Just seeing what you guys think:

-1990 F-150 XLT Lariat (Odometer shows 59,462.5 miles)
-*Supposedly is 159,462 mles though*
-Door sticker says it was built 2/1990
-The car lot says $1,600 firm is the price.
----------------Specs------------------
-302/5 speed/4x4
-3.55 gears (Non H9 rearend )
-Manual Transfer Case/ Warn Manual Hubs
-"Reese" style Reciever Hitch
-At one time had a 5 wheel hitch
-A/C works, and so does both power windows!
-OEM Tachometer
-Has Front & Rear Anti-Sway Bars
-Has the "Sport" style front suspension (Dual Shocks per side)
-Has Cruise Control

Interior is in REALLY good shape for a 1990.

-Headliner is good/not sagging
-Dash has no cracks, etc
-Has rubber floor mat in good shape, in lieu of carpet (Works for me)
-Seat doesn't have a rip or tear/stain in it
-Door panels are in good shape, as well as the window (Has a Car-Lite Windshield)
-Windows are tinted/ tint is in good shape (Has XLT slider rear window )


Exterior is so so:

-Needs wheel arches in the bed
-Headlights are pretty yellowed
-Idiot PO has spray painted the ENTIRE truck, plsti-dipped the mirrors and VHT "Black out" painted the turn signals and tail lights (Barf)


The frame is in great shape, and the rear spring hangers/shackles are in solid shape (Visibly) along with what looks to be like the Radius Arm Bushings been replaced pretty recently.

----------------------------The bad-------------------------------

-Needs at least 1 engine mount
-Cruise Control doesn't work
-Has the classic rear wheel arch rot (And a crapload of body filler slapped on)
-Needs at least a donor P/S Leaf Spring pack (Has 2 leaves broken)
-key switch is a tad wonky. It'll start, etc but the switch seems to be trying to stick.
-Has the classic white vacuum line crumbling/breaking
-Needs a GOOD cleaning under hood and under the truck in general
-Radiator Core Support is starting to rot; but I personally think I can salvage it.
-Needs the Transmission Shifter bushings replaced. The shifter is as loose as my ex wife.



Here's some pics:






























I personally drove it about 3 miles. It started and drove fairly well. Needs a good tuneup, etc but all things considered, it was a fairly pleasurable drive.


Things I did NOT get to check was:

-Seeing if BOTH fuel pumps are in good working order (Was running on the front tank)
-I checked the turn signals while driving and they worked, but I didn't check the horn or the headlights (Was in a tad of a hurry).
-Didn't get to check the Heater (Was kinda warm today, and the A/C was nice!)

 

Looks pretty good to me. But omg at the black paint! Eww. Nice blue intake, though.

Tanner

 

I like that fancy battery hold down. And what's with the hose clamped to the end of the air pump muffler? It's really not too far out of line on price, but the 5th wheel deal and broken springs says it has had a rough life. Then the next guy "customized" the heck out of it with cute shifter *****, paint and stuff. But since the a/c works, that means somebody sort-of took care of it. If you can live with the paint job, go for it.

 

Oh yea, plan on brakes soon. Look at the master cyl reservoir. It's almost empty and dirty as heck.

 

The amount of wear on the door sill and seal look to be much more than the wear on the seats...I suspect the seats have been replaced or recovered.

I don't know these trucks well at all, but the faux wood trim on the dash doesn't match the chrome trim on the door panels. I suspect the door panels are replacements.

The arm rest pads have plenty of sag and shine to them to be original, as the door opening handles are white/sun faded enough to be age appropriate, but again, the rest of the panel is too new to match.

The brake fluid that is in the reservoir is nasty, the fluid that is missing says there is a problem.

The shiney hoses and plastic pieces look like they've been bathed in armour all. The missing AC line insulation and missing black paint on the vertical black cylinder (it is an AC part, but I don't know what it is) say it took a lot of pressure washings to get it to look this clean.

Bonus? The battery is secured with some righteous red wire that is worth of a few cents of scrap copper.

My opinion is run away, don't walk. What you think you are saving in purchase price will cost you double.

 

Dang eakermeld, you type fast!

 

My 90 has the exact same trim. Kinda miss-matched, but possible for original.

 

that 5 speed needs to be checked the m5od is not really designed for heavy towing

 

You like that too, eh? I'm thinking about modding all my trucks like that!

 

I guess it boils down to how much do you have to spend to fix it to your standards?

How long before it need tires?

Needs a spring pack, usually change them in pairs if you go with new because the new ones will ride at a different height.

Count on brakes needing to be done.

Does the 4x4 work? I would check the front end real good. I'd jack it up and look at every moving part for looseness.

Can you pay cash? That might get a better price.

A 4x4 would come in handy here in a month or two!

 

since it's an xlt i am sure it has tilt steering, and the wonky key switch you mentioned sounds a lot like the actuator getting ready to fail. on a non-tilt column this isn't that big a deal, but a tilt column looks a lot like a piece of the space shuttle when you start taking it apart.

my overall feeling is that another $1000 bucks spent on a better truck would be money well spent BUT ... if this is exactly the engine/tranny/cab/box that you are looking for, you can't afford much more for an initial outlay, and are willing to spend time and money getting this one into shape then go for it.

 

the trim is correct. well what do you expect for $1600.00, and from a dealer, well that means you gave $400.00, if that.

 

I think 1600 is way too much for that truck, in my area that's a 500 dollar truck plus a 5 th wheel hitch in a 302 truck would steer me away too.