Hello everyone I have been reading the boards for about a month now and have purchased a 98 F-150 recently.. I have searched the boards for possible causes of sounds/problems I am having and could not find any info on them so I will ask direct.

1- when the truck is moving I hear a thud from the right front side it almost sounds like tire rubbing which I know does occur when I make sharp turns, this happens when I am on the highway though with no bumps or turns??

2- when the truck is not in motion and when it is in motion I hear a popping sound from the right front again except it sounds like it is coming from the inside like the pop you would hear throwing a screw against the plastic dash??

3- on occasion the truck when accelerating the engine makes a noise similar to a denists drill, a whining noise this could be a common noise to fords I do not know.

Besides these concerns the truck seems to be in excellent shape inside and out and I am pleased with the purchase I would just like a little piece of mind and understanding to the odd sounds I am hearing.

Also another question is what all could I do to cheaply upgrade the truck for better mpg and more horsepower if anything.

Thanks for your time and the boards I am sure I will be a regular.

 

tire rub? how big are the tires? stock size will never rub unless some suspension components were bent. can you tell if there are any modifications already made to the engine, body or suspension?

your descriptions would lead me to check front suspension, tire wear, and the body mounting bolts might be lose.

more info might help too like how often does the right front thud on the highway. maybe if you can get a better pinpoint of the sound the interior pop is coming from. like steering column area, glovebox area? and are you turning the steering wheel when all these noises take place?

also what engine? 4x4 or 4x2?

i feel the only cost effective mod is a k&n air filter and good maintanance. oil changes tune ups and coolant flushes stuff like that will keep it running as good as it was designed to.

the only mod i have done that helped with fuel mileage and felt the best in horsepower was electric fans but if your going for fuel mileage it was only like 1 mpg difference and wasnt cheap.

so get back soon with more info and i will try to help you out.

 

The tires are 285's on 16" rims and it is a 4x2 the tires do rub when I turn sharply. That is what the thud sound sounds like except when they rub it is not a constant rub when turning sharp because they are A/T off road knobby tires. I plan to replace them asap, I want smaller tires but not lose any height on the truck.

No mods have been made to the truck except exterior accesories added, the 16" wheels and tires are a mod but the rest is like a bed cap, cow catcher, etc.

I am not hearing the thud noise as much as when I first purchased the truck but it still occurs it happens in all conditions, I thought it could be the suspension giving way and the tires rubbing but it happens on highways with no bumps.

As far as the popping sound it happens in all conditions as well, sitting at a stop light and what not it seems to be coming from the glove box at first I thought I had a loose bolt in there and it was causing it, it sounds just like that. I live in florida so it could be just the plastic dash settling in the sun like a home does I dunno.

Thanks for your help. If ya need more info just let me know I will describe it as best I can.

How do I put a pic in the gallery?

 

I have a few friends who have fought with ford over similar front-end noise. The noise was traced to bad spot welds. One on a ranger, the other on a mustang. Eventually brought to a lawsuit which one won and ford bought back the 03 mustang. The other is still fighting ford!

 

Bad weld spots equals what? on the chassis?

 

the dash on my 97 f150 makes a lot of popping sounds as it heats and cools in the summer or winter. never concerned me.

 

yea my dash makes noises when its real hot or real cold out. i would think about getting it checked out at a trusted shop just to make sure nothing is lose under there in the suspension. since you just bought it it could have a gremlin or 2. read up on spark plug blow outs also if you have 4.6 or 5.4 they can produce a pop tick sound from what i read.

im thinking your thud noise could be a bad tire lumpy cupped or flat spotted from sitting somewhere. if its going away it was prolly a flatspot. or your just getting used to it.

but it would be a good idea to get tie rod ends ball joints and all that stuff checked out.

i had a noise once that wouldnt go away no matter how hard i tried. i would tighten something bend and move something else. and everytime the noise would still be there. then one day changing the oil i noticed one of the lower front shock mount bolts looked loose. tightend it and all was good. so it can be something really simple.

 

I have noticed some other things as well with the truck it seems sluggish in higher gears I believe it is the weight of the 285 tires that are on it considering the engine is only a 4.2.. I would like to take it to a garage and have it checked out from top to bottom but I cant really afford that as of now. do you think maybe some seafoam through the intake could fix this problem?


98 F-150 4.2L
Straight shift

How do you make a gallery?

 

the popping sound is an air box in your right front fender. it has to do with the a/c and it will pop with a/c on or off. if you want work done on it you can come over to merritt island, a buddy of mine is a ford mechanic. just let me know

 

Is he a good mechanic? and cheap? I would like to find someone to inspect the truck from top to bottom as I said before but with being a young professional I have limited cash. The drive would not be bad at all, a quick jump down a couple of toll roads. If the air box is not a big deal I could do without fixing it at the moment the thud sound bothers me a little more. I drove the truck hard today to find all the creaks and what not and I do believe a strut/shock replacement might be needed but Im not a guru with automobiles. Let me know.. Thanks.

 

if you take it to a dealer for an oil change most will look the truck over and try to sell you on the work it needs and basically tell the condition of the truck. some use a report card sheet as they check things like ball joints tie rod ends tire wear brake wear all kinds of stuff. it would be good if you could find a dealer you trusted. and most dont charge to look truck over during oil change because they are going to try and sell the work to fix the truck.

its always up to you to decide how little or how much you want to fix.

now if its a specific noise that isnt caused by something they would check then you would have to pay to get it diagnosed. but if they use the inspection sheet it will get alot of the possable safety issues out of the way and you get an oil change. just be carefull as they will try to sell you maitnance packages. like 30k and 60k. now some of the stuff in the package would be a good idea to do. but could be overkill at the same time.

now that i know you have a 4.2L good engine as long as your not losing coolant. good idea to keep on eye on the overflow bottle if you have to add coolant every month you prolly have the front cover leak or the lower intake leak. but being a 98 you might not get those concers were for 97s mainly.

and as for upgrades i have a mac intake tube installed. looks killer and makes some of the coolest sounds. that and exhuast will make you feel like your rippin down the road, but most likely you will only get about 15 hp out of these mods.

and bigger tires will lug it down.

 

yes he is good, or i would not recommend him as far as cheap on the side is always cheaper give me your e-mail then we will go from there i will get his number and stuff to you