I'm in the market for a new truck and generally prefer a six cylinder. After lurking around here for a while I've come to the conclusion that the 4.2L had some problems and comes in a couple of flavors - really good or has been or soon to be replaced. Since money is sort of tight I have a few questions....

Should I just not even look at a '97 with this engine? In short, pay for a V8 or a newer model...

How do I tell the difference between a good one and a bad one? In other words - if I find a '97 with 120K and it sounds ok... is it *really* ok or should I be real cautious? Is there a way to verify if it has been repaired or replaced at 90K like so many here seem to have been?

What if I find a real good deal on a truck with a known bad engine in it? Can I get a short block or a rebuildable block cheap?

 

If you're trying to save a buck or two, why not look at a little older truck, like a '92 to '96? They're a lot more reliable and can be had for much cheaper.

 

Well you already know that the 4.2 is a hunk of crap. But if you want a Six cylender why not go for a 300 inline six? It'll give you loads of power. Or get the V-8 I'd steer clear of the 4.2.

1979 F-150 4x4 351M C-6 NP205
2001 Ranger XL

 

Apparently 2 of the three motors offered in the '97+ are "crap"? The 4.6L burns oil and apparently has valve seal problems based on reading over in that forum. The 5.4L will cost me in insurance...especially after my heavy right foot gets used to having it around.

Since I like the new body styles my thinking was a 97 or 96 w/ 4.2L that I rebuilt myself would fit the budget nicely, not cheap but at least I'd know what I had and with any luck a truck I could drive for a long while. Guess I'll just hang on to the '95 with the I6 a bit longer....

 

The 4.2 and the 4.6 are great engines. Ford builds and sells 1 million of these trucks every year!! You are basing comments on a hand full of people who had negetive expieriences, a very small percentage of trucks compared to number produced. Ford has the best quality trucks there is, they don't sell that many on looks alone. I own a 99 F-150 Supercab with the 4.2 V6 5 speed and 3.08 rear gear. I put a K&N air filter in it and I get 17mpg in city traffic and 21 to 22 mpg on interstate at 70mph and I have very good power. I would recomend the V6 for a two wheel drive with 5speed. If you must have an automatic the V6 is a little slow off the line and you will get better results with 4.6 V8.

 

:-staun :-staun :-staun WHAT!!!!:-staun 4.2s are great engines Just wait until you have about 70-90k on your "great" 4.2 and you will change your mind. 4.2s are JUNK!!! I work at Capital Ford in Raleigh NC and I have seen SSOOOOO many 4.2s get replaced with 50, 60, 70k on them. A great engine should last at least 150k. I have seen brand new 2002 4.2 F150s with less that 2k get new engines. DO NOT BUY A 4.2!!! The 4.6s, however, are good.

 

I have a 97 F150 XL,4.2,AUTO,76,000 miles...i havent had any problems,"yet".....so,being you work for FORD,tell us what is bad about these motors? I cant believe "all" 4.2s are bad....is it the bearing tolerances; are they that close?could it be the bearings are that close some people use heavier oil than what is needed and starve the bearings? And the antifreeze thing,could it be people are neglecting to flush the system and causing huge amounts of rust and other things to make the head gaskets go bad?or,have these bad motors just been neglected from day one with no routine maintenance? I sure would like to know!!!

 

well for starters it is basically the same as the 3.8 car engine. Head gaskets are bad for going out. The oil pump is in the aluminum timing cover and the gears wear grooves in it a lot faster than a cast iron pump. The timing cover gasket fails and antifreeze gets into the oil destroying the bearings. The bearings themselves are too small for a truck engine. I have seen copper worn through several times on engines with less than 70k with proper maintance. They are loud and harsh. The EGR ports get clogged easily allowing all the EGR gases to go to one cylinder causing a miss. I have seen engines where the thrust bearing completly wears away and the crank moves back and forth 1/4" (the 2002s I mentioned). Ask anybody that works on fords for a living and they will tell you the 3.8 and 4.2 are JUNK.

 

Fatf150 if you don't belive me then read the post titled "97 F150 4.2 engine Rods BAD/engine bad!!". My advice to you is to sell your truck while its still running good.

 

Ok,i did a little research Saturday on this 4.2 v6 matter.Seems that 97% of the bad motors are from Canadian built Ford trucks.The Ford guy asked if my VIN started with a "2" meaning a Canadian built Ford;told him no;he said i should not worry then.And the other 3% are most likely Canadian made V6s that made there way into American made Ford trucks. So,is this correct or am i being told a load of crap?:-X23

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 26-Aug-02 AT 11:08 AM (EST)]I think I'd have a hard time buying that... my bs detector is going off. Sounds like some of that finger pointing like what the computer tech support people will do to you... Would anyone that works for Ford really disclose it if they had problems like that in a plant?

Unless of course that Canadian plant was shipping engines to the assembly plant in Norfolk, VA. I'd think that's were the majority of the trucks 70f100longbed is working on would be coming from if he's in Carolina. Ford isn't going to pay any more money than they have to to ship new trucks around to dealers.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought all 4.2s and 3.8s were made at the Windsor plant in Canada. I know 4.6s are made in either the Windsor plant or the Romeo plant. Sorry for all the s**t talk but I have a bad opinion about the 4.2 and 3.8

 

Opinions are allowed here aren't they??

Seems like if they're all built in the same place the rationale above isn't any good - they're all "Canadian built" Fords as far as the engines go... I can't correct you on the build location of these motors because I don't know. That's what my original question was aimed at - finding out if there's a common element or anything that would indicate which motors might fail and which might be the ones that the owners have good luck with. There are certainly both out there....

All I know for sure is that experiences vary and Ford's engineers obviously (to me) didn't get these 4.2L engines bulletproof on the first try (not counting the 3.8L head gasket probs?). As far as I can tell the jury is still out on whether it's a great motor or one that will be cussed and avoided, not enough data for me to get off the fence and spend my money. In spite of the fact that there are millions out there running if I buy one of the small percentage that fail it is a big problem - for me.

 

Found a little more info...

Seems that at least one guy on a Mustang performance board thinks the problems with these motors originate from a "production error". Apparently the '97 and early '98 models didn't have the timing cover bolts torqued correctly. Eventually coolant leaked into the crankcase and took the bearings out.... Looks like there's a lot of traffic on that board about swapping the 4.2 in place of a 3.8 and even some talk of superchargers so it must not be too flimsy...


The thread is here if interested - http://www.v6power.net/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=003241

 

Go smoke more of your crack you retard. My 4.2 Has 90k and it runs like new. I beat the hell out of it. I truck pulled it, I haul farm wagons and race off road. Before you go around saying its junk try a few. Your opinion isn't valid, so shut the F&@K UP!