2004 Supercrew Lariat blown engine
02-21-2007, 08:13 PM
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2004 Supercrew Lariat blown engine
I just posted this on the 2004-present forum but thought I'd try it here as well.
As you can tell by my new username I'm not real happy with my beautiful black and gold 2004 supercrew lariat right now. I might remain a Ford loyalist once I calm down, I don't know. But, right now I'm not happy with this truck that had an original sticker price of $42,000, or with Ford.
I started this lovely day by pulling my 6x10 open trailer this morning across town. I was minding my own business when a tire and hub came flying off my trailer and passed me. I had to drag the trailer...sparks flying...about a half mile to where I could pul over. I spent the morning installing a new hub and rim, then brought the trailer back to my home and dropped it off.
I left a while later driving my SuperCrew down the road when I lost power real bad and sputtered into a Sparks auto center that was fortuitously right up the road in front of me. They took a look at it this afternoon, hooked it up to diagnostics and told me something is seriously wrong and I have compression problems big time. And of course, I'm slightly out of Ford's miserly warranty period.
The owner of the shop suggested I might consider going the route of a used or reconditioned engine instead of bringing it somewhere that would have my checkbook wide open while they tried to figure out how to fix it, and then maybe not doing such a great job once they figured out what was wrong. This owner said I'd be smarter to get an engine that would come with a warranty and be done with it.
What do you all think? Should I take this advice? ...or should I bring it to a shop to have this engine fixed and possibly save some money?
As you can tell by my new username I'm not real happy with my beautiful black and gold 2004 supercrew lariat right now. I might remain a Ford loyalist once I calm down, I don't know. But, right now I'm not happy with this truck that had an original sticker price of $42,000, or with Ford.
I started this lovely day by pulling my 6x10 open trailer this morning across town. I was minding my own business when a tire and hub came flying off my trailer and passed me. I had to drag the trailer...sparks flying...about a half mile to where I could pul over. I spent the morning installing a new hub and rim, then brought the trailer back to my home and dropped it off.
I left a while later driving my SuperCrew down the road when I lost power real bad and sputtered into a Sparks auto center that was fortuitously right up the road in front of me. They took a look at it this afternoon, hooked it up to diagnostics and told me something is seriously wrong and I have compression problems big time. And of course, I'm slightly out of Ford's miserly warranty period.
The owner of the shop suggested I might consider going the route of a used or reconditioned engine instead of bringing it somewhere that would have my checkbook wide open while they tried to figure out how to fix it, and then maybe not doing such a great job once they figured out what was wrong. This owner said I'd be smarter to get an engine that would come with a warranty and be done with it.
What do you all think? Should I take this advice? ...or should I bring it to a shop to have this engine fixed and possibly save some money?
02-21-2007, 10:07 PM
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I was thinking it was maybe spark plug blowout after doing some reading in the last hour, but I don't have a Heritage and I don't know if the new style has that problem.
I do see where there is a horrible problem with trying to replace the spark plugs on the newer F-150's though. It sounds as if it can be a very expensive screw-up to even try. What in the world has happened to Ford quality that spark plugs are flying out of engines and on others you can't even replace the spark plugs without risking major damage?
I do see where there is a horrible problem with trying to replace the spark plugs on the newer F-150's though. It sounds as if it can be a very expensive screw-up to even try. What in the world has happened to Ford quality that spark plugs are flying out of engines and on others you can't even replace the spark plugs without risking major damage?
02-21-2007, 10:21 PM
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no, all 4.6 motors, and only the new 3 valve motors have the new problem with the plugs not coming out.
ford went from one extreme to the other, the first plugs not having enough threads, then to having to many threads.
ford went from one extreme to the other, the first plugs not having enough threads, then to having to many threads.
02-21-2007, 10:52 PM
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Ok, I have another thought... wondering if this tune-up shop might have it wrong? The way my vehicle ran almost sounds like what failsafe mode does from what I've just read in another forum.
The shop today said the tune-up diagnostics machine said I was losing pressure badly and the readings were all over the place, probably from the computer making adjustments to compensate. My question...if the vehicle was in fail safe mode, would the diagnostics show the pressure this way, or would the pressure still be constant? I would think it would be constant ...but what do I know about these new vehicles?
And...Is there anything else that could cause these readings besides a valve problem, head gasket, or other catestrophic event?
The shop today said the tune-up diagnostics machine said I was losing pressure badly and the readings were all over the place, probably from the computer making adjustments to compensate. My question...if the vehicle was in fail safe mode, would the diagnostics show the pressure this way, or would the pressure still be constant? I would think it would be constant ...but what do I know about these new vehicles?
And...Is there anything else that could cause these readings besides a valve problem, head gasket, or other catestrophic event?
02-21-2007, 10:55 PM
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if you want to find out if it is in a safety mode, disconnect the neg battery cable, and let it set over night or turn on the headlights (to make sure the system it totally dead) and see if it changes when you start it again.
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02-23-2007, 11:25 PM
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The '04 has the new 3-valve motor. This was the first year of the new 3-valve. If your engine is truly damaged, I would recommend a good used one. There are plenty to be had from wrecked trucks at very reasonable prices. I have been considering swapping my 105K mile '97 5.4L for an '05 or '06 5.4L but have decided that because of the electronics issues I would be better off finding a '99 - '03 Lightning motor with low miles. I saw lots of very low mileage (10K miles?) '05/'06 5.4L's for around $1,500 on eBay. The nice thing about the new 3-valve 5.4L's is that Ford Racing now offers a supercharger kit for these that is smog legal and takes these babies to 460HP. That's way more than a stock Lightning ever put out, and the wick can really be turned up on these. A smaller pulley, some computer tuning, some exhaust mods and quickly you're at 500HP, sweet...
CobraRGuy
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02-24-2007, 10:43 AM
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If it were a vehicle for leisure or for just going to work and back, then upgrading the horsepower would be desirable and something that would appeal to me. But, since I'm a salesman on the road all week and I drive 60,000+ miles a year that choice isn't really practical for me.
I made the decision yesterday to have a local Ford dealership install a factory surplus motor for me. It's costing me a little more .....$3105 installed, but I figure I'll have more piece of mind knowing I'm starting out fresh with a motor installed by a factory trained technician. It will almost be like starting out with a new truck.(which the truck looks like)
I almost went with a junkyard that was going to install a used one with 81,000 miles for $2300, but decided the extra money was worth it for this one.
I made the decision yesterday to have a local Ford dealership install a factory surplus motor for me. It's costing me a little more .....$3105 installed, but I figure I'll have more piece of mind knowing I'm starting out fresh with a motor installed by a factory trained technician. It will almost be like starting out with a new truck.(which the truck looks like)
I almost went with a junkyard that was going to install a used one with 81,000 miles for $2300, but decided the extra money was worth it for this one.
