I'm looking for a reg cab short bed 2wd f-150 for a second truck. was wondering what motor i should look for for the best MPG and good reliability. The truck will be used for driving back and forth to work and little things like that.

 

What year? Quite obvoiusly, the V6 will do the best at Fuel economy, but if going to tow heavy stuff than get the V8...........transmissions are not much different in fuel economy............but for top economy, get the 3.08's.....that will help more than the 3.55's.

 

If you get a V-6 4.2 make sure that it is a 2003 or newer be aware of the lower intake gasket leak pre 2002 that can hydro-lock that engine.

I would look for a 3.08 Regular cab with the 4.2 and 5spd for best fuel economy if you are not carrying or towing anything heavy.

 

I have had 2 F-150,s...One was the 97 Longbox,Automatic with the 4.2.It was showing around 186,000 miles when traded.I traded for an 07 with the same powertrain,and bed.Both XL,s(no bells and whistles).
With that being said,the 97 never let me down,and the wife loves the 07 better than her loaded out Impala.
IF you have no real plans on towing anything major,and use it for a Daily Driver,I suggest the 4.2.Standard tranny will obviously help on economy,but that was not an option in my case.
Concerning the "newer" 4.2,s,I have to agree.Most all of the intake issues(Hydrolock) etc have been corrected in the newer generation engines.
Concerning economy,I can average about 20-21 mpg driving like the old fart I am.

 

not towing anything other than myself in the truck, thats what the F-350 is for. i just want a good second truck thats a reg cab 2wd for the daily driving thing that gets better then 12mpg that i get in my F-350. the year doesnt matter at all.

 

I had a 97 with the 4.2/auto,with 3.08's got 21 on the open road, and I towed with it, and it would get 14. I also had a 98 4X4 4.6 auto,with 3.55's got 17........now have a 5.4 F150........

 

ive been looking and this is THE ONLY reg cab short bed i can find, good thing is its the 5speed manual! What do you guys think
2000 Ford F150, Used Cars For Sale - Carsforsale.com

 

Looks like a clean and straight truck for being 12+ years old. Be aware of the lower intake gaskets on that particular truck. I have bought many of the 4.2 v-6 engines. That truck does not have the upgraded gaskets like 2003+ trucks. Many of the older trucks have had newer gaskets installed. That can be an expensive fix. Can you get service records for that truck?

 

If it were here that price is a good $1K too much, even for those low miles. I know a lot of vehicles I have seen out of NJ have terrible rust. Should get great mileage with that combo.