My F-350 is pissing me off

[08FJR4ME]

Everyone I talk too that owns one has had constant bad calipers going to shit. If that wasn't enough The engine shit the bed on me just before my vacation. I have 30K on the truck and it is a 2009. I change the oil as required. Seems as the though the cam sensor has now shit the bed and it is going to cost me over $1,700.00 to fix.

REALLY, 30K miles?. I see a GMC in my future next time around. Not only that a freind at work told me it will cost $300.00 to change the plugs and he suggest getting it done before 60K.

Edit: Triton V8 5.4 engine

Bastages,

Dave

 

[thompsonian]

Man...that seems a little crazy it shat itself at that low of miles. Nothing Ford will do?

 

[lnewlf]

at least your front hubs haven't seized...yet

 

[08FJR4ME]

Nope, They tell me I don't use it enough. That's there excuse. I have two bad calipers now that need replacing. The last one chewed up the rear disc and shattered the piston. The one wheel cost me almost $400.00 by the time I was done. It was the one with the emergency brake which also pulled out of the backing plate.

GRRRRRRRRR, Needed to rant.

Dave

 

[08FJR4ME]

at least your front hubs haven't seized...yet

Not so, one did sieze. The plastic cam pieces you turn if that's what you mean.

 

[BkerChuck]

Dave,

I feel your pain. I bought a F-150 new in 2003 and call it my POS edition. Like yours mine only gets used when the weather is too bad to ride my bike or if I need to haul something. I don't know that I'll ever buy another Ford. I do know I was damn glad I took the extended warranty after my limited slip rear went out to the tune of over 1200 bucks.

Best of luck man

 

[Geezer]

Regarding the engine, those repair prices sound totally out of line. I thought the engine warranty was for 100K due to EPA requirements. I would expect that to cover the cam sensor, not the plugs.

 

[SLK50]

Chevy's the best.

I rather push a Ford than drive a Chevy.

I'll never buy another Ford.

Dodge Ram FTW.

Blah blah blah

Yada yada yada.

As with just about everything else in life: YMMV

~600K miles on Fords in this century alone.

Nothing lasts forever.

 

[BkerChuck]

Per Ford website this is the warranty information

Bumper to Bumper: 3 years / 36,000 miles
Powertrain: 5 years/60,000 miles; Diesel: 5 years/100,000 miles Safety Restraint System: 5 years / 60,000 miles Corrosion (Perforation only): 5 years / Unlimited miles Roadside Assistance Program: 5 years / 60,000 miles

I think emission controls may fall under additional warranty requirements but I'm not sure.

 

[HotRodZilla]

Every now and then, one comes off the line, FUBAR. You may have been the unlucky guy. You have an F350 with a Triton 5.4?? I didn't know that motor was an option in a 350. If that's the motor you have there are TONS of salvaged motors, and aftermarket solutions. I know it's stupid, but Auto Zone parts always worked out really well for me. That engine isn't too hard to work on, so if you have the time, I know you have the talent, you could probably knock it out pretty easily.

As far as reliability goes, everyone has their preference. Having driven both Fords and Chevys for work, I can tell you a LOT would have to go wrong for me to buy a Chevy. I've seen too many of them just fall apart. However, stuff I've seen lately with some of our cars is making me wonder if all these things aren't made in China.

 

[08FJR4ME]

Every now and then, one comes off the line, FUBAR. You may have been the unlucky guy. You have an F350 with a Triton 5.4?? I didn't know that motor was an option in a 350. If that's the motor you have there are TONS of salvaged motors, and aftermarket solutions. I know it's stupid, but Auto Zone parts always worked out really well for me. That engine isn't too hard to work on, so if you have the time, I know you have the talent, you could probably knock it out pretty easily.
As far as reliability goes, everyone has their preference. Having driven both Fords and Chevys for work, I can tell you a LOT would have to go wrong for me to buy a Chevy. I've seen too many of them just fall apart. However, stuff I've seen lately with some of our cars is making me wonder if all these things aren't made in China.

I have been a Ford man all my life. Chevy makes a good engine or at least it did at one time. The vehicle itself sucks and falls apart and rust much sooner than fords. ( JMO ) The 5.4 has been around a long time and I am sure there are plenty around. It seems to me this engine is fubar design wise but with technology they could be all getting that way. I thought about fixing it myself buy you guys keep me to busy you know. LOL Not only that but one half of my garage is full of machines and the other half is starting to acumulate items also. The wife keeps complaining about that on a weekly basis. Right now the two FJR's are temorarily taking her space. I am in the doghouse currently.

 

[MrZappo]

No horse in this race but that is really low mileage ... Is this truck kept outside ? I would not find it odd for brake components to go to he!! if a vehicle sat outside ... Either way, it does suck but vehicles do rot if they sit .

 

[FJRay]

I'm on my second F150 with the 5.0 engine and no issues. I've heard some not so good things about the 5.4. My neighbor just shit canned his GMC for engine issues and bought a Ford. I don't know if any brand stands out as the best. I'm a bit ford biased but will be shopping around this summer for something else because I don't really need two trucks and a utility trailer.

 

[juniorfjr]

The 5.4 three valve has had some high mileage cam issues. Usually over 100k. Sucks to hear your problems. With the high cost of shop rates, I've started doing more work myself. You tube is your friend.

Fwiw, I'm a Ford guy.

 

[08FJR4ME]

No horse in this race but that is really low mileage ... Is this truck kept outside ? I would not find it odd for brake components to go to he!! if a vehicle sat outside ... Either way, it does suck but vehicles do rot if they sit .

Yes it does spend it's life outside. No problems with rusting at all. Every vehicle I buy goes right into the garage to get undercoated before use.

Ray, I agree on the 5.0 engine. Even my 65 mustang had a 124K on it and it kept on running. It smoked a bit but still spun up the tires easy.

Dave

 

[LittleJon]

I wasn't going to throw in my opinion, but you asked:

"I have been a Ford man all my life. Chevy makes a good engine or at least it did at one time. The vehicle itself sucks and falls apart and rust much sooner than fords. ( JMO )"

(Just so happens JMO are my initials.)

GM's better because I like it.

So there.

For real, though, I work with a gentleman (He's not really a gentleman. Bit of a prick, actually, but there's no need for me to be rude.) who drives a 2008 F350 that had to have the engine replaced at 58,000 miles. He was a service tech, and spent the majority of his time away from home, and the truck sat for long periods. I wonder if that may be a contributing factor.

I do drive a GMC, because its got the comfort and power I need. I bought it fully understanding that it will be a rusted out rot box in the not too distant future, years before I'm ready to replace it.

 

[MrZappo]

No horse in this race but that is really low mileage ... Is this truck kept outside ? I would not find it odd for brake components to go to he!! if a vehicle sat outside ... Either way, it does suck but vehicles do rot if they sit . by design are

Yes it does spend it's life outside. No problems with rusting at all. Every vehicle I buy goes right into the garage to get undercoated before use.

Ray, I agree on the 5.0 engine. Even my 65 mustang had a 124K on it and it kept on running. It smoked a bit but still spun up the tires easy.

Dave

I understand ... I will say however that brake components are not body panels or undercarriage ... Most body and frame components are galvanized these days so you would not see rusting .. But brake components are raw by design (some of the components) and therefore will rust with a vengeance ... Any truck sitting outside or in a garage with large temp/humidity swings (lots of condensation opportunities) will rust where not galvanized ... Or otherwise coated ...

Either way, I dont think any of the big 3 are "better" these days ...

Good luck on your issue ...

And I have one other thought for the thread ... When did 100,000 become "higher" mileage ... That was true in the 70's but if an engine is measured by saying it has cam issues or other internal issues above 100k, I would call that thing junk ... That should be half life of a moderately cared for engine ..

 

[fjrob1300]

As a 3rd generation GM retiree I can tell you this. I've always had GM cars n trucks with the exception of one 2008 Ford Ranger and a Jeep Rubicon. Jeeps are Jeeps JSNS. The Ranger went through brakes and brake components like they were candy. I follow the manufactures maintenance schedule on all my new vehicles. All my GM vehicles went well over 200000 miles with 2 going over 300000. They were still running when I sold them. My Ranger was still solid in the body but the amount of brake work I did was just stupid, Go with the GM you'll be happy.

Rob

 

[Klubis]

I had a '97 F150 with the 5.4 liter engine. Somewhere around 150,000 miles, I gave it to my daughter. She and her husband drove it until it was well past 200,000 miles. Changed the sparkity plugs once at 100,000 miles. The dang truck was rock solid the whole time.

There were rumors going around in '98 or '99 that oil grade was critical for this engine, supposedly because of tight tolerances. The wrong oil, the rumors said, could cause pre manure wear, specifically on the wrist pins. I personally did every oil and filter change until I gave it to Katie, making sure the right stuff went in.

I like Ford trucks a lot. My biggest concern with the new Fords is, the turbo sixes. I'm not convinced they will last as long as a V8. I hope I'm wrong.

I've had Chevy trucks, too. I have no complaints about them, except they don't turn very tight. Their engines are solid, in my opinion.

IMO, American V8 engines will run forever if you treat them nice. Sorry to hear about your bad experience with the F350.