ford f150

[Mhannink]

maybe its just my truck but if i do a lot of short hops i really start to see a decline in how the truck runs. she really likes a good hour run time about 3 times a week as a minimum.

 

[SpeedBeef]

i have no doubt about that, and i would actually prefer it since i know she would be going to a good home. however i am not set on it yet. i do have some adds up with it but i can back out of them if i want.



i have always been a diesel nut, i live, breath, eat, sleep diesels and i just dont know if i can bring my self to have a gasser. however as i have mentioned my forseeable future is going to be hard on it (at least the next 4 years). after that a diesel would be possible again. someone else mentioned that i wont find another one good one in a few years and i know they are right (another reason this is difficult for me), but i keep telling myself once i am done with school i will be making enough money that i can buy any truck and make it nice at any price. im just not sure what to do yet. this post is really just trying to get a feel of what i might be getting into if i do get a ford.

I sold my 98 last year and bought a 2008 Silverado because I didn't "need" my CTD any more. While I may have saved a minimal amount of money on operation (that is open to debate), I missed my Cummins. Got rid of the Silverado and bought my CR 2006. I still miss my 98, but really like the 06.

 

['strokeThis_'07]

I'd swap out the 4. 10s in your 97 for 3. 73s or 3. 55 before I got rid of the diesel. There just isn't any reason you should get less mileage than a gasser, in town or highway. And keep in mind, EPA ratings are in a lab in near-perfect conditions, NOT in the real world. You'll find that out quickly I think...



That 12v should easily get 20 or more on the highway; I have a hard time seeing the 150 getting much better. Final cost from each will be minimal I think, I'd be surprised if maintenance and upkeep and fuel and insurance is more than maintenance and upkeep and fuel and insurance on the 150.

 

[Mhannink]

I'd swap out the 4. 10s in your 97 for 3. 73s or 3. 55 before I got rid of the diesel. There just isn't any reason you should get less mileage than a gasser, in town or highway. And keep in mind, EPA ratings are in a lab in near-perfect conditions, NOT in the real world. You'll find that out quickly I think...



That 12v should easily get 20 or more on the highway; I have a hard time seeing the 150 getting much better. Final cost from each will be minimal I think, I'd be surprised if maintenance and upkeep and fuel and insurance is more than maintenance and upkeep and fuel and insurance on the 150.

i actually have 3. 54's sitting in my shop waiting to go in. i was even gonna put limited slip in the front.



here is my thinking on it. insurance and registration are basically a wash. maintence is cheaper, smaller oil capacity, and the fuel filter is much cheaper and changed less often. tires last longer since the truck is lighter and has less torque. gas is generally cheaper than diesel and at approxamitly the same fuel mileage its cheaper. lastly parts are a lot cheaper for gas engines than for diesel.



im not trying to argue with you. just thinking out loud and my reasonings. keep giving your advice so i can make an informed decision.

another point that needs to be considered is the difference in mileage. my truck has 243k the trucks im looking at are right near or under 100k. this year i have spent a lot of money in upkeep on my dodge and im worried that other items are gonna have a problem. with my major the last thing i want is to have to deal with fixing my tuck. especially since i will be a long ways from home and in an apt. without my tools so i wont be able to fix it myself easily.

 

[Nyoest]

I sold an f 150 to get my ram. It was a really clean 95 4x4 with the fi 300 i6 5 spd. I loved that truck but the best mileage I ever got was 14. 9, average was about 13. I get better mileage towing with my ram than I got empty in the ford.

Do you have the capability to diagnose and repair the newer ford yourself? I'd rather work on an old truck in a parking lot rather than take a new truck to a shop and PAY.

Does a dealership have the truck your looking at? I'd rent it for a week and drive it, I don't think it's going to get that great of mileage stop and go. But if I were on the fence the rental would make my mind up one way or the other.

Mi dos centavos... .

 

[BSeyler]

I sold an f 150 to get my ram. It was a really clean 95 4x4 with the fi 300 i6 5 spd. I loved that truck but the best mileage I ever got was 14. 9, average was about 13. I get better mileage towing with my ram than I got empty in the ford.

Do you have the capability to diagnose and repair the newer ford yourself? I'd rather work on an old truck in a parking lot rather than take a new truck to a shop and PAY.

Does a dealership have the truck your looking at? I'd rent it for a week and drive it, I don't think it's going to get that great of mileage stop and go. But if I were on the fence the rental would make my mind up one way or the other.

Mi dos centavos... .

I second the ease of repair on the Ram over the Ford. My wife had a 2000 F-150 with the 4. 6L. When it hit 110,000 miles, I did a bunch of maintenance because I thought we were going to keep it for a long time. Changing plugs had to be one of the worst experiences I've ever had with a vehicle. I changed two a night after work because that's all the frustration I could handle. You just about have to be double jointed and able to stand on your head to work on the back portion of the engine. As luck would have it, we ended up making a trade within a month. With her 2006 having 97,000 miles now, trading is looking pretty good. It has the 5. 4L and doesn't look any easier. I change oil in it, but am willing to let someone else (a new owner) worry about changing plugs, hoses, etc.

We just returned from a quick round trip last week across Nebraska and Wyoming, driving my wife's F-150. Winds were 40+ and it was getting 14 MPG.

 

[Mhannink]

I sold an f 150 to get my ram. It was a really clean 95 4x4 with the fi 300 i6 5 spd. I loved that truck but the best mileage I ever got was 14. 9, average was about 13. I get better mileage towing with my ram than I got empty in the ford.



Do you have the capability to diagnose and repair the newer ford yourself? I'd rather work on an old truck in a parking lot rather than take a new truck to a shop and PAY.



Does a dealership have the truck your looking at? I'd rent it for a week and drive it, I don't think it's going to get that great of mileage stop and go. But if I were on the fence the rental would make my mind up one way or the other.



Mi dos centavos... .

i do have the ability to diag a newer truck. in fact i would have about 3 options for doing it. ill have a programmer that can help, a handheld scan tool, and a pc based scan tool.

I second the ease of repair on the Ram over the Ford. My wife had a 2000 F-150 with the 4. 6L. When it hit 110,000 miles, I did a bunch of maintenance because I thought we were going to keep it for a long time. Changing plugs had to be one of the worst experiences I've ever had with a vehicle. I changed two a night after work because that's all the frustration I could handle. You just about have to be double jointed and able to stand on your head to work on the back portion of the engine. As luck would have it, we ended up making a trade within a month. With her 2006 having 97,000 miles now, trading is looking pretty good. It has the 5. 4L and doesn't look any easier. I change oil in it, but am willing to let someone else (a new owner) worry about changing plugs, hoses, etc.



We just returned from a quick round trip last week across Nebraska and Wyoming, driving my wife's F-150. Winds were 40+ and it was getting 14 MPG.

where those head winds? maybe im off but 14mpg in 40 mph headwinds is pretty decent for a truck that doesnt have big torque.

 

[AEdelheit]

Im a little confused why you would get rid of the 4. 10's if your gonna be doing more in town short trips, seems like you would want the 4. 10's? Sounds like a gas half ton would suite your needs better but I would think you would quickly miss the cummins and spend more money to get back into one. I understand the high mileage on your truck but I dont know that a f*** with 100k will exactly trouble free, either way best of luck!

 

[Mhannink]

Im a little confused why you would get rid of the 4. 10's if your gonna be doing more in town short trips, seems like you would want the 4. 10's? Sounds like a gas half ton would suite your needs better but I would think you would quickly miss the cummins and spend more money to get back into one. I understand the high mileage on your truck but I dont know that a f*** with 100k will exactly trouble free, either way best of luck!

i wouldnt, i was justing saying i have them in the shop ready to go in. i was going to swap them a long time ago when i was doing all highway miles. now it would be better to leave them in.



i know i would miss my cummins, and very quickly too. the high mileage wouldnt bother me if i wasnt going to be in a position that my fixing it is difficult. i dont plan on the ford being trouble free either but parts are cheaper often the fixes are pretty simple and if i must it is easier to find a shop that knows gassers. diesels it can be tough.

 

[firemansdiesel]

If you decide to sell your '97 CTD. PM me a price. I might be interested, but I would keep if I was you. You will not hurt the 12v on short commutes.

 

[Newt]

We had an 05 Lariat until we needed something to pull a 5th wheel. We really enjoyed that truck.

Newt

 

[ktb]

i don't see how short trips will hurt your truck. my 03 has gone 17 miles to work and 17 miles home for most of its 195,000 miles. my old man has a 92 thats cleared 400,000 miles. he is a roofing contractor and the truck does alot of 10 mile or less drives. the truck is falling apart but the engine still has no problems. four of the 5. 9s i've had personal experiance with have gotten 20 plus mpg another one a 89 with a 12' dump box gets 18 on a good day. They have all been standards but diff. yrs 89,92,93,01, and a 03. we don't have much real city driving around here but i get better mpg going to and from work and around town then i do on long trips.
I really don't think if you do sell and buy another truck that in a couple of months you won't regret it.

 

[WesJohnston]

Been a Ford guy forever but bought my '03 dually (see signature) to haul camper. Still own a '94 F-350 and my sons all own F-150s ('79, '04, '09, '10). The only bad one of the bunch was my eldest's '04 - bad transmission/transfer case problems and an all around lemon (might have been how he was driving it! - rebuilding the '79 that he started with). No engine problems in any of them. My Dodge has already had more mechanical problems (the reason I'm a TDR member) than my '94 F-350 but I like them both for different purposes. You should really consider what Tractorat had to say about getting a cheap little car to run around school in and keep the truck you love. Barring that - it really comes down to "YOUR decision".

 

[Mhannink]

i don't see how short trips will hurt your truck. my 03 has gone 17 miles to work and 17 miles home for most of its 195,000 miles. my old man has a 92 thats cleared 400,000 miles. he is a roofing contractor and the truck does alot of 10 mile or less drives. the truck is falling apart but the engine still has no problems. four of the 5. 9s i've had personal experiance with have gotten 20 plus mpg another one a 89 with a 12' dump box gets 18 on a good day. They have all been standards but diff. yrs 89,92,93,01, and a 03. we don't have much real city driving around here but i get better mpg going to and from work and around town then i do on long trips.

I really don't think if you do sell and buy another truck that in a couple of months you won't regret it.

i know we have really been focused on the engine and yes a 12v might not have any issues, however the rest of the truck might start really having problems and i wont have time to fix them. i know a newer truck wont be problem free but it should have fewer problems and parts should be more readily available, a problem i run into sometimes with the dodge.

Been a Ford guy forever but bought my '03 dually (see signature) to haul camper. Still own a '94 F-350 and my sons all own F-150s ('79, '04, '09, '10). The only bad one of the bunch was my eldest's '04 - bad transmission/transfer case problems and an all around lemon (might have been how he was driving it! - rebuilding the '79 that he started with). No engine problems in any of them. My Dodge has already had more mechanical problems (the reason I'm a TDR member) than my '94 F-350 but I like them both for different purposes. You should really consider what Tractorat had to say about getting a cheap little car to run around school in and keep the truck you love. Barring that - it really comes down to "YOUR decision".

i have thought about what tractorat said, and its tempting however its just an increased operating cost. i have looked at this idea in the past and i just could not get the numbers to work out. it just plain costs more to have more vehicales.



also i know it really is my decision, this thread has been side tracked some i was actually asking about peoples experiences with the newer fords. sounds like your son had a lemon as you mentioned. i dont know, i keep thinking about it and im having a real hard time picturing myself in anything but a diesel. it is too ingrained in my blood to give up easily.

 

[WesJohnston]

After I posted I thought about that truck. His problem was with the transfer case suddenly jumping int 4x4 low. Did it to him a couple of times while at interstate speeds. I think it turned out to be a glitch in the electric switch for the 4WD. The rest of the truck was great. All the newer F-150s are comfortable, reliable, and mileage has been pretty impressive (especially compared to my F-350 w/ 460ci gasser). I also remember that the "lemmon" was the Dodge 1500 that he traded in on his F-150. He bought that brand new - it was delivered with a DRY cooling system. I wasn't impressed with Dodge on that one.



I wish you the best of luck - both in vehicle selection and with school.

 

[Mhannink]

what has the mileage been? im seeing the same range that we see in the diesels. so im just curious. going to low range sound like a whole ____ of a lot of fun at freeway speeds.

 

[WesJohnston]

Different trucks, different drivers... . but yeah, about the same as the diesels high teens to low twentys. Still way better than a steady 11MPG that I get from the F-350!

 

[Mhannink]

thats what i figured, and what i have been figuring my costs on. which with gas and parts all being cheaper that brings my operating costs down quiet a bit. sort of hard to justify having the diesel on paper that way. i still dont know if i can handle being in a gasser though. that is where my hang up really is.

 

[Jeff Knight]

I'm with you on this one. My 02 hasn't been one of my best vehicles. We are thinking of down sizing when its time for another truck. I'm leaning towards an F150 with the ecoboost in it. I'm out of work right now so we will hold on to the ram until I'm back to work. Then we plan to do something about a new truck. Good luck with your decision.



Jeff

 

[WesJohnston]

My number two son who drives the 2010 F-150 is the one who is getting low 20s for mileage. He told me this morning that he wishes he had held out for the ecoboost. Says he has heard good things about it. And for you guys that are just itching to jump in and start your "FURDBASHING" all I have to say is...



If Dodges were perfect we wouldn't have this cool website!