I have a serious decision ahead of me. Should I buy another truck or should I keep and fix the one I have? Here is a background of what I have.

1994 F-250 5.8L SD w/ E40D transmission
337,621 mile on the odometer
3rd owner (1st owner oil company, 2nd owner used as work truck, 3rd owner me also work truck for lawn service)
2nd owner wanted 1000.00 but gave him 400.00 and swapped some work and an old riding mower for the truck

I have spent

Truck Purchase 400.00
Radiator 125.00
TPS 36.79
Plugs FREE came with the truck
VSS FREE from spare rear end

The old truck has been rode hard and put up wet too many times, the engine seems to be in good shape (doesn't smoke or burn oil) and still seems to have decent power. But it does need some work

headlights 1 is busted along with turn and marker light
window seals old ones are rotted
shocks
brakes all the way around along with new rotors
tires
windshield
and probably a new E40D transmission
Transmission shifts fine sometimes then other times shifts hard then other times it jumps out of gear or gets stuck in between gears like it doesn't know what gear to go in.

I love the old truck and recently built a bed to haul my mower and other lawn equipment on but with the age and work needed, are these old trucks worth spending alot on to keep going? I would like to deck it out with a freshly rebuilt engine and transmission, new paint, cab lights, west coast style mirror ( these would be for function more than show) etc. but is it worth it or should I just start looking for a new truck to replace it? Any advice is welcomed, you people know what it takes and the common problems with these old trucks so figured I could get your input on the subject. Thanks

 

With that many miles, sounds like it might be a great parts truck for the one you replace it with, eh?

 

If I were you, I'd buy another similar truck with a good body and a bad 351w, and rebuild the 351w in your current truck to put into it. Should get a lot of years of service from it that way. Of course, you can always use whatever good parts are left on your current truck to replace parts on the next one.

 

You didnt list 2wd or 4wd. But a GOOD rebuilt e4od is going to be about 3,000. Which is MORe than the value of your truck. I would buy another truck

 

A lot of times a problem with an e4od is just a bad sensor or other electrical problem. The OD light isn't blinking is it? There is a procedure to check for stored codes, I'm not sure how to do it though.

 

Would it be safe to do a transmission service? I have a drain plug on the TC so I can get most all the fluid out and just unhook the cooler line and blow them out. I don't know if the transmission has ever been serviced but if it's shot, do I have anything to lose?

 

Would doing a transmission service hurt before I junk the truck, or does it sound like there is more wrong than old fluid? I don't know if the transmission has ever been serviced. Oh, and its a 2WD Diesel Brad.

 

You can service your transmission replacing the old fluid and the filter inside the pan. But sometimes it can be a risk, as the new fluid will make the transmission show undisclosed issues. Personally I think it's worth a shot.

 

Read this for your transmission:
E4OD Diagnosis Thread - FSB Forums
Changing the fluid is up to you. If you change it and the trans goes out, it was going to fail anyways. Might as well do it. Check for codes first though. As far as a new trans goes, you can get a rebuilt one on ebay for $850-1500. Or there is always getting a used one. If you can find one that's okay you can save a lot of money.

 

I would just drive it until it dies then buy another truck in this same generation & use your old one as a parts truck. Two wheel drives are easy & cheap to find. With over 300K I would not spend any money on it.
Just my two cents.
Craig

 

Okay, not trying to sound like the guy no body likes that asks for advice and then just does what ever it was they were going to do anyway, but I got roughly 600.00 in the truck now. I can get a rebuilt trans from ******* for about 1500.00 + 500.00 core charge, I can get a engine rebuild kit for 350.00-600.00 and about another 500.00 for the machine work. So 1600 trans w/shipping, 1000.00 for engine + 600.00 I have already in the truck so that would put the grand total at somewhere around 3200.00 and lets add another 350.00 for new belts, hoses, brakes, shocks, etc. (you know just the normal stuff that rarely gets changed until something happens) brings it to 3600.00. So 3600.00 for a truck that I'll know everything about or 2000.00 to 4000.00 for a truck that I know nothing about. I has to be a 3/4 ton or better because of the bed I have. Like I said, not saying I will even do this, just wanted to share a different point of view of the same situation. I look around and most people have that much in they're wheels and tires! Besides the engine and transmission, what else is known on Ford to give problems at high mileage?

 

Oh yeah, sorry about the double post earlier.

 

Not much else, keep and eye open for rust, stop any leaks you see, replace any electric part that fails, and of course, keep a good maintenance schedule.

 

Was the transmission regularly serviced? If so, a flush (or simple pan/filter change) won't hurt. However, flushing an old un-maintained tranny will kill it.

 

Personally any 1500 rebuild is JUNK

then factor in the REST of the truck still had 300k on it.

Like others side, just run it till it stops then keep it for a parts truck and buy another truck to replace it