I want to rejoin the Ford Truck fold and i am looking at a 1990 XLT Lariat 4WD with the 300cuin I6. What should I check to make sure its in good shape? What can I expect to go wrong with the truck? It has 133K miles on it, but it is mostly highway miles. I really want to keep this truck forever so I don't want to be disappointed like I was with my Ranger. I want any constructive criticism.

BTW - He wants $7K.

Thanks,
Randy

 

Good set up if it has an automatic tranny. The 5 speeds are M5OD, manufactured by a Mazda subsidiary in Japan. This tranny is good for about 146,000 miles acording to my 89 4WD F150. Not too-too bad, but, considoring rebuild parts are high cost for these things....stay away. I got lucky and got a back door deal at a wholesale tranny rebuild company (Wade Transmission in Dallas) and it only cost $999 plus tax to purchase a rebuilt one with my core swap.

Second, the 4.9-6 is bullet proof, but don't expect great mpg. If you have a camper, pull a trailer, or think you might want to add hp later on, stick with the 5.0/5.8. The 5.0 will get almost identical mpg in town, or city, and better when towing a load. 5.8 suffers a little mpg in the city, all things considored, its the best choice if its an 89 or better motor.

The cool thing about a 4.9 is they are cheap to buy, and they run forever.

$7000 sounds high, though. Check a blue book type web site like www.edmunds.com for its worth in your area of the country.

hope that offers some help.

 

>Good set up if it has an
>automatic tranny. The 5 speeds
>are M5OD, manufactured by a Mazda
>subsidiary in Japan. This tranny
>is good for about 146,000 miles
>acording to my 89 4WD F150.
> Not too-too bad, but, considoring
>rebuild parts are high cost for
>these things....stay away. I got
>lucky and got a back door
>deal at a wholesale tranny rebuild
>company (Wade Transmission in Dallas) and
>it only cost $999 plus tax
>to purchase a rebuilt one with
>my core swap.
>Second, the 4.9-6 is bullet proof, but
>don't expect great mpg. If
>you have a camper, pull a
>trailer, or think you might want
>to add hp later on, stick
>with the 5.0/5.8. The 5.0
>will get almost identical mpg in
>town, or city, and better when
>towing a load. 5.8 suffers
>a little mpg in the city,
>all things considored, its the best
>choice if its an 89 or
>better motor.
>The cool thing about a 4.9 is
>they are cheap to buy, and
>they run forever.
>$7000 sounds high, though. Check a
>blue book type web site like
>www.edmunds.com for its worth in your
>area of the country.
>hope that offers some help.

It has an automatic and the dealer says that it is from the F250 model (special order). I noticed the rear main seal leaking a little, is this common? What kind of gas mileage can I expect? I am not looking for more horses and I won't tow alot, I need it for hauling lumber in the bed, 4X4 for hunting, and getting my wife to the hospital this winter (pregnant).

Anything else I should look at?

Thanks again.
Randy

 

If that unit has the E4OD be extremely cautious. FWIW, ray

 

>If that unit has the E4OD be
>extremely cautious. FWIW, ray

It is a 4 speed with overdrive. How can I tell if it is the E4OD? Where should I look for the designation? I have the VIN, would it be mixed in there?

Thanks for the help.
Randy

 

If you are seriouse about this truck,You should really look it over one more time.Youll want to check the fuel tanks if they are duals,switch from one to the other and drive a few miles,there were numerouse recalls durring several years,concerning the check valves and so on. Go to www.nhtsa.dot.gov and look up your recalls and service bulletins.THIS WILL GIVE YOU SOME NEGOTIATING POWER ALSO. Check both axles for water in the differentials,the truck should have a Dana 44 Reverse front axle,and a Ford 8.8" rear axle.Unscrew the filler plugs and insert a clean dark colored rag about 3" into it then remove and look for milky colored bubbles in the gear oil,(thats water).If it has water in the front it probably isnt that bad since it doesnt get used much,but change it at once if you purchase it.If there is water in the rear, start negotiating $$$ off of the purchase price to replace the inner and outer bearings,seals. Perform hard braking manuevers,this will tell if it has front to rear proportioning problems with the ABS system and may detect front end vibration due to poor bushings in the steering and supension,all of these are probably due for replacement unless they have maintaned.Replacement and upgrades for these problems are not that difficult,but they should be considered in the purchase price.If it has the automatic tranny it is probably an E4OD,(look for the little push button below and to the right of the steering collumn that disingages the OD).If the you are still interested at that point it would be worth it to have the tranny cover removed and inspect the magnet at the bottom af the pan.The aluminum pieces used in the E4OD will not show up there but the steel from the bearings,shafts,and races will definitely be there.If the fluid is very clean,and no metals at all are present then they just changed it themselves,(they usualy dont though because hardley anyone checks). If there is a lot of metal just consider that the E4OD cost about $1800 - $2700 to rebuild depending on damaged and performance enhanceing parts used in the rebuild. Check the tires for uneven wear especialy to the inside fronts due to poor allignment of the IFS suspension. I am not that familliar with the I-6 but those who like em really seem rave about em,Ive heard they are nearly indestructible. Good Luck,
Jeff

 

>If you are seriouse about this truck,You
>should really look it over one
>more time.Youll want to check the
>fuel tanks if they are duals,switch
>from one to the other and
>drive a few miles,there were numerouse
>recalls durring several years,concerning the check
>valves and so on. Go to
>www.nhtsa.dot.gov and look up your recalls
>and service bulletins.THIS WILL GIVE YOU
>SOME NEGOTIATING POWER ALSO. Check both
>axles for water in the differentials,the
>truck should have a Dana 44
>Reverse front axle,and a Ford 8.8"
>rear axle.Unscrew the filler plugs and
>insert a clean dark colored rag
>about 3" into it then remove
>and look for milky colored bubbles
>in the gear oil,(thats water).If it
>has water in the front it
>probably isnt that bad since it
>doesnt get used much,but change it
>at once if you purchase it.If
>there is water in the rear,
>start negotiating $$$ off of the
>purchase price to replace the inner
>and outer bearings,seals. Perform hard braking
>manuevers,this will tell if it has
>front to rear proportioning problems with
>the ABS system and may detect
>front end vibration due to poor
>bushings in the steering and supension,all
>of these are probably due for
>replacement unless they have maintaned.Replacement and
>upgrades for these problems are not
>that difficult,but they should be considered
>in the purchase price.If it has
>the automatic tranny it is probably
>an E4OD,(look for the little push
>button below and to the right
>of the steering collumn that disingages
>the OD).If the you are still
>interested at that point it would
>be worth it to have the
>tranny cover removed and inspect the
>magnet at the bottom af the
>pan.The aluminum pieces used in the
>E4OD will not show up there
>but the steel from the bearings,shafts,and
>races will definitely be there.If the
>fluid is very clean,and no metals
>at all are present then they
>just changed it themselves,(they usualy dont
>though because hardley anyone checks). If
>there is a lot of metal
>just consider that the E4OD cost
>about $1800 - $2700 to rebuild
>depending on damaged and performance enhanceing
>parts used in the rebuild. Check
>the tires for uneven wear especialy
>to the inside fronts due to
>poor allignment of the IFS suspension.
>I am not that familliar with
>the I-6 but those who like
>em really seem rave about em,Ive
>heard they are nearly indestructible. Good
>Luck, Jeff

I was serious about the truck until I got more info from here. I know now that it does have the E4OD, and it has a ton of miles on it. The dealer doesn't have the repair records, so I am going to talk to the previous owner. All I got was a test drive, no chance to pull the diff plugs or drop the tranny pan. I'll have to take it for more than 5 minutes to really give it the good once over. It looked like they recently replaced the front steering stabilizer bar (wasn't rusted like the rest) so they probably aligned it. I noticed oil leakage from the rear main seal and a small amount around the plugs on both diffs (I assume they refilled them). Also oil leakage from the lowest point of the transfer case, don't know if I should worry about that or not. Looks like a small amount of seepage from the valve cover that is running down the exhaust side of the block (or could that be from the head??)

Side note: I have owned a Ranger and a slew of Honda's and they never leaked any oil (engine or tranny). Is this kind of leakage common? Or was I just lucky on my last few vehicles?

Supposedly, the vehicle was always serviced by Ford dealers. If I took the VIN into a Ford dealer could they pull up all the repairs they did?

I am starting to think about looking for something with a few less miles and cheaper. What do you think someone should pay for a good F150 with 4X4? I don't need all the bells and whistles like the Lariat, I just want a dependable work truck.

Thanks,
Randy

 

 

WOW...$7000.
I'd say keep looking. I just bought a 91 xlt lariat I6...rust free..$800.
I'd drive it anywhere...now I don't get deals like this often...I do see
plenty of GOOD trucks in the $2500 to $3500 range...A $20 car fax
is money well spent...my two cents.

 

I agree, in my area you could buy a 96 or 97 4x4 for that or less. I would keep looking for a cheaper truck. I picked my 94 xlt up for $2500 4 years ago, granted that was a killer deal, but they are out there. Not sure where you are located at but I would scour the classifieds and avoid the stealerships.

 

ive got little over 200,000 miles on my 90 lariat 4.9, just did the tranny, e4od, have done the fuel pumps twice, starter once, water pump once, alternator once. fuel tank dash switch twice. headliner once. hmmm, think thats it.

 

WOW!!!...Hopefully 15 years later this truck is still available for the OP!


I would write more but I'm out of time on my AOL CD and only have a 14.4k modem.

 

Lol! Just read through that whole thread until the last post. In 1999, it was probably good for 7000.00.

 

At least you got to post that before somebody needed to make a phone call!

 

probably was a good deal in 1999.....too funny..my bad.