Am I worried for nothing?
#1
07-16-2001, 06:34 PM
Join Date: Jul 2001
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Am I worried for nothing?
My wife and I own a '96 F250HD 4X2 that we bought new. It has the 5.8 engine, 3.55 rear axle, camper package/tow package w/transmission cooler, and the electronic 4-speed automatic transmission w/OD. We tow a three horse WW slant trailor with two quarter horses approximately 2000 miles per year. Most of the towing is done in the Phoenix area (flat) except for three or four trips to the Flagstaff area (7000 feet elev.) The wife tows with a girlfriend most of the time. When the truck was new I didn't worry about her being on the road too much, but now that it is approaching 65,000 miles I worry a little more.
I am finally at an age where I understand the importance of scheduled and preventative maintenance. I have had the oil changed every 3500-4000 miles, the transmission and radiator powerflushed at 30,000 and 60,000; new battery, wheel bearings packed, and tires at 48,000.
What else should I do to minimize the risk of a breakdown? Should I have the serpentine belt replaced? It has never been done. What is the reliability history of this model in general? What kinds of signals might it give her as she tows that something needs to be looked at?
There are only two major climbs going to Flagstaff. One is approximately 7 miles long at a 6% grade, the other is about 18 miles at the same grade. The truck pulls camping gear and horses up with no problem at about 35 mph.
Thanks for any advice given. I know breakdowns can't be predicted but I'd feel better knowing I've done everthing to make her trips as safe as possible mechanically. Thanks, John
I am finally at an age where I understand the importance of scheduled and preventative maintenance. I have had the oil changed every 3500-4000 miles, the transmission and radiator powerflushed at 30,000 and 60,000; new battery, wheel bearings packed, and tires at 48,000.
What else should I do to minimize the risk of a breakdown? Should I have the serpentine belt replaced? It has never been done. What is the reliability history of this model in general? What kinds of signals might it give her as she tows that something needs to be looked at?
There are only two major climbs going to Flagstaff. One is approximately 7 miles long at a 6% grade, the other is about 18 miles at the same grade. The truck pulls camping gear and horses up with no problem at about 35 mph.
Thanks for any advice given. I know breakdowns can't be predicted but I'd feel better knowing I've done everthing to make her trips as safe as possible mechanically. Thanks, John
#2
07-16-2001, 07:56 PM
Postmaster
Am I worried for nothing?
I'm not an expert yadda yadda, but I tow a fair amount with my 94 F250 460 4x4. And I have worked on all my family and personal plus friends cars for longer than I have had a license(30+ years). My trailer weighs about 8,000 and I have a little over 67K on the truck and have been towing since 36K(not all towing of course).
Sounds like you have most of the bases covered. I would guestimate your trailer to weigh about 6K with 2 horses? This weight should probably be OK with the 5.8 engine, check your manual to be safe. 65K miles should not be of concern other than wearout items like hoses, belts, shocks etc. The 5.8 engine from what I have read is a fine light to medium duty engine.
Because I know the Phoenix area can be a bit warm(?!!) I would concentrate on heat issues. I would make sure the coolant is up to snuff and that the radiator fins are clean, no bugs right? Anything made of rubber is suspect in hot conditions. You did the tires so I assume they are OK. The belt would be worthwhile to replace and keep the old one under the seat as an emergency spare. Hoses in my experience are good for about 100K, at least on modern American cars. You might look at getting new shocks and maybe check out the body bushings and steering bushings to be sure they haven't "dry rotted". Check Tranny hoses and fitting for leaks.
Spark plug wires may be getting old. An easy check is to run the engine in near darkness and look under the hood without using any light(don't touch by the way, moving parts are bad;^) If you see sparks, that may be a sign of worn plug wires. They can also be tested with a meter. Or just replace them routinely, say every 100K +- whatever feels comfortable.
Periodically I would recommend a good carbon cleaning of the intake and fuel system. Things can get gunked up over time and with hot temps and hard climbs you don't want to get any pinging. I assume on the hard pulls at 35mph that the engine is not running too high RPM(say over 4,500 for long periods) and that it isn't pinging(try better grade gas or clean things out with something like techron, to see if the pinging goes away).
You might want to check into having the tranny cooler cleaned. I had never heard of this before but a different brand car shop manual talks about how over time the cooler can actually get sludged up and requires a chemical clean out. May be worth asking about.
You should periodically have the differential oil changed(Manual says every 12K towing I think), ditto tranny fluid. I would recommend having the brakes flushed(not just bled) every few years, to get rid of accumulated rust and water etc. I didn't know about that either until recently when reading about this procedure on another list I participate in. Easy and cheap to do yourself, if you know how to bleed brakes, just more complete. Also you should use brake caliper grease on the sliding parts of the calipers every say 10,000 miles or so, i do it every oil change, now.
Make sure your AC has a good charge in it and use it at least once a month, even in winter, so that it circulates the lubricants.
The alternator may be thinking of taking a vacation by 100K. So might the water pump. Worth checking these periodically.
The engine or tranny may show probelms developing which can be subtle, so your best defense is to know how your rig runs, sounds and feels when everything is normal. Changes in sounds and feel may indicate trouble brewing. A shuddering feel during light acceleration may indicate torque converter problems(common I have been told on F250 with E4OD in early mid 90s). Slipping shifts should be fairly obvious indicators. Burnt smelling or brownish tranny fluid is bad. The engine missing or pinging a lot may indicate problems or just a need for a tuneup. Loosing power or more than usual white or black smoke could be signs that things are wearing. Black smoke during initial warm start may show worn valve guides. A compression test may show what is the cause.
Best bet is to check things periodically if you can do mechanical work or have a shop you trust keep on it and tell them what you do with the truck. A lot of the symptoms I mentioned can mean other things so don't take my word as gospel.
Just some ideas, but I wouldn't worry about towing with this rig with this many miles. After say 100K I start to pay more attention. I guess just because it is a good round number. Each rig will have differing amounts of wear so mileage will differ when things wear out.
I am getting too rambly, so...
Good Luck, been there done that far too many times.
Jim Henderson
Sounds like you have most of the bases covered. I would guestimate your trailer to weigh about 6K with 2 horses? This weight should probably be OK with the 5.8 engine, check your manual to be safe. 65K miles should not be of concern other than wearout items like hoses, belts, shocks etc. The 5.8 engine from what I have read is a fine light to medium duty engine.
Because I know the Phoenix area can be a bit warm(?!!) I would concentrate on heat issues. I would make sure the coolant is up to snuff and that the radiator fins are clean, no bugs right? Anything made of rubber is suspect in hot conditions. You did the tires so I assume they are OK. The belt would be worthwhile to replace and keep the old one under the seat as an emergency spare. Hoses in my experience are good for about 100K, at least on modern American cars. You might look at getting new shocks and maybe check out the body bushings and steering bushings to be sure they haven't "dry rotted". Check Tranny hoses and fitting for leaks.
Spark plug wires may be getting old. An easy check is to run the engine in near darkness and look under the hood without using any light(don't touch by the way, moving parts are bad;^) If you see sparks, that may be a sign of worn plug wires. They can also be tested with a meter. Or just replace them routinely, say every 100K +- whatever feels comfortable.
Periodically I would recommend a good carbon cleaning of the intake and fuel system. Things can get gunked up over time and with hot temps and hard climbs you don't want to get any pinging. I assume on the hard pulls at 35mph that the engine is not running too high RPM(say over 4,500 for long periods) and that it isn't pinging(try better grade gas or clean things out with something like techron, to see if the pinging goes away).
You might want to check into having the tranny cooler cleaned. I had never heard of this before but a different brand car shop manual talks about how over time the cooler can actually get sludged up and requires a chemical clean out. May be worth asking about.
You should periodically have the differential oil changed(Manual says every 12K towing I think), ditto tranny fluid. I would recommend having the brakes flushed(not just bled) every few years, to get rid of accumulated rust and water etc. I didn't know about that either until recently when reading about this procedure on another list I participate in. Easy and cheap to do yourself, if you know how to bleed brakes, just more complete. Also you should use brake caliper grease on the sliding parts of the calipers every say 10,000 miles or so, i do it every oil change, now.
Make sure your AC has a good charge in it and use it at least once a month, even in winter, so that it circulates the lubricants.
The alternator may be thinking of taking a vacation by 100K. So might the water pump. Worth checking these periodically.
The engine or tranny may show probelms developing which can be subtle, so your best defense is to know how your rig runs, sounds and feels when everything is normal. Changes in sounds and feel may indicate trouble brewing. A shuddering feel during light acceleration may indicate torque converter problems(common I have been told on F250 with E4OD in early mid 90s). Slipping shifts should be fairly obvious indicators. Burnt smelling or brownish tranny fluid is bad. The engine missing or pinging a lot may indicate problems or just a need for a tuneup. Loosing power or more than usual white or black smoke could be signs that things are wearing. Black smoke during initial warm start may show worn valve guides. A compression test may show what is the cause.
Best bet is to check things periodically if you can do mechanical work or have a shop you trust keep on it and tell them what you do with the truck. A lot of the symptoms I mentioned can mean other things so don't take my word as gospel.
Just some ideas, but I wouldn't worry about towing with this rig with this many miles. After say 100K I start to pay more attention. I guess just because it is a good round number. Each rig will have differing amounts of wear so mileage will differ when things wear out.
I am getting too rambly, so...
Good Luck, been there done that far too many times.
Jim Henderson
