My 1991 Bronco with 5.8 L engine and E4OD tranny runs fine, but needs $3,500 of body work to repair rust damage. The truck was always well maintained since it was new; it never was used to plow snow and oil was always changed at 3,000 miles. The engine still only consumes about 1 Qt of oil every 1,500 miles. I need to decide if it is worth sinking this much money into a truck this old. Can anybody shed some light on this? I would particularly like to hear how many miles other owners have gotten out of this engine / drive train combination before it needed expensive rebuilding.

Thanks all.

 

To me if you like the truck then you might as well fix it. If you are going to sell it after you are done then your best bet would be to add what you owe to the price of the repairs and then subtract that number from the blue book value. If you come out in the positive then fix it. If not then sell it and buy anther one with a better body and fewer miles. Hope this helps

Brad Godkin
1986 F350 CC/SRW
6.9liter/C6

 

I whole heartedly agree with the above post, and would like to add - Can you AFFORD a new one?

Trail Rider

 

 

my humble opinion is if you need to save money:
buy body panels and rivet them in
(about $45 a side)

save for a rebuilt or later model engine/tranny; or from a wreck

and save for a newer vehicle

good luck!

 

Te issue in my mind is not whether I can afford a new one, but how much more can I expect from this one. I really like this truck and it is no longer made. I would rather spend the $15,000 - $25,000 or more I would sink into replacing it on something else if this truck will continue to run to 200,000 or even 250,000 miles. Is my expectation unreasonable? Some have told me it is not uncommon for this engine /transmission to last that long when properly cared for.

JAy

 

2 years ago I sold My 1990 F150 XLT Latiet RC/SB with a 351 and a 5spd. It had 175000 on it and had never been apart. I ran into the "new" owner a couple days ago and it is still going strong with 230000 miles on it. Maybe it is just luck but I don't really know. I bought it in 1992 for $5000 with 20000 miles on it. Had the service records since day one and kept all the fluids changed and maintanance up. I would have to say that this is probably the best truck I have ever owned. The only non-routine maintenance I ever did to it (other than customizing) was to replace the starter and the battery. Hope this helps your decision. Just a thought for you though. You might be able to find a whole body in the south for cheaper than you can rebuild yours.

Brad Godkin
1986 F350 CC/SRW
6.9liter/C6

 

Thanks Brad,

This is the kind of feedback I was hoping to get in this forum. If others had less favorable experiences I would like to hear from them as well.

Jay

 

I've got at 90 F-150 XLT Lariat w/ 150,000 miles. I have no intentions on selling this truck. It is around for life. I have had offers on it.

What it blue books for and what it is worth to me and family are two different things. Body is still in good shape. Why get rid of it?

 

I bought my 90 in 1994 while in the Air Force in Wichita,Kansas. Everyone thought I was a fool for buying a 4x4 living in the city and buying a Ford.

Now that I live in the mountain west, it was a wise thing.