guys, I'm a GM technician and I thought I had gotten a great deal a couple of months ago when I got my 97 F150 2WD (reg cab, LB)4.2, 58K miles for 4,000. I never really checked the truck out at all, I looked under the hood, and I knew it needed new tires.

So today after work I lifted it up on the hoist and found some nasty oil leaks. The oil pan is leaking pretty much everywhere, I have no idea how intense this repair is on a ford, and the left and right head gaskets were leaking on the side toward the rear of the truck. There was also some oil between the transmission and the engine, where the 2 mount together.

I almost think that the gaskets got dried out because the truck didnt get driven enough, only like 6700 miles per year...

So now I'm faced with the debate of putting my time and effort into it, or just powerwashing it and cleaning it all off in the spring and selling it when 2wd's are worth something. It doesnt leak excessive oil, but its noticible. I think that next time I do an oil change I'm gonna do a lube scan to see if theres any coolant in the oil. at least I can get that done for free.

are these things worth fixing? are they a real biotch? I do have access to all-data, which has ok data, but its not always very specific, so I can get somewhat of repair instructions.

And then tonight, my buddy had gotten a chrome grille for his f150, so I was going to buy his old one and put it on my truck, well so i go and pick it up and everything is good, and i take my front fascia and grill off... BUT TOGETHER THEY ARE ONE!!! THE GRILLE IS PART OF THE FASCIA! I would have to cut things up to get the grille section out, and somehow resecure the new one... So I said nah, not gonna mess with stuff and I put it all back together, so if you need to know how to take yours off lemme know, but man how disappointing is that!?!

 

On a 2WD you can't remove the pan without pulling the engine
They don't use a pan gasket, just silicone, except for the end seal at the back of the pan.

 

yeah, it looks like r/r motor to get that oil pan gasket. Oh well... Maybe someday if it bugs me enough I'll do it. I did find out that I have acess to AllData... so I can get repair info for pretty much anything, but not everything. I think my next step is to further inspect the source of the oil, if its just the valve covers, then no biggy, if its worse then I'll probly sell in the spring when 2wds are more desirable! haha. I've gotten over the grille issue too. I can live with that.