I am considering buying a ford F150 5.4 XLT and wanted to hear some testimonies from those who have owned these trucks. Lets hear from those that have put on some significant miles how their trucks are doing. Are these trucks reliable or have a history of problems?


Thanks

 

04 5.4 SCAB 4X4, 17,000 miles, Front brake rotors replaced at 15,000 under warrenty, rear end whine, not fixed yet, 2 pcm re flashes. Generally happy with the truck, smooth runner.

 

Wow! seems premature to say the least to have to replace your rotors at only 15,000 miles. Do you do a lot of towing or lots of in town stop and go? Usually I don't recall even having to change brake pads on any of my vehicles before say 25,000 miles. After that I would say would be the time they would wear out normally. As for rear end whine, I've been hearing this for awhile from various people. I'm sure Ford is aware of this problem. What gears are you running (3.55 or 3.73)?

 

04 Screw, 4.6 (same basic engine), 41,000 miles, and I have the whining rear end-Ford won't fix. A/C that barely works and is known to throw 100F "cool" air on a hot day- that is considered "normal" for this truck. Throbbing brake pedal which means the rotors are bad- not warrantable. I wouldn't suggest a new F-150 to anybody. Maybe if they put a 5 speed auto in one to increase the driveablilty and address reliability issues that have plagued the new F-150, they might be worth a look but not now. Might want to see what the 06's bring. I'm on my last Ford if it makes it to December and I don't burn it where it stops.

 

3.73 rear end, search the forum for front break issues, seems some of the older 04's had thin front rotors, which are being replaced with a "updated" beefer rotor.

 

flash, did you report the whining while the truck was still under warranty? If you did than it is recorded on the trucks history. Go to another deal;ership and have them look it up. The whining is a common problem and there are several tsb's on it. just had mine fixed.
sorry to hear about your experience but I can say that your's is not typical.

My 150 has just over 13K and I love it more every time I drive it!!!

 

04, 150, 4x4, 5.4L,3.73,12,500k. it's been back twice for front brake squeaking.1st time they turned the rotors and 2nd time replaced the pads.so far so good.but i still love this truck!

 

If you approached them with these problems while in warranty they should have fixed them. As people have indicated this whining issue is a known problem that Ford is aware of. As for your air conditioning problem, that too should be fixed. I bought a 2000 GT mustang. Because I let it sit for a long time without driving it, the seals in the air conditioning unit dried up and it leaked all the freon out. Ford didn't hesitate to replace the entire compressor and all new seals without a hitch. Had the car back the same day as a matter of fact and freezes me out of the car everytime I use it .
Sounds like you are talking to the wrong Ford dealership if they refuse to take care of you. I would blow some serious smoke up their (_|_) till you get it fixed. As mentioned, they should have it in the books if you reported this while still in warranty.

 

I would say that overall these trucks are pretty reliable. There is a history of some "common" issues that a minority of users have experienced. Ford is currently advertising they are #1 in J.D. Powers' initial quality study. My own experience reflects that. I had one minor issue around the 15,000 mile mark where the cruise control wouldn't engage or stay engaged. They replaced a relay/switch.

Overall, I've been extremely happy with this truck. I like the way it drives and the way it looks, inside and out. And I'm ecstatic at the cost of maintaining it. I've spent about $125 out-the-door total on three services. Compared to the import cars I have (and do) own, this is like Christmas.

Some people have done informal polls trying to relate whether some problems are more common depending on where the truck is assembled. It seems to me the Kansas City plant is doing the best job (but this is obviously not a scientific study). KC is where my truck is made. Wouldn't hurt to try to get one from KC just to be sure.

 

Thanks for your positive feedback timhood. Who needs cruise control anyway
Not sure where the Ford trucks are manufactured coming out of the California dealerships. I will have to check on that one.

 

7800 miles and running like a top. No problems yet, knock on some simulated wood grain finish. Took a trip from Idaho to Calif. this summer averaged 17-18 mpg's on the way down and 20.2 on the way back? This is with the 5.4L scab 4x4 and 3.55 rear end. I am always averaging between 16.x to 20.x just in everyday normal driving. Of course if I drive it hard it goes down, but it is not hard to get pretty good milage out of it. I do live out in the country so there is not as much stop and go as city driving. I must say that driving it in the same manner as a 97 f150 4.6 that I had it will get better milage. The ride and comfort is what I enjoy the most. It is so smooth on the road that sometimes I forget it is a pick-up.

There are some shortcuts that I think Ford could of done without, cheap plastic door for gas tank (mine hasn't broke yet), I mean 5 more inches of metal couldn't cost that much. Also some cheapass made in Korea tires (Hanhook?). You think they would have learned something with the other tire issues they had in past years. I'm sure there are some other shortcuts they took, but it wasn't enough to make me give up on them. I put 92k on that 97 and never had any problems. Never even changed a brake pad (front or rear), although they were due when I traded for this one.

My dad bought a new Titan at the same time I bought this 05 and it too has some things that could be better. I notice brake dust on his front wheels all the time (maybe cheap pads?). One front fender is not quite tight and rattles a bit, the tailgate doesn't close tight and rattles. I'm sure he will get them fixed under warranty with no problems. If you look hard enough you can always find something wrong.

Anyways, I know others have had problems and others haven't. I test drove a bunch at various dealers before I said " this is the one". I found that they didn't all drive the same (not quite sure why?). I only hope that I get out of it what I got out of that 97. If so I will try another, if not... I'll wait until then and decide..

 

LOL

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little over a year on a '04 XLT Scab, 25K. A wee problem with the emergency brake sticking and the O2 sensor went. I love my truck though!

 

04 f150 sc 5.4 4x4 lariat 3.73. had it 13 months 11000 miles. 1 reflash. love this truck.

 

04 larait screw 5.4 with 373 ls .28k miles and I still love my truck had the brake rotors replaced under warranty at about 20 k and they put new tires on it at about 24k (uneven wear ) gonna have them check the ac and lately it seems that my power slider rear window is a little slow on opening probably just needs the cable greased or something simple like that . I get about 16-19 mpg got it up to 21.5 tonight on the way home from work (windows down ac off and cruise set at 65