I just joined the 10,000 mile club. Doubt I'll keep this long enough to see 100k. Not that I don't love my truck... I want a new one in 2010.

 

wont get a V6 then. not from ford anyway. i heard they are done with the 4.2L after this year

 

My '97 Mountaineer/Explorer has 205,000 on the 5.0L V8.

 

I have 360,000 miles on my 97 F-150 xl 4.2

 

I know. That totally sucks. I'm more bummed they wont be offering the manual transmission anymore. Auto is too boring. Maybe I'll have to jump to an F250 - although, I don't like the look as much. The bed needs to be deeper to accommodate to the cab.

 

We are in the same boat brother...

You know what I hate? When there are people out there that actually pride themselves in driving a stick, but then there are people that hate stick drivers, all because of envy.

Funny you should mention this... yesterday I drove my truck up to Canton, NY (second semi-long trip my truck has ever been on), and I pulled into a fuel station and a fellow mentioned to me about my F150online.com stickers on the back of my truck, and he told me my truck looked really good. He had a '00 F150 Scab, v6 stick, 4x4, and I told him about my '99 Scab I had with the v6 stick... and I showed him the interior of mine, and he's like, I never knew they offered stick in the new gens! I said, yea, but only in XL trim pack with regular cab 4x2. Then I told him, well, we are bummed out because the '09s just cut the 4.2l v6 and the stick entirely! He's like, really?! I'm like yep, go online and check it out.... he said it true... "Ford is knifing the F150 up to be a luxury Truck UV..." We were then talking about quality of these new trucks, and I told him about my problems. It's like they can't even build a truck right even after all of the technology that is directly put into making them.

However to make a long story short, we both agreed that we'd buy nothing but sticks. He had 168k on that '00 truck and 0 drivetrain problems so far.

 

It is all about envy. I totally agree.

Trucks are supposed to be tough. The interior of the 2009's looks just like the Ford Escape - which is FAR from tough haha.

I think they did a perfect job with the '04 - '08. I do kinda like the larger grille on the 2009's but that's it. Nothing else strikes me as looking good at all.

I really hope they'll re-introduce a manual in the future. Seems almost everyone has done away with the stick.

To be 100% honest, I took the XL 4x2 over a 4x4 just to have the stick option. The dealer offered me a new 2007 4x4 XL for only $1500 extra (would have been better for the winter) but I had my heart set on the stick.

 

I just hit 100k Tuesday afternoon.

 

I bought my truck with 104000 miles and I just 110000 miles 2 Sunday's ago. I use only Pennzoil high mileage 5W30 with the the High Mileage Fram 3600 filter. I change at or before 3000 miles. It solved the small puff of white smoke at start up. The front main seal blew out but at about 106000 miles, but was an easy fix and only cost $9 to do it your self. I've got Dunlop Radial Mud Rover 265 75 16's. Flowmaster Super 44's. Smooth! Drive it easy and I'll be easy to keep!

 

Actually, as I pulled into the garage at work this morning, I rounded 119,680 miles. Original everything on the truck except for a hubcap that was stolen a few years back. Original Owner.

UPDATE: 121,186 as of this morning 2-2-09

 

I'm the proud 2nd owner of my 2003.
We just cruised past 147,000. I'm very pleased with my truck.
All original equipment intact and functional.
A1 in my book.

 

I bought a 1998 f-150 from a friend CHEAP!.Had a light tap in the center of the engine.Drove it 30mi. home.Figured rod bearing at the worst.Or maybe wrist pin.Went out last summer to begin the engine yank,it turned over real slow then BLAM!!! Too late I realized it hydrolocked,two beautiful little square holes in the oil pan.257,821k.Now I have been told the 4.2 has inherant problems to beware of them,also that the 3.8 was a much better engine and is a direct bolt on replacement???? Really dont want to go that way.But after going to a premier engine rebuilder in INDIANA,and seeing thier prices and the modifications they make on these engines before resale, I am thinking of going to a local salvage for a low mileage replacement???Build date i assume would be a priorty.Any other advice or info. would be greatly appreciated.

 

I had a 1997 F-150 XL with the 4.2L V-6. I bought it with 31,000 miles in 2001. That engine is garbage. About a day and a half after I drove it off the lot the whole truck started shaking at idle. I took it back to the dealership since there was still warranty left and they couldn't figure it out (What a load of crap that was). They said drive it and bring it back when it does it again. So I did, same thing, they don't know. Well I had all the spark plugs checked, the idle checked, everything that I could think of and it still did it. The truck stalled out a bunch of times and I had to hold the gas down at red lights to keep from stalling out. It was a miserable truck.

About a year later I had to get the heater core replaced and the cooling system fixed because of leaks. I was in college and I drove for a whole summer in Tampa without air conditioning while saving money to get it fixed.

Fast forward to 2006: The truck still has the idle problem but it has about 120,000 miles on it. I drove home from Gainesville and it seemed like it was running rough. Next morning I go out to go to work and turn the key, it sounds like a machine gun was going off in the engine compartment. I get the truck towed to my mechanic and it blew a gasket and threw a rod, the engine is seized and totally screwed. I traded that truck in for $500 on my new one with a V-8. I will never drive another truck with that engine ever again.

To put things in perspective, my first ford truck had the 4.9L V-6 which was just an ox. I swear there was dirt and small mammals coming out of that thing when I did oil changes but it never even hickuped. It makes no sense to me that they would do away with such a work horse and replace it with that 4.2L POS.

 

The 4.2l has a shakey idle because it is a 90 degree v6. Most modern day v6 engines are 60 degrees, thus eliminating the shakeyness.

I've got a 2000 Dakota with a 4.7l V8 that is 90 degrees, and it rocks like a boat at idle. You think the 4.2l is bad? Try the 4.7l V8 out of my Dak.

 

The 1997 and early 1998 4.2's had known issues with the intake manifold gaskets. They would fail, allowing coolant into the cylinders and causing a hydrolock. The engine is NOT garbage if the factory gaskets are replaced with the improved set PRIOR to failure.

It's like anything else - the first year of anything new has a high likelihood of having issues. My 2003 4.2 is rock solid.

You guys that bought 1997 and 1998 4.2's used *should* have done some research before buying it, and if you went ahead and bought them, you should have had the appropriate work done. It's not like this issue was kept a big secret.