My 03 5.4 Super Duty has some aliments and I'm debating the best way to deal with them. My main concern is bang for the buck.

My ol' girl has 109k on the clock (I know, barely broken-in), and yet I am contemplating a new engine. Why you ask? Because of all the things that need to be fixed. To start with, I had an oil leak start early in the spring that has gotten progressively worse. At this point, it looks like both of my head gaskets have the dreaded external oil leak that drip down onto my exhaust (seriously you should see the trail of blue smoke I leave when I get on the highway in the morning while it burns off). I have broken exhaust manifold studs on both sides that I really should get fixed. And finally to top is all off, as long as I have the heads off for the head gaskets, I figure I should really get the leaky valve guides that I have been ignoring for the last 4 years taken care of.

The estimates I have been getting for all of that has me thinking it would be more cost effective to just put a remanufactured engine in the truck and be done with it.

Thoughts?

Oh, one more question...any ideas what would be causing a low frequency, very intermittent whistle (think like the sound you get when you blow across the top of a 3/4 empty beer bottle). As soon as I touch the gas it goes away until the engine returns to idle (but sometimes it doesn't come back).

Ahhh the joys of owning an older truck. I love the girl and wouldn't trade her for anything at this point, I just want to make sure that whatever I do to her to fix her issues, is the right thing for her to keep her on the road for many years to come.

 

Why not just fix the issues?

 

Primarily cost. The mechanics around here are giving me estimates of $4k+, maybe they are insane, maybe not. It seems to steep to me when I can get a reman long block for $2400. I can't picture installation being much more than $1k, and then I have an engine with a warranty.

 

I am with the Master Sergeant on this one. I am SURE it seems like it is just falling apart at the seems, but really in the grand scheme of mechanics, the problems you are seeing are minor - a pain in the butt, but minor. 109k is nothing for that motor. I know that engine does not get a lot of love, but really it is durable as hell.

On a side note, it sounds like your valve cover gaskets are leaking, NOT your head gaskets. Head gaskets would leave water in your oil and would not seep oil at that rate.

Broken exhaust studs are not a big deal, that can be fixed

The whistle may be the air idle control valve - also an easy fix.

It may seem like a lot, just make a list and if you are not doing it yourself drop it off to a decent mechanic (get another estimate on that price, that is insane). and you will have a great running truck for a fraction of the cost of a new motor.

 

I thought the price was insane as well, but two different mechanics have given me estimates in that price range, which is when I started looking for another option.

Most mechanics around here won't touch a 5.4. They seem to think they are all the 24v and they want nothing to do with that engine, and the ones that do are the ones that are giving me the insane rates.

I love my truck, and the engine. It has the power I need. I realize that for the most part these issues are relatively minor, but it's the total cost of dealing them in one lump that has me irritated.

 

If you need to fix the valve guides, the heads will be off (I assume you need to pull the heads for this job) so repairing the exhaust bolts shouldn't be a problem. You obviously get new head gaskets with the job, (which I agree probably aren't leaking) and new valve cover gaskets so that problem should be solved too.

 

If it is the valve cover gaskets, what are the chances of the oil leaking down the side of the engine and onto the y-pipe? Oh and coating the starter as well.

I agree that as long as the heads are off it should be cheaper to fix the manifold studs, and the valve guide seals (which I have been ignoring because I don't want to pull the heads for something that will likely start leaking again in the future...or so I have been told) as long as the heads are already off.

I think the mechanics in this area are insane in their pricing. I blew a brake line last year and the best price I could find was $600 for the single rear brake line. They didn't even replace it, they just ran a new line along side the existing line due to rust. I paid $350 for a power steering hose earlier this year. Both of these jobs I could have done myself if I had the time, but I didn't so I had no choice but to bite the bullet and pay someone, and I obviously paid the price for that.

 

I had that EXACT issue in my old F250 with the 5.4. I could literally drive down the highway smoke free, then look in the mirror and it looked like the truck was on fire there was so much oil smoke. Near the end before I fixed it it was happening a lot of the time and I had a heavy coat of oil under the truck.

Head gasket leaks like that would be leaking more coolant than oil.

Here is a peek at the head seating area. Those are all coolant passages.

 

I guess I'll have to degrease the engine and put some oil dye in. The shops that have looked at it so far have not done that. They just put it up on a lift and shined a light up under it and the said head gasket.

In the case of my truck if I let it run for about 5 minutes before I take off it doesn't smoke. Must be because the exhaust warms up slow enough to burn off the oil without a big cloud of smoke.

 

I had a similar smoke problem with my 91 Lincoln (it was the 5.0). It turned out to be the intake manifold gasket.
If you love the truck I would get the engine fixed. The new gaskets are much better and will probably last longer than the originals. Really your truck is a low mileage vehicle.

 

The truck is getting fixed one way or the other. I'm just not sure if I'm doing a new engine or repairing the existing. It really comes down to the almighty dollar in this case (I don't have much of that) and which will give me the most bang for the buck. The shops that I have talked to have given me what I fell is insane prices for the work that needs to be done, which is why I am contemplating the engine swap instead.

 

Intake manifold leak, causing the sound?
Rent a vehicle while you rebuild your engine and save a lot of money.

 

smoke.......

 

Are you sure the valve guides are bad and not just the valve seals? The sohc modular engines are bad about valve seals going out. Honestly though, these engines are so easy to rebuild, I don't see why you would want to pay someone to do it. If you know how to read and use basic hand tools, you can do this. If you are only doing the heads, the most special tool you will need is a good torque wrench. If you are really worried about all that, you can get a set of heads from a 4.6 engine 04+ and they will bolt right on. I say 04+ because they got the revised spark plug threads.

 

My vote is none of the above. Just fix the leaks and keep driving the thing.