Ford did some strange stuff with their trucks mid/late 90's.
Part of their "modular motors 4.6/5.4" push.
I had a 98 F250xl 5.4, ext cab, 4wd, auto on the column w mechanical 4wd floor shift, ac, sliding glass, vinyl bench and floor mat, and power nothing. Built in Norfolk Va, and lost compression in one cylinder after 259k Hard miles.
The "Heavy half ton" one year only, bastard F250, with extra frame brace, rear leaf...and 7 lug axles.
Stranger more, you could buy the identical truck as an F150(I personally saw one, talked the owner, and checked the truck out).

 

this is what I saw on dates of production

1997–2004[edit]

Being the F-150's first major redesign since 1979, the redesigned truck went on a nationwide 87-stop tour to Ford plants and the external part suppliers in October 1995, prior to its release.[10] To build anticipation for the redesigned truck, the 1997 model was released in January 1996 with the first ad campaigns airing during Super Bowl XXX.

 

I cannot remember if the 4.2 was available in the '95 release of the '97, or if it actually did not come along until the actual year of '96 or '97.
Both of the 97's I prepped in '95 had the 4.6
They also got a 3rd 97 around late spring/early summer of 95.
An xl, ext cab, 4wd, a white work truck, also a 4.6
The other 2 were xlt's

 

I don't doubt that.
It's also hard to belive some guy on the internet that's claiming it happened sooner, I get that too.
I was there, I drove and prepped them both, and I am 100% postive of the time.
Ford does strange things, always have.
I'm just giving my 2 cents(whatever that's worth), that the '97 ford f150 hit the lots as early as late May, early June...
of 1995.

 

I've seen a 2/96 w 5.4 in an early series 18 body (Scrab 4x4) That's the earliest I've seen, but we don't get all the differences here in AK. They were avail w 5.4 from the release date of 1/96..

 

No, it is a 4.6 - I believe that only the 5.4 got the Triton badge in 97, and maybe even 98. I do not believe the 4.2 was available in my setup (SCAB and 4X4).

Since those pics, I alleviated that problem myself though, LOL.

 

Oh that’s nice! Yeah I have noticed that the F250 Light Duty and the F150 7700 are the exact same truck. Wow 259K. How many did it have when you got it?

 

Whitey's

lil brother (98)

 

Oh that’s really interesting! Learning a lot from this thread!

 

Hmm. That would be interesting if you could only get a 4.6 in an early 97.