Hey There!

I recently bought an F150 that was in decent shape for a weekend truck to support my gardening habit. I had the truck checked out by the local Ford Dealership and they gave it a clean bill of health with some minor stuff that needed to be fixed like brakes, manifold repair, and belt replacement.

It drives like a champ now and I'm starting to fall in love with it and want to improve her even further but I am wondering if it's worth it or if I should get a newer model. Here are the things that I need an opinion on if it's fixable.

1: I think she was in an accident because while the frame seems in good shape and the original 20 years of rust in undisturbed under the body, the bumper points down about 15' and the headlights are being held in with zip ties.

2: I think the previous owner replaced the windshield himself cause it seems to leak a bit when it rains and the windows fog up.

3: I think the drive door, hood, and right front fender are aftermarket because they don't fit right. The door has a slight gap when closed as if it's missing a seal but the Hanes manual doesn't indicate that the seal should be there.

She starts one the first keyturn and is eager to take off, the 4x4 is solid, and all the interior lights seem to work.

Is there anything else I should be considering? I'm an IT Pro, but a car noob. I've always brought my fancy foreign cars to the dealership for the expensive service, but I really want to start working on Babe (the truck was Vermillion Red, but painted blue at Macco so I named her after Paul Bunyans Ox) myself. Did I bite off more than I can chew?

Thanks!

 

1) The bumper shifting is kinda common. Usually you can loosen the bolts on the mounts and realign it so it is where it should be. A lot of the grill of my truck I had to zip tie down, as the previous owner broke the tabs that hold it in. I really wouldn't worry about it too much. But if the lights move, you may want to replace the housing.

2) Same deal on my truck. At the very bottom light snow will blow in, and rain will come through. I have thought about just putting a bead of clear silicone there to fix it cheaply.

3) I think a picture would probably do better than describing what's going on there. If there wasn't a gap in the door, it probably wouldn't fit at all. But perhaps whoever owned the truck just replaced some panels because it got a dent or something. These things happen.

None of those things seem too devastating. You said the truck has rust on the frame, how do the spring shackles look on the rear (the brackets that the leaf springs connect to the frame with). Often times they will rust out and become really weak if somebody neglected spraying down the frame now and then. I guess give the truck a good look over for places where rust has taken too much of a toll. If everything else feels good, I wouldn't worry too much.