I just bought a 90 F-150 4x4 w/351 AOD with 177K on the clock. Any mileage tips? How about things that are probably getting ready to break? I plan to do the plugs,wires,cap, rotor, and clean the K&N.

Thanks,
Shannon

 

Don't expect to get good mileage out of the 5.8L engine. It's a rock solid engine, but it's also a big ole p-i-g gas hog.

 

Also, don't forget to inspect and change out all fluids/filters.... oil, coolant, brake fluid, oil filter, etc. Check'em first. If they're not dirty don't bother. Get some Mobil1 Synthetic in there and a good quality oil filter such as K&N.

Check your drive belts for cracking too.

Good luck.

 

I would think twice before putting synthetics in a vehicle with that many miles. I have an 87 Porsche with around 83k miles and I only use synthetic blend in it. The reason is that the synthetic oil has smaller molecules than dino oil and if you have any leaks or are about to have any leaks, then synthetic will only make that problem worse.

Just my .02

 

You can always run a slightly higher viscosity range synthetic to achieve the same thing I suppose as dino oil concerning leaks or the possibility of leaks.

You might want to remove the oil pan to see how much sludge is in there. Might be a inch of mud there if the previous owner always used $1/quart dino crap.