looking at a 96 f250 with 460 and e4od and 4x4. anything i should look out for. it has approximately 150000 miles on it

 

Look for rust/rot. Rear wheel wells will rot until they have holes large enough to drain. Cab corners rot. Front quarter panels, just behind wheel arches rot. Radiator support rots out. Rear most spring hangers rot bad, usually can knock a hole right through them with a claw hammer. I would bring a jack, and lift the front end, grab the wheel and check for worn ball joints and tie rods.

Of course, check the oil, and trans fluid. Before you run the truck, check the coolant inside the radiator, just make sure its fairly clean. Tells you what kind of care the owner took of the truck. Look for leaking seals on the axle. Check for engine oil leakage, and trans leaks. At 150k it may be weaping oil and or trans fluid, but just make sure its not dumping.

Others may chime in with more detailed checks for that motor.

 

Check over the exhaust, particularly the manifold bolts. They have a tendency to "pop" the bolt heads off from heat and cheap factory bolts. When this happens the bolts become stuck in the block which can be an easy fix or an absolute nightmare depending on how bad the bolts are stuck.

Count the bolt heads, if some are missing, break out the welder. DO NOT attempt the easy-out method regardless of how easy the internet folks make it seem, lol.

Other than that, just the normal wear and tear.

Mine needed a new exhaust and a front u-joint when I paid 3k for it. Those repairs turned into:

-Head replaced (because the bolts were NOT coming out so it was easier to replace the head).
-Headers, because I wasn't dealing with the stock manifolds again.
-All new exhaust
-All new u-joints
-All 4 Ball joints
-New brakes all around including various lines.
-New starter
-New alternator
-New shocks
-New locking hubs

I'm sure I'm forgetting some but most of it is the usual stuff you'd expect buying a 17 yr old truck...from a state with no annual inspections... lol