Hello.
My 2004 5.4 truck has 215000 miles on it. still runs good. always had that tick.....

when it comes time to put an engine in it....can i change it myself without raising the cab?
i have experience at working on old vehicles and i own a heavy equipment and trucking business. I have changed many engines....

Can i do this?

by the way....what is the latest year model engine 5.4 that i can install in my 2004 truck? i want the latest and most updated version of the 5.4. no cam phaser problems and perfect reliability. what model will work? price? used? new? thanks.

 

Yes the engine can be replaced without pulling the cab. In fact I have never seen the cab pulled to replace the engine on an F150. If you replace the timing components yourself it's going to be MUCH cheaper than replacing the entire engine.

 

thanks for the info and reply.
that is good to know that i can change my engine without pulling off the cab.

what were you meaning about timing components? my engine currently runs good but eventually i will need to replace at the mileage that i put on the truck in a years time. i was asking what the latest greatest engine is that will fit my truck. someone once told me 2010 was the newest version of 5.4 with the most upgrades that will fit my truck??

thanks

 

I thought you were wanting to replace the engine for the cam phaser tick. I'm not personally experienced with what years are interchangeable. This is what I've been told though, 04-08 basically all the same might run into a few differences in electrical and vacuum connections. Also some later models did not have the oil temp sensor. The 09-10 5.4's are do able but many differences that can be a huge pain to deal with. Hopefully someone with firsthand experience can chime in and help you out more than I can.

If you're waiting for the bottom end of the 5.4 to wear out I think you're going to have quite a wait. The ones I've seen replaced have all been due to oil pressure loss at the head (usually from a blown tensioner seal) causing scoring to a camshaft. Other than replacing a head and risking that some of that aluminum could still be in the engine somewhere the owners will often choose a reman engine.

 

I have ..... local Ford garage does it .....
park truck at side arm lift,
raise and unhook stuff under,
lower,
unhook what's left,
reposition lift arms to catch just cab using some boards to spread load,
lift just cab straight up,
use portable shop crane for engine swap,
ease cab straight down,
reposition lift arms to frame,
raise whole truck,
make connections under,
lower to finish up.

Never move rolling chassis or cab once start.