Need Advise on Buying 1987 F150 XLT Lariat
 

Hello,

I want to buy a F-150 XLT Lariat, but know nothing about trucks. The guy is telling me it has 145,616 miles on it. All of the power items worked: locks, windows and such. It has no rust and is a great blue. The bed is short and has no major rust on it. I don't know about engines and when he started it I was in front so I did not see if there was any blue or black smoke from the tail pipe. He wants $2500 for it, it has very nice after market wheels and nice tires on it. There are also some black wheels and new tires if I want to trade the one that are on the truck now. I did look in the wheels wells of the back of the truck and saw no rust. Can anyone give me some advise what else to look at and if this is a good price........Tks

...Welcome to Ford Truck Enthusiasts!

See you on the boards.:-X22 ….

This a private party sale, or dealer? If it's a dealer, make the dealer pass it on emissions and safety inspections, and it'll probably be a good deal.

Drive it around, both light and hard. Does it shudder under full throttle? How does the transmission shift? Does it hesitate or sputter just off idle? Does it ping? Do all the gauges seem to work?

Does it have good power above 60mph? Which engine? 300/302/351? A 300 six is just getting broken in at that mileage. The V8's may be a good way through thier life, depending on prior maintenance. Which transmission? If it's the 5 speed overdrive manual, it's very questionable at that milage. The automatics and granny-low 4 speeds, and the rare granny low overdrive 5 speed are all good transmissions.

Open the doors. Open the tailgate. Crawl under the truck, looks for rust, leaks, broken stuff, missing stuff. Jump around in the bed, how are the shocks? Rock the truck back and forth sideways. Alot of movement? Clunks? How does the suspension ride and sound over rough roads? Give the front tires each a swift kick. Any clunks/clangs?

Some of the trucks have rear anti-lock, but you should be able to lock the front tires from about 35mph. You should also be able to spin the tires from a stop, with any engine.

The 300 six should have massive low-end torque, but nothing after about 4000RPM. The 302 is adequate. The 351 should have power everywhere.

Common problem items:
clogged catalytic converter/muffler- truck won't go over 60.
bad sensors (O2, emissions, throttle position, etc.): pinging, hesitation, shudder, etc..
light-duty 5 speed manual- wears out every 100K.
Autolite spark plugs in a 300- have been known to come loose.

If it checks out, buy it! They're great trucks. Just be prepared to fix little things- sensors, muffler, shocks, smog, etc.,; it's a 19 year old vehicle.

I want to buy a F-150 XLT Lariat
 

Thanks,

I have called the guy twice in the last two days and he will not respond. So I guess he did not really want to sell it. I will however take all of info you have given and save it for the next Truck I can find thanks