Ive been told by a few people that you do not want to travel in a 4x4. Well not really travel but go back and forth to school (40-50 miles) a day. My dad tells me itll be really bad on gas plus it will break down all the time. Is this true? The truck im looking at is a late 80's f150. It has mid size mud grip tires on it most likely has a 302. I was looking at this truck becouse i have an old spare 302 engine from a station wagon. And also other misc parts.

would a 88 ltd 5.0 engine fit in a late 80's ford truck? There is nothing wrong with the truck or the engine just in a worse case senario. If the motor was to blow. I would have a spare. Also back to the comuter part. Would a 4x4 be unreliable for a truck to go back and forth to school in.

right now i have a dodge 87 d150 with a 318. my dad swears up and down that the dodge is such a better truck and itll get better gas milage. The guy selling the ford also has a old 86-87 dodge d150 long wheel base with a edel brock carb for sale. he wants 500 for it but it needs tires and a little work. Engine ran fine when parked. I could buy that one and use my other dodge for parts. The ford on the other hand he wants 1700.00 for it. Or 1000 without the tires and rims. So what should i go far. A 4x4 ford with 302 with mid size mud grips. or a dodge 318 long wheel base with street tires.

also the ford has dual stacks. Instead of regular exhuast. stacks kinda like a 18 wheeler. also its a 4 speed lol

 

its not that the 4x4 will break down in a daily commute, its just that depending on what kind of shape its it, there's more parts to brek than a 4x2. also, because of added weight and mass, it will get worse gas mileage. between the edodge and the ford, assuming theyre both in similar shape, id get the ford (i gotta see a pic of thata one with stacks ), but if the dodge is in much better shape then id go with that. just my opoinion, good luck!

 

It's not more likely to break down because it's a 4x4, when your driving back and forth it's in 2wd so that stuff isn't even moving. Besides if you break a u-joint or something in the rear drive shaft you can always put it in 4x4 and drive it home with front wheel drive. It will get slightly worse gas milage because it's a 4x4 and it's heavier. Whether or not it's reliable all has to do with what kind of work has been done to it and if it's been taken care of or not. I don't know of any truck for under $2,000 that i would want to drive long distances with but hopefully just the body is in bad shape and everything underneath runs good. I used to drive about 150 miles roundtrip to college everyday of the week. I have a little 2wd Dakota that i would drive back and forth most of the time but i drove my lifted F-150 a few times with no problems. It was sort of uncomfortable cruising down the highway with 35" super swampers but i survived.

-Jon

 

The truck in my signature is my only vehicle so it's my all purpse truck. I commute during the summer to work (30 miles each way) and I do tons of in-town, stop and go driving on a daily basis. I also use it for my road trips and to go wheeling (although I hardly have time anymore for the fun stuff). As you can see, it has a 4" lift and 35" mud tires, it's a '90 (but for all intents and purposes it's the same as the 87-89 models) with the 302 engine. The only time my truck has ever broken on me is when I've abused it too much. The times where I've had to get a rebuild and had to get a cylinder head replaced (luckily my engine was still under warranty) were when I've floored it for extended periods of time on the freeway (and not just once or twice either). I drive my truck pretty hard and I expect a lot out of it. So far, it's been good to me and I would never trade my Ford in for anything else. I might be biased, but I would never choose a Dodge over a Ford, and if taken care of, the 302 should be a very reliable engine. The only problem is, there's no telling what it's gone through over the last 15 years. When you start getting that old, it's a tough call to make and it's a good idea to start planning on engine/tranny rebuilds if they haven't been done recently. Just my .02.

 

tf what kind gas milage do you get?

 

I admittedly don't get the greatest gas mileage. With my tires and gear ratio, and with my performance mods. and heavy right foot, I get about 12 mpg on the freeway, about 10 around town. But before some of my performance mods. (especially the intake manifold) and the lift, I got about 12-14 mpg. But it all goes with the territory of having a lifted V8.

 

Dodge??? Dodge Trucks are by far worse than Ford. I own an '88 F150 4x4, it's not that bad(for 1988 Ford F150's) on gas. My Dad(may he rest in peace) owned it before me and never had a problem with it, it never broke down. The 4x4 will only use up gas when it's engaged(hubs locked and selector in H4 or L4) other than that it doesn't use anymore gas than a 2WD F150. From www.fueleconomy.gov

Annual Cost for fuel(regular unleaded)
Ford 4x4 F150 5spd manual 6cyl 4.9L
$1368

Ford 2WD F150 5spd Manual 6cyl 4.9L
$1368

Dodge D150 2WD 5spd Manual 6cyl 3.9L
$1453

and just for comparison
GM K1500 4x4 5spd Manual 6cyl 4.3L
$1292

Driving a Ford would save you about 85 bucks a year. I hate to say it but a GM K1500 would save you about $161 a year, instead of the, ugggh, Dodge. Although the GM's aren't as reliable as the Fords.