Miles Question
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Senior User
Joined: Sep 2003
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Miles Question
Ok my 73 F-100 says on the odometer that it's something like 94K, however I know this isn't true 
otherwise it would be in much better shape. Is there any other way to tell miles? Any other way to determine this? thanks -myers
otherwise it would be in much better shape. Is there any other way to tell miles? Any other way to determine this? thanks -myers
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Joined: Jul 2003
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From: El Reno, OK
That might be the original miles but the truck wasn't kept up and maintained well. My truck has 104K on the original body/20K on rebuilt motor but it lived on the farm all it's life. It has no rust but has been 'beaten' up pretty bad by cows/equipment/etc,etc over the years and sure had it's share of Oklahoma red dirt grime in every nook and cranny available on the truck. When I started restoring it, it took me several months working at it part time just to clean up everything that had accumulated over the years. Still needs the body work, but now that everything else is cleaned up it doesn't even look the same. There are always tell/tell signs on these trucks in certain places that you can look to see what kind of life it led. Look underneath the dash and see what kind of stuff lurks there, look at your pedal pads and see what kind wear is on them and if the rubber is worn all the way through to the metal. Get underneath your truck and look at high wear items on your suspension like king pins, axle bushings/etc. to see what shape they are in. Is the engine original? Does it smoke? Use oil? Leak oil? Is the transmission strong? Is the rear end strong or make any noises? Have you opened up your differential and looked at the ring gears to see how much wear is on them? There is so many things to check to verify your mileage.
Elder User
Joined: May 2003
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Once cars/trucks are about 20 years old miles are less important than actual condition. Freeway miles puts less wear on a truck than stop and go. Proper up keep slows wear more than minimal up keep. Using it as a driver not a hauler will put less wear on it.
Minimal wear on the interior and the condition of the rear end, t-case, transmission, and tight steering is a few of the things to look for, when looking at a "claimed" low mileage truck. If one or more of the above factors does not look good odds are it is not a low mileage truck.
Minimal wear on the interior and the condition of the rear end, t-case, transmission, and tight steering is a few of the things to look for, when looking at a "claimed" low mileage truck. If one or more of the above factors does not look good odds are it is not a low mileage truck.
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Elder User
Joined: May 2003
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Originally posted by mattsbox99
I have found that the original factory U-joints go out around 100,000 miles. Check yours, aftermarket U-Joints have a grease zerk on them, factory ones do not.
I have found that the original factory U-joints go out around 100,000 miles. Check yours, aftermarket U-Joints have a grease zerk on them, factory ones do not.
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is it original miles ?????
my 79 f150 has 68000 miles on odom i was sceptical,took to an upolstry shop and the old dude there said that it has the original interior (said the seats are original stitching never been touched)said if it wasnt original miles the seat would be worn out and you can tell the diff between an coverd seat compared to original,if these are original miles then why do i have a klunk noise when i go in reverse isnt 68000 miles a little to soon fo u-joints or rear problems.posted a questin about the rear noise everyone is betting on u-joints but i cant find a honest mechanic who wont rob me for the rear
Post Fiend
Joined: Jan 2003
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From: Montana Territory
Originally posted by tinman2
Mattsbox99...your right on the money about mileage. When my rear one went my mileage was 100,692, and it was the factory one from 29 years ago!!
Mattsbox99...your right on the money about mileage. When my rear one went my mileage was 100,692, and it was the factory one from 29 years ago!!
Mine made it to 102,000 miles. It really wasn't failing at that point, but I decided that I didn't want to drive it 2450 miles across the country in 9 days and see if they were gonna last.
I never had any problems with the truck until I moved to Maine though. Methinks that I need to find another way to get here next fall.
Elder User
Joined: Oct 2002
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If you drive an automatic truck and you have a clunk from drive to reverse it's kinda normal. With an auto they swap directions pretty fast, add the tolerances in the axle splines to the spider gear slop and put in the .010-.012 slop in the ring and pinion then add any driveline slop and you can get .050-.100 slop easily. That is more than enough to clang. If the clang really bothers you, start throwing money into new parts and it might go away.
Post Fiend
Joined: Jan 2003
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From: Montana Territory
Re: is it original miles ?????
Originally posted by Bauercrew
my 79 f150 has 68000 miles on odom i was sceptical,took to an upolstry shop and the old dude there said that it has the original interior (said the seats are original stitching never been touched)said if it wasnt original miles the seat would be worn out and you can tell the diff between an coverd seat compared to original,if these are original miles then why do i have a klunk noise when i go in reverse isnt 68000 miles a little to soon fo u-joints or rear problems.posted a questin about the rear noise everyone is betting on u-joints but i cant find a honest mechanic who wont rob me for the rear
my 79 f150 has 68000 miles on odom i was sceptical,took to an upolstry shop and the old dude there said that it has the original interior (said the seats are original stitching never been touched)said if it wasnt original miles the seat would be worn out and you can tell the diff between an coverd seat compared to original,if these are original miles then why do i have a klunk noise when i go in reverse isnt 68000 miles a little to soon fo u-joints or rear problems.posted a questin about the rear noise everyone is betting on u-joints but i cant find a honest mechanic who wont rob me for the rear
Well, you need to find a junkyard that has a decent supply of 9" rears. They all swap in completely in a few hours. They are really cheap too, and the yard will usually test them for unusual noises and such.
Bearing wear sounds like a whining noise at speeds above 25 mph. Kinda like when somebody rides first gear.
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Joined: Jul 2003
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From: El Reno, OK
Bauercrew....check your u-joints before trying to replace the differential. Just because you only have 68k doesn't mean they shoudn't be worn out. My old ones had grease zerts so I always kept them lubed so they lasted 29 years. Your might not have zerts and/or greasing might not have been kept up so they will wear out quicker. Also, I posted another thread on 'differential dilema' when I was fixing to change out my 9" differential. If you do change it out, select gears wisely and mathmatically for your engine/trans/tire ratios and verify number of splines for you axles. Some are 28 spline and others are 31. They don't interchange.