Car troubles and I come to you all for your advice.

[smokintexas]

You know that bond that a man makes with his first car? The bond that you say "no matter what, I will always keep this car." The bond that makes you ignore the loud noises and dark smoke that emit from the vehicle, the bond that makes you so angry when others call your car a piece of shit. Well, this is the bond that I had with my first vehicle, my '98 F-150. We bought the vehicle used in 2003 with just over 100,000 miles and it ran perfectly. 6 years, another 100,000 miles, a few wrecks, and this is no longer the case. The truck has broken down 3 times in the last month. The first time it was the starter which I was able to replace fairly easily myself, the second time it was the serpentine belt which again I was able to easily fix. This last time, Saturday, I was driving and I noticed that the oil gauge dropped out and the oil light came on. I pulled over and put a couple of quarts of oil in to try to make it to the family friend mechanic but no such luck. Broke down on the side of the highway and I had to get it towed the rest of the way. The first day they called me and said "Good news! Your engine is fine but the reason it broke down is because a bearing in the tensioner went out and your serpentine belt busted again." I was relieved to say the least, thinking that the truck might have some more life in it. Well, today they called to let me know the bad news. The reason the oil gauge dropped out was because the oil pump is going bad and because of that there is some pretty serious knocking in the bottom part of the engine. Essentially he said it will run now and I just have to wait for it to break down which could be tomorrow, or in 8 months. At which point it will cost roughly $3 Grand for a new engine and about 20 hours of labor on top of that.

So my question to you all is... Is it worth it to spend the $4-5,000 on getting a new engine on the truck that I would assume comes with some sort of warranty, or do I spend that $4-5,000 on getting a used car? Either way it's really a crap shoot because a used car for that amount could go for a long time, but it could just as well break down the day after I get it. This, of course, is assuming that the truck will last long enough for me to be able to save up that amount of money.

 

[bunn163A]

200,000 miles? definately time to upgrade.tranny wont last forever that another big one.Plus the pumps and compressors should be about finished.And breaking down sux!

 

[AVB]

Buy something new (er). You'll spend more keeping that truck on the road then it's worth.

 

[chadth]

You will likely spend $2-3K every year from this point forward on the vehicle to keep it running properly. The alternative is to spend a little more and have a new(er) car/truck to drive. I personally would opt for a newer vehicle and the peace of mind it will bring.

Good luck.

 

[Wolfie]

I know how you feel. I held onto my first car far longer than was rational and I was talking to a friend of mine the other day that still has that 78 firebird he drove when we were in high school 15+ years ago.

I don't truely know how you've treated it but your F-150 is young in my book. 200K miles and 10 years? Thing is in the prime of it's life, seriously! I think you could get some notable more life out of it cheaper than 3K but if it were me and I needed something reliable *now*...I'd spend a thousand bucks on an old bike, a shop manual and a good set of tools...Keep the F-150 for hauling and projects.

What? No good? Well, okay. So worst case scenario is that your engine gives up entirely, yeah? You mention a few wrecks but how bad is the body? If we're looking at a rust free, fairly straight body.............have you considered some more creative upgrades? You could have a lot of fun in the 3-4K range. I love Ford's 4.6 V-8. 383 stroker with a nice cat-back? V-12 from a wrecked Jag?

Hey...a few K more and drop in a Northstar? How about it? I'll even come by with cigars and beer and watch.

 

[Macion Grey]

I own a car with close to 400,000 kms on the clock. I need a new battery.

A lot of it is luck, and the rest is keeping it in good condition.

 

[Gunpowder]

Drive till junk while putting as much cash away for a newer one. Then spend for another vehicle. Don't go crazy on spending more. Vehicles are bad investments. A $3-$4K vehicle will get you going while you continue saving. Then save up more money to pay cash on a newer one.

 

[mtshdtv]

I think your question has been answered here but I'll chime in. First, I'd find a new mechanic 'Your engine is fine but the reason it broke down is because a bearing in the tensioner went out and your serpentine belt busted again' Most of the ford tensioners are a pulley with a spring inside, no bearing that I know of. A loose tensioner would probably just throw the belt. If the belt actually broke, it's possible the pulleys are probably not aligned (a few accidents). 'The reason the oil gauge dropped out was because the oil pump is going bad and because of that there is some pretty serious knocking in the bottom part of the engine.' I would think that would be the first thing they would notice.

If you shut the truck down after immediately losing oil pressure it's possible it could be salvageable. Possibly a clogged oil pump or worn oil pump shaft. If you've changed your oil often it's probably the shaft. The shop should be able to check with an oil pressure gauge quickly and tell you if it's got pressure or not. If you're inclined you may want to drop the oil pan at that point and replace the oil pump shaft which is in-expensive. Also, if it was oil pressure and not loss it maybe overfilled. A few extra quarts can cause noise and other problems.

 

[johncarbaugh]

The knocking would be rod bearings most likely. They can knock for a long time and never have a problem or they can spin and send a rod out the side of your block :0 . You could put a new oil pump and rod bearings in for around $200.00. It is not the best fix to put new bearings with a worn crank but it can get extra life out of the engine. Rebuilding an engine like a 302 what I would guess you have is easy if you know what you are doing. You could spend around $1,000 on the engine rebuild kit that would give you basically a new engine. I would not buy a rebuild unless it is backed by one hell of a warranty. Some of the places do not do complete rebuilds they just fix what they need to like the first idea I gave you.

The belt breaking has nothing to do with oil pressure. Oil pump runs off of your cam shaft it has a rod that goes from oil pump into bottom of distributer.

Hope this helps. If you have other questions I will try to help you. I use to be a mechanic at a Ford dealer. I work on Toyota and Subaru in the factory now.

 

[Fatken]

I hate car repairs. If it were me and I expected to spend $3k or more per year to keep up an old vehicle and the inconvienence that goes along with having to get them repaired, I would lease a new vehicle for $250 per month or less. You do have to consider the milage restrictions on leased vehicles. JMHO

Ken

 

[smokintexas]

I hate car repairs. If it were me and I expected to spend $3k or more per year to keep up an old vehicle and the inconvienence that goes along with having to get them repaired, I would lease a new vehicle for $250 per month or less. You do have to consider the milage restrictions on leased vehicles. JMHO

Ken

I wish I could do the lease, but unfortunately I didn't make the wisest of decisions with my credit when I moved out of the house and have put myself in a situation where I'll have to pay cash for a vehicle. As of now I'm leaning toward getting a cheap bike to get me around and driving the truck as little as possible and then to continue to save to get a newer vehicle.

 

[NullSmurf]

I have a 99 F150 with 140K on it. Its just as sweet now as it was when it was new. I have receipts showing oil changes every 3000-4000 miles back to the showroom. I know of many others who are well over 200K with nothing but trivial maintenance costs like plugs and belt.

If you do a used engine, you're looking at 2000-3000 with no real guarantee. A "crate" engine, a rebuild from Ford, but essentially new will cost you $5000. If mine blew tomorrow, I would do the crate in a heartbeat. I'd do it myself which would save me about $1800. My truck is a ROCK. I take good care of her, she still looks good, and she's paid for.

 

[slowhand]

Funny how folks get attached to their Ford Pickups

I went through the same thing. I had an '86 F-150 with a 300 6 in it. Best damn motor as far as I am concerned. It would climb a telephone pole if it could get traction. Went 275,000 miles before it finally gave in (and it was my own fault blowing the motor).

I hemmed and hawed about what to do. I bought that truck brand new with 4 miles on it. i eventually decided to put a new motor in it. $4,000 later, I hated the truck. It was a completely different truck. It is hard to explain but it just didn't feel right and I sold it two weeks later.

I miss that truck but I wouldn't take it back with that 'new' motor.

 

[CigarStone]

That motor price sounds high. I just put a new green motor in my 79 F-150 (351 modified) and it was $1200 plus labor.

 

[NullSmurf]

That motor price sounds high. I just put a new green motor in my 79 F-150 (351 modified) and it was $1200 plus labor.

Yours is a SWEET truck, Jeff. I'm talking Ford authorized rebuilt engine. Another forum calls em "crate" engines, and the price seems right about $3000. Another $500 in additional stuff, plus the obligatory blood and skin samples for the mechanic's GOD and its done.

 

[cbw2647]

This reminds me of those guys in the hood that put 26" wheels worth a couple of thousand on a 1984 Toyota corolla....... :whistling:

 

[Wolfie]

hah! Nah. I've had an 87 Toyota Corolla. It didn't know when to call it quits...I treated it like dirt until finally at almost a half million miles it finally just stopped moving...when it was creamed by an old woman in a Buick...while it was parked. The thing is, the Corolla was a souless vanilla tin can with a lawnmower engine. It wasn't a tank, there just wasn't much to go wrong.

I think you just get attached to your vehicle. The one you love and spend all your time with. I don't have an F-150, never have. But I do have a 96 Mustang. In 300K miles, that 4.6 let me down once...it was a recall I knew about but hadn't had done (the intake manifold) and Ford took care of everything, no questions asked. I've literally taken that engine to hell and back. I'd trust it to take me anywhere.

 

[{tpc}]

I would try to save up as much money as you can for a decent downpayment on a new (or newer) car or truck. Deals can be had right now. If you can hold out for a few months (assuming you already have like 4-5k saved up), I would try to get as close to 10k as you can and then plunk that down on something new.

While lots of people have great luck repairing/replacing engines/trannys and everything else, there are an equal amount that have the exact opposite luck, at least from what i've seen/heard.

Hell, I worked with a guy who found a old beat up geo metro for like $500. He drove the hell out of that thing, getting 40-45 mpg, saving money ALL over...gas..insurance...maintenance. When it broke he did fix it...but it was very cheap to do so. One day it brokedown in the parking lot...sounded like a fuel pump to me....I offered him $500 right then and there cash and he said no....less than $80 later...it was back on the road.

Put plpd on that truck and drive the wheels off while you save save save....then donate it for a tax writeoff. Hopefully you will have close to 10k by the time it dies, and plunk that down on a new or newer truck and try to finance less than 10k....if you can do that, 10k over 5 years might equal pretty cheap payments...maybe that will work.

At any rate, whatever you decide, good luck bro!

 

[johncarbaugh]

You could also go to a salvage yard and find a used engine for around 500. You can change an engine in a day.