jerniganj90

Hi everyone, I'm new here and just bought a 2001 5.4L f150 with 240,000 miles. Super excited to get this truck for a number of reasons.

I managed to score a crazy deal on it, but the engine is partly torn down due to a suspected bad head gasket.
The previous owner had to get rid of it short notice since they were moving, which is how I managed to get my hands on it.

As far as why the engine is somewhat disassembled, the old owner said that it has a suspected bad head gasket and that coolant leaked down to one of the cats and ruined it.
He then tore into it by removing the intake manifold, various pulleys, and one of the valve covers, cut off the bad cat, and that's about where it sits now.
The head that has the valve cover removed has some rust on the cam, but the rest of the engine seems to be in decent shape.

I have very little information about the state of the engine except this information I've shared.
So, I'm here asking advice on what I should do next.

Should I pulls the heads with the engine in the truck, replace the head gaskets and whatever else I come across?
Or should I yank the whole engine out of the truck and either rebuild it or swap in a junkyard motor?

I have fully rebuilt my BMW engine, so I'm confident in my ability to do any of these options.
Just looking for some advice based on the unknown condition of this engine and what makes the most sense with respect to the 5.4s reliability and how much it might tolerate a possible overheat situation.

Here's a photo of what the engine bay looks like right now:


Thanks in advance!

Snake plissken

These are great trucks, I have a 2000 5.4 and recently pulled and did a refresh on mine but mine was running very good before just leaking like crazy. It starts and runs perfect now.....glad I did it.
Since you have some experience you want to pull the whole thing out and do a rebuild/refresh depending on the condition of the cylinders. Maybe just a slight hone with new rings and BEARINGS and a head job. In and out for $1000.
or send it to a shop and let them do it in which it will cost thousands.
You will have trouble trying to put everything back in its correct place since you did not see it beforehand.
How much did you pay for it?
No way I would trust a used motor or you will end up with the same or worse problems.
Get a 2001 oem ford manual for that truck.

jerniganj90

Awesome, how many miles did you have when you did your rebuild?

Seems like pulling it all the way out is gonna be the best way, I agree. I wanna see what the cylinders look like and ensure I'm not wasting my time with this particular engine.
Also I agree that it'll be tough since I didn't take it apart. Gonna be a lot easier to reassemble on a stand.

Are there any major things I should do while the engine is out beyond the basics like new rings, bearings, seals, gaskets, etc?

Also whats the preferred brand for the mission critical parts - is OE / OEM Ford the way to go?

I paid just $500!

Thanks man

Snake plissken

I bought mine with 212k miles but a HATE leaks so I knew I would rebuild mine immediately.
Great price. Show a pic...profile.
I've had great luck using aftermarket kits. I usually will buy oem ford head gaskets.
When the manual states to use a little high temp silicone.....use 10x more especially around the timing cover and valve cover gaskets. Ask me how I know. I've done these before.
Timing guide for the driverside is VERY specific so pay ATTENTION my oem manual does not say anything about. Don't always trust the manual....research and ask around

jerniganj90

Thanks for the tips! Which manual/guide would you recommend I buy? A book is gonna be critical for me to get it back together I think.
Edit: I see you recommended the OEM Ford manual.

Here's a pic of it:

Snake plissken

Helm(blue covers)....if u can find it...eBay etc.
otherwise, all data.
That truck looks great. Save it if u can.

jerniganj90

Back with an update and a question. I'll update this thread with my progress from time to time.

I have pulled the engine out of the truck after I discovered that it won't turn all the way over by hand. Why it's binding, I'm not sure yet. I'm going to pull the timing cover and chains off today, then pull the heads and see if there's rust/corrosion in it since the valve covers have been off the passenger side for a while. Pulling it out was a major PITA and took me probably 12 hours in total across a few days.

Question: How likely is it that my torque converter and transmission are fine to reuse as is? Should I buy a reman torque converter?
Because I could not get the engine to turn all the way over, I pulled out the engine with the TC still attached and then removed it. I have no experience with TCs, so I just don't know how long they're good for.

Also, I want to tow car trailers with this truck so maybe there's a better torque converter to replace my factory one with while it's out?

Snake plissken

Was the truck in gear when you tried to turn it over? Do you live in a wet area or dry? I live in arizona so not much dampness here.
Spray wd40 all over and let it soak....you are going to break it apart anyway. Chances are the rings may be rusty so just leave the rods attached and CLEAN the pistons and GROOVES and reuse if their not all scored.
Hopefully the cylinder walls are nice and smooth but you just don't know until you see them. Torque converters are cheap get them from AutoZone. Does it have the plastic intake?
Also, hope that you don't have any ridge ring at all. I would be concerned if you do.
Is it on a engine stand?

jerniganj90

It actually was in gear, yeah. Stupid me, but once I got it out on the stand it still didn't turn over. I live in Florida so plenty of dampness here.

Reporting in with bad news, though. Got the engine torn down this afternoon and the cylinder head that was missing the valve cover is in awful shape, but even worse the other side looks like it had a bolt dropped down the spark plug tube which wreaked havoc inside that cylinder. It's logged in the head, so it looks like not only is this block basically toast but also this head is toast too. Pics belows.

Really disappointing. I bet it was two owners ago that accidently dropped this bolt down into the cylinder, didn't realize it, they ran the truck and then it made awful noises. They sold it to previous owner who thought he could fix it and was in over his head. Now it leaves me with the bag lol.

What to do now is the question. I guess I need to find a used motor and rebuild that one, or maybe drop it right in. I don't yet, but keen to hear any thoughts from you guys.

Snake plissken

These trucks are common as spit so you should be able to find a good used motor for cheap. Find out if your motor is a Romero or windsor. Windsor I think is the better. Try and get the same year model as yours. Make sure the seller of the used motor tells you FIRST if their motor is a Windsor or Romero before you tell him what you want. Then refresh that motor before you install. Yea, these motors can be a pain to remove or install without a engine leveled.....that's what I use.