I'm new here and need some advice. I have a 2013 F-150 with the 3.5L engine with 189k miles in it. For the most part it has been running pretty good since I got it a year ago. Feels like it slips a little when the gas is pressed lightly and it has to go between gears. This does not happen when I am accelerating quickly (like an onramp to the highway) and the engine does make a small rattle when it starts but it quickly goes away.

Last week it tripped four codes for the timing chain. I dont know that I want to put a $4,000 repair into this truck as it has almost 200k miles. The codes are: P0012, P0024, P054C, and P054A PD. I had my garage read the codes (They did not do a visual inspection of the chain) and they told me if it were his he would not put the money in to repair given its age and mileage.

My main question (probably a stupid one so I apologize in advance) is since this code popped up only once and it seems to be running pretty well is there a chance that it will go a while before having any major issues or lights tripping while I drive down the road? I am hoping to get a few more months out of it and get into a newer truck. Am I driving a time bomb or is it realistic it could go for a little while longer with no issues? I cleared the code 4 days ago and it has not come back after putting around 200 miles on it.

If I can wait to trade it in I will have extra money for a good down payment since I am getting paid for a job I was contracted to do in late December. It would be nice to get the truck I want with a lower payment and not have to rush into something now.

Thanks in advance.

 

he has a whole series on the job

if there is nothing else wrong with your truck, it might be worth repairing (if you’d then drive a while and avoid replacement truck cost/debt).