I've have been a Long time member here and the fourm and I am diehard ford fan at heart. I purchased my 2005 5.4 3 years ago and loved it until recently I just turned 66,000 miles. My truck has been really making me mad as it seems like I have every known problem. The timing chains chatter and need to be replaced, clutch packs in the rear diff are worn out, paint is bubbling, rust around the gas cap, fpm needs to be replaced still, spark plugs have never been changed but with my much they will all break, drivers side window motor is slowly dieing. I also have a clunking noise from the rear (which I still can't figure out). It's almost time for ball joints (not made about this because I leveled the truck) and brakes. Trans is ok for now but who knows.

I have always taken care of my truck. I wash it at least once a month, wax is between 3-4 times a year and run premium fuel. I keep up on routine maintenance was well. I'm at a cross road, do I repair my truck or just trade up to a new f150 and keep going. I am not that mechanically inclined to repair the cam phasers and plugs. Dealer wants an arm and a leg just for those. I hear guys are getting 10k off a brand new fully loaded truck, any opinions? I really love my truck but if it's going to cost me this much, I may as well throw it as a down payment.

 

Anyone else having multiple issues like this?

 

hope it all works out man

 

You are right around that mileage where stuff starts going bad and are at the cross roads of how much you like your truck, get a trade in price, and then think how much it will cost you in the next 4-6 months to fix everything and then what would it be worth after that. You might get another 5 years with no problems after fixing everything or the tranny could drop and you are out another 3k. I think if you can afford it you would be better off to trade it in

 

Sorry to hear about your issues. I'm kind of in the same boat with my 05. Just had all the timing stuff done, replaced the fpdm, the rear end chattered and now a pinion bearing out and the rear end is getting all new bearings. That happened right after I just spent $500 on new shocks. There is a crap ton of other little things that I've done as well. I love my truck and I will keep getting all the work done but my pockets are a bit lighter now.

 

I would suggest trading it in. I say this because the used vehicle market is high right now and new rebates are great. Figure out what you want for a new pickup and what you want to pay difference and go get the new pickup you want. That way you get all the new parts together and know what you have. If you fix yours who knows what else is going to pop up. Maintenance is just that. Normal cost of ownership. Lets say you fix it all up and want a new pickup later this year... You've simply done the normal things you should do as an owner while your pickup will do it's normal thing. "depreciate" Don't let the older technology and problems bug you. Go get a new 5.0 and you'll be happy.

 

Get rid of it, it will nickel and dime you to death.

 

I like my truck a lot but don't want to spend massive amounts of cash on stuff like this which shouldn't be defective. That what makes the decision so hard.

 

Do the math, dude. Total up what it would cost to fix your truck right...then find out how much you'll be out for a new one. I'd bet the difference will be more than ten grand.

So there's your decision...can you afford the extra for brand new? Perhaps you can sell your truck as is and buy an '11 or newer for a substantial discount...a third option to factor in.

I have an '04 5.4 and it's perfect. Sixty thousand miles right now. It's not my daily driver, I use it mostly as a road trip vacation vehicle. If it were to start acting up, I'd pay to fix it...mostly because I would be buying another 10 years on whatever wore out.

If yours is going to be a daily driver, and you fork over say, 5 grand to get it like "new" again, how long would it take you to put another 60,000 miles on it? Would you have to replace everything again at that time? Probably not...there are plenty of guys that are getting well over 100K with no problems at all. Like I said, mine is perfect...runs like new.

Bottom line, fixing it is the cheapest option. If you're young and you've got money to burn...screw it, buy a new one. If cash is kinda tight, or you're older and smart...spend less.

Keep this in mind, too. Five to eight years from now, trucks will be entirely different animals...I think they'll be a lot better, especially the engines. I say fix it, SAVE the money you'd be making on a new truck payment and use it later down the road...when the truck you're driving is truly tired and you'll have a hand full of cash for a nice new one.

Good luck and let us know what you decided to do.

 

This sounds like a perfect truck for me to buy for another project!