I believe that this is my first post here, so hello!

I am looking at getting a 2000 F150 with the 5.4. Is there anything that i should look for as I inspect the truck? I got reamed on my last vehicle, and I don't want to make the same mistake.

Thanks,

Eric

 

If its got 60k miles I wouldn't worry about much. If its got 300k you should worry about everything.

Same with all vehicles, look up the basics online. Check the fluids you can. Check out for replaced parts. Ask for service records. Get a car fax report. See if it's drive able and stops. Listen, look and feel. The majority of these are dependable.

Or pay a shop $50-100 to do a prebuy inspection.

 

Yeah, I have a mechanic friend coming with me. It has 183000 or so on it. I asked because my 02 Vic was the victim of a common timing chain issue at 212000 miles, less than 500 after I bought it. If I had known I would not have done it.

Eric

 

High mileage vehicles are going to be more risk than a lower mileage one. The difference in price and amount of risk you want to take is up to you. You might find as gem, you could get a dud. At 200k or close to it the odds of something major going wrong are high, especially in comparison to 100k. But you might pay twice as much for the difference in miles.

 

Yeah, I know. I just can't afford the low mileage ones that look decent.

Thanks for your replies!

Eric

 

Hey man, I have a story similar to yours , a month ago I traveled 3 hours to look at this 01 4x4 5.4 and I was sure I was going to buy this due to talking to the guy and looking at the pics well, when I got there it wasn't what I expected , brush guard was falling off interior was in bad shape with the guy sent pics of the good leather , and when we left I look on Craigslist just looking for a truck down where I was , and thankfully I found the truck I own now and it was the perfect truck. My advice is to just check all the body for rust and drive it and see how it feels , if It doesn't feel right move on, there are hundreds on Craigslist or car-genus , just be sure what you are buying because you could find another truck right after that's better then the one you got. good luck man !

 

I bought 2 - 2000 f150's recently. The one I'm driving has a 4.6l engine (194000 miles), the other one I bought for parts has a 5.4l (200000 miles). The 5.4 had a bad engine. The 5.4's are known to blow out plugs from the motor. One plug was blown out when I bought it. I was taking the coil packs and plugs off the truck as they were fairly new, and I noticed another plug was twice the size as a regular spark plug. This cylinder also blew a plug, and had been repaired. So, this is a good question to ask about the plugs. Whether or not they are honest with you is another question.

Look through the wheel well at the exhaust manifold. A lot of these have to be repaired at some point, and it can be a pita to repair for the diy'er.

Listen to transmission while putting it in drive and reverse. A longer hesitation in either might mean the tranny is on it's way out. This is some advise from my mechanic anyhow.

Drive it in a rainstorm and watch your backseat get wet. Just kidding, but these trucks are known to have leaky rear windows, and mine was one of them.

If it's a 4x4, make sure you engage and disengage in both 4 high and 4 low to make sure everything is working.

Take a look at the brake pads. Engage the parking brake. I didn't do this and found out mine wasn't working.

Good luck. My truck purrs down the road after a couple hundred in general maintenance parts. Air filter, clean the mass air flow sensor, fuel filter, radiator hoses, coolant flush, thermostat, serpentine belt, and some other small items.

 

X2 Look and listen for missing exhaust studs especially on passenger side toward fire wall.

 

Thanks guys. I got the truck, and it has been great so far. The climate control vacuum lines were rotted (the crumbled as I touched them) but everything else works great.

Eric