Completed July 28, 2015*
- Driver's Side licence plate socket repair *Completed July 30, 2015*
- Cam Phaser Sensor and Wiring Harness Replacement *Completed July 30, 2015*
- DRL Turn-signal swap (Low-Beam to Turn Signal) *Completed August 11, 2015*
- Cracked Headlight Lens Swap & Restore *Completed August 11, 2015*
- WeatherTech Floor Mat Install *Completed August 18, 2015*
- Bedliner Install Completed August 23, 2015*


How it looked on the For Sale Ad



How it currently looks

 

Hello and welcome. Congrats on the purchase for such a low price. Should be a decent little project rig.

 

Original pictures of the truck from ad:

 

Came with SiriusXM installed but all wires were cut when I purchased it so it's mainly there for decorative purposes now.

 

The driver-side licence plate bulb holder was busted so I replaced it.

 

Replaced rear differential, front differential and transfer case fluids.

The rear differential used to leak and after re-sealing it, no more leaks!

Dropped the pan from the rear differential:



Pictures of the rear differential:














Levelled the surface:






New sealant and reinstalled:

 

Picture of transfer case. It stays sealed. The left bolt is for drain and the right for fill. Very easy to do.




Front differential pan removed, levelled and sealed:





Pictures of front differential exposed:









All the fluids required for the job:

 

The front lower bumper looked really awful so I grabbed a $10 spraycan of the rubber liner stuff and coated it. I'll be putting in a new front bumper in the next couple of months so this is only temporary (Also the reason why I didn't bother sanding anything down).

And unfortunately, no before pictures.

 

The driver's side window didn't go up and down when I purchased it.
The previous owner tried using duct tape to hold it up (will have to remove it sometime).




Purchased a set of brand new regulator w/ motor from RockAuto for about $109 shipped. I originally purchased a cheaper set for $78 but turns out that the Regular Cab and Super Crew uses the same regulator for the front doors and the Supercab regulator is a different size!

(Reg/SuperCrew regulator pictured. Forgot to take pictures of my Supercab regulator)



Some pictures of door disassembly:

 

Video of the new regulator and motor in action. It sounds loud but that is due to the fact that interior door cover is not on. It's much quieter once it's installed.

 

Installed an aftermarket Aux input to the truck (even though the truck came preloaded with 1 gangster rap cd lol, I prefer using my iPhone).

I purchased these parts from OEMAUTOSOUND:
Aux Module
3.5mm Aux Input Jack

Picture of the module:




Pictures of removal below:

Trim Piece:



HVAC Controls removed:



Radio removed:




I decided to mount it on the top to give it an oem look (2008+ models)

Picture of the top dash piece removed:



Drilled a hole into the dash piece:




How it all looks:




I had to solder 2 lines into the 12V outlet but besides that, it's a very simple DYI.

 

So far, I think I'm making decent progress on the truck. I've had it for just a little over a month now.

Upcoming To-Dos for the truck:

1. Interior detail (This Saturday/Sunday).
2. Spark plug replacement including spark plug boot replacement.
3. Transmission Full Rebuild with Kevlar and Steel replacements w/ new transmission cooler.
4. Transmission R&R.
5. LED Turn Signals with hyper-fixed.
6. DRL Turn-signal swap.
7. HID Bi-Xenon Lights (With projectors. The oem reflectors blind everyone and I hate drivers with reflector HIDs installed).
8. Rust hole repair + paint.
9. Cam-phasers including timing chain tensioner, etc.
10. Cold Air Intake (Already have parts but I'll be holding off until my air-filters are completely used).

 

Purchased a tonneau cover used for $50.00 (According to a local tonneau cover shop, it's a $1300.00 tonneau cover from Undercover. Thought it was a great deal until I had to buy all the mounting hardware ($175.62).

Pictures of tonneau cover installed:

Sideview:



Rear view:



Struts and mounting hardware installed (Got a carwash afterwards. Had the used transmission inside and had fluid leaking everywhere and used cat litter (Never again. Purchased an absorbent.)

 

Damn, some people just abuse the hell out of their vehicles. Mine's an 04 FX4 also, with 170k miles on it, and doesn't look half as bad as that one did. Good work fixing it up though, you can already see new life being brought to it!

 

buy a cheap bed liner, makes everything look new back there!