Well this truck has been a nightmare for me. I bought it over 3 weeks ago and got to drive it 1, yes one day before returning it to have what I thought would be a few days worth of work done. The day I picked it up from the used dealer I purchased it from I immediately drove it to my buddy’s garage and had him go through it. He found several things that needed repair before it would pass inspection. It had a few bad ball joints, a bad tie rod end, broken directional, the muffler looked like someone stuck a stick of dynamite in it and blew it up, the front gas tank had a leak and somebody repaired it with that gas tank putty, the “new” front brakes were worn down to about 30% and the rotors were warped, well you get my drift.
It took me a week to get the parts I ordered in and the mechanic (the dealers father/been a mechanic for 40 years) that’s doing the work took a week to do the front end. I ended up replacing all 4 ball joints and tie rod ends, the universals on the axles and the brakes and rotors. The problem now is the passenger side exhaust manifold. The dealer had his dad replace the drivers side a while ago but that caused the passengers side to start leaking and I know what a pain in the *** that job is so I demanded he fix that side also. The passenger’s side on the 351 has a smog tube and we needed to order a new one from Ford. Well after waiting a few days for it they sent the wrong one and it took a few more days to get the correct one. Then the tube that connects to the EGR snapped off and had to be ordered which came in today. The only thing keeping me from getting my truck back now is that he cant get the manifold itself off. It’s fused right to the engine. Not PB blaster or heat has loosened this thing up at all. He’s been at it for 2 days now. Even bent a snap-on pry bar trying. I’m so disgusted at this point I don’t even want the truck anymore. The only good thing is between what the dealer already did and what I’m having done now the damm thing is going to be 75% new and hopefully should last me a while. That is providing I don’t sell it!
Thanks for letting me vent……..

 

try using a 2x4 and a saddlejack to lift up on the manifold.

i have to ask if you are sure all the bolts are out.

sounds like you are near the end of the journey.

just take it easy, miller time is right around the corner.

 

keep your cool, almost there, but if you were told it was a good truck by the dealer you may wanta connect the better bus. burea and save someone else a headache!!!!!!!


good luck, and like ql2 said ----miller time

 

i grew up working on the car lot owned by my uncle.

he once said "no one ever sells or trades in a vehicle that runs perfectly. why should they?"

i always find something that is wrong after i buy the vehicle, no matter how hard i look at them.

 

Had a similar problem with the manifold that you are having. Just be thankfull that you didnt get 5/8 of the studs snapped off in the head! you can imagine how huge of a nightmare that was, especially on the 460.

Just take it easy and work on it a little at a time.

And a note: If you are replacing/removing the manifold, consider hearders. They are competivly priced with the OEM manifolds (I would reccomend against a used one from the scrap yard,) and if youve allready got them off, you might as well take the performance increase.

On the bright side, it sounds like a good opportunity to replace the exhaust system......

 

Well I got a call from the mechanic today and he finally got the manifold off and was drilling out the last stud now. He said the truck would be done by late tonight or tomorrow. I originally wanted to do a dual custom exhaust but seeing as how BOTH exhaust manifolds, the smog pipes, muffler and tailpipe are now brand new I’ll just put the dual idea on the back burner for now. The muffler he got me is 2 to 3 times the size as the one that was on the truck. He said the old one was a cheap junk replacement and the one he got me is the heaviest duty for my truck.
As far as headers go, I had a 92 F-350 dully with a 460 under the hood that I did a custom exhaust on and it turned out to be a nightmare. The headers were brand new along with new mufflers and high flo. cats and all the work was done by a pro exhaust guy that does all the hot rods and custom builds around the area. No matter what we did the headers leaked from day one and I kept getting computer codes because of the new exhaust. I finally had to put the original manifolds back on and even at that, had to have a machine shop plain them true again. After that experience I just don’t trust aftermarket exhausts on newer trucks. Now my old 1979 F-150 4x4 with the 351M never had any exhaust issues with my true dual header set-up. Gotta love them old trucks!

So far this truck has new ball joints, tie rods, u-joints pads and rotors up front along with new front brake lines, a new starter and solenoid, tires, rims off a newer F-350 power stroke, both exhaust manifolds, smog pipes, EGR, muffler, tailpipe and windshield. As soon as I get it back I need to replace the serp. belt and pulley and I’m gonna do the whole plugs, wires, cap & rotor thing. Then I’m gonna splurge on a set of bed rail covers and a lund visor. I do need to replace one of the transmission lines because for whatever reason someone cut a 4-5” section out and patched it up with rubber line. Must have gotten pierced and they were too cheap to buy a new line. I am worried about the tranny though. It’s got the notorious E4OD and I haven’t driven it enough to see if there were any issues. Did they build the later years of these tranny’s any better than the early ones?

Can anyone suggest the cheapest place to buy the bed rail covers and visor?

 

you have a 96 e4od which is the best of all of them.

drain all the fluid including convertor and replace filter as soon as you can.

 

Went to the mechanic’s tonight and he had the truck outside with the hood up. I thought he was finishing up everything but I was wrong. He had just put the new EGR in and connected the new hose to it. I asked him if the manifold was done and he said it was on but he hadn’t gotten a chance to check it yet and was going to do it then. Well upon starting the truck up it sounded like a ticking time bomb. It was leaking worse than before I dropped it off to him over 30 days ago. He gave me some lame excuse and said he’d take it back off tomorrow and double up the gasket on that side. Is it me or shouldn’t he have to do that. I mean these come through the factory with no gaskets on at all and the installation instructions tell you not to use any. I’m wondering if he damaged the head while trying to remove the manifold or if the head is warped. He guaranteed me that it will be ready to pick up tomorrow and that the leak will be gone. I’m so fed up with this truck at this point as soon as I get it back I’m gonna clean it up, take some pictures and put it up for sale. I’d be happy just to break even at this point….

 

So many tell horror stories about the E4OD I must tell my story. We have had 4 different trucks with this transmission and have had no real trouble out of any of them. Aside from a convertor rebuild (stress cracks in the lockup disc-perhaps due to improper driving techniques of previous owner; a nurse from Great Britain not familiar with these trucks) in my son's 82 Bronco at just over 200,000 I have found them to be reliable and a pleasure to own and drive.

As Quicklook advised: drain & flush, and replace filter. If you do not have an external cooler (not the one in the radiator tank), add one - a good one: Heat is perhaps the greatest enemy of an automatic transmission.

1995 F350 at 378,000 miles and counting - E4OD never opened, just drained and flushed periodically.

dn.

 

erm.... how did you pull that off without opening it...?

 

hello, you said that you have rims off a new powerstroke, welllll, ? is how is that done, did someone machine the bolt pattern, because the bolt pattern is different.... and plus with all this work being done to it it must have cost quite a bit. because you already have quite a bit of dollars going into it with just the parts alone...

 

I do have a lot invested however this truck has been a problem since day one. I should’ve backed out of the deal when I had the chance. As stupid as it may sound it just feels like this truck has bad karma. I originally wanted a F350 extra cab but couldn’t find one near me with low mileage and or a decent price. I did find a 350 standard cab in great shape with 180,000 miles for only $3800.00 but the high mileage scared me away. For the money I already sunk into this pig I should’ve bought the 350 and rebuilt it….The reason I bought my truck was the low mileage for the year and the fact that it is pretty much rust free body & frame
Well I’m supposed to pick the truck up today. Let’s see what else can go wrong…

 

Well I just got off the phone with the R.I. Dealers licensing commission and told the guy that answered the phone all about my nightmare. The first thing he asked me was if the truck had an inspection sticker on it which it doesn’t. He asked again, “he sold it to you without a current sticker?” I told him no, there was no sticker. Before I could say any more he stopped me and said he was sending me paperwork that he wanted me to fill out and send back to him. I guess even though the sales receipt says sold as is with no warrantee because he’s a licensed dealer it’s against the law to sell a vehicle without a current sticker. He also wrote out the receipt for less than the actual cost which I can provide proof of. I think I may have him by the *****. I’m pissed because why should I pay for repairs for things that needed to be done to pass inspection. That’s his problem not mine.

 

good for you djc22,

i know all of us have bought a used car and then find something wrong with it when ya get home, but it shouldnt be a nightmare and cost ya tons of money
especially from a licensed dealer

 

Well since I last wrote I picked up the truck after 5 weeks of not having it and by the time I got home it was barley running. The exhaust was leaking like there wasn’t even a pipe connected and the junk EGR valve that he put on stuck open and was making the truck bog down and skip. Plus I’ve been telling him that the directional lever was bad since day one but he insisted it was the wiring from the plow lights. Well guess what, he had to install a BRAND NEW directional lever! He also put a new set of wires on too. They must have been **** too.

I now have the truck again and once again it has to go back due to an exhaust leak. I traced it back to where the manifold connects to the “Y” pipe. The truck is a lot peppier now though. Seems to have tons of power and it passed CT emissions Saturday.

Here’s a question for you Ford mechanics. There is a separate cruise control lever on the column that looks like it was added from the factory. I’ve enclosed a few pictures. Can anyone tell me if it’s a Ford install or aftermarket?
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