You better replace the lower intake gaskets AND/OR the timing cover gasket ASAP! If not, you're going to be the proud owner of a 5K lb. lawn ornament.

I am definitely keeping a very close eye on it.

That's the WRONG thing to do. It could be the next time you go to start your vehicle, it could be next week, next month......you never know. But, if you continue to roll the dice without getting the engine checked out to see where the antifreeze is leaking from, you're closer to having that new 5K lb. lawn ornament!
Here's some reading you better do to see what you're in store for if you don't have the engine checked;

https://www.google.com/search?newwin...w=1094&bih=511

Luckily I have an Isuzu that's my main driver and a backup Ford Explorer. I will be taking the truck 2 to my new repair shop and will probably get a totally different answer than I did from the idiots across the street that I had been going to.

Jay, the proof is there in EVERY fact filled story in the GOOGLE SEARCH I posted.
I too owned a 97 F150 with the 4.2 V6. I didn't want to believe the stories everyone was telling me.......at first! Then, my engine started losing coolant. You better believe me, I had that truck to my Ford dealership to have the lower intake gaskets replaced. But, instead of installing the NEW UPDATED gaskets, they installed the SAME type that were failing! They had to do the job again, and ALL was well.
Jay, please believe me, this is NO matter to just WATCH! If your engine fails due to hydra lock, and you knew you were warned ahead of time, just think how bad, mad, sad, you will feel and/or be, knowing you could have fixed it! Also, make sure you have your VIN checked to see if the timing cover gasket was replaced during the RECALL!

https://www.carcomplaints.com/Ford/F...g_system.shtml

Will check with the dealership on that. I know it had been recalled once for a fuel line, or a brake - some kind of line.
Like I mentioned, I took it to shop across the street last winter and told them I was worried about possible hydrolock situation, and they said they did a bunch of tests and that everything was okay, but as it later turn out they misdiagnosed a bunch of **** and did really crappy job on my Isuzu so I don't trust anything they say anymore. I can misdiagnose and just keep replacing Parts until I get it right, myself without paying top dollar for parts and labor!!! I don't see how dirt bags like that stay in business. I'm on unemployment right now and just finished CDL school so I'm done with expensive projects for the time being. Good thing I have other vehicles to drive...

Jay, you can do this job yourself. The ONLY reason I had FORD do it is because I was making good money ($70K a year) at the time. I'm currently disabled and am on SSDI. I have helped a couple of my friends do both jobs on their 4.2 engines. You really don't need any special tools. What you don't own you can rent from an auto parts store. I would ONLY use FORD revised/updated gaskets! You own other road worthy vehicles, so you just take your time on the repairs. That way it's done correct without rushing it.
Go to this forum and look it up there. Member FAIRLANER did a great in detail job on this project.

https://www.f150online.com/forums/se...=8951048&pp=25

https://www.f150online.com/forums/

Thanks. I have been reading and watching videos on this for the last few hours. Started looking into this last winter. normally I used the F-150 for work in the winter time because I would do long shifts and there was plenty of room to sleep on that big front seat.
Unfortunately, I don't have a garage or carport and live in a RV park where they don't allow any projects like this.

Do you have any friends that have a garage, a large yard, etc., that you can do the work at? You can put a blanket on your seat and store the parts inside your truck. If you do the work it will probably save you $400 or more. My ONLY advice is, DON'T drive the truck until you at least get it checked. If it were mine, and I had other vehicles to drive, I would FIND a way to do it, somewhere, somehow! I wouldn't even have it checked. What you're describing, and it being it's a '97, that's all I would need to know!
Good luck and keep us posted!

I have a 1999 F-150 4x4 manual transmission 4.2 with 179,000

Hello fellow members. Here's the latest on my 2007 F150, 4.2 V6
It's almost at 149K miles. The cam synchronizer is being replaced this weekend. Mine started whining like a school yard of screaming children. :-X04
When it does that it means the bushings need to be oiled (which can be done, if not too far gone), or you can replace it. I recommend the SPECTRA PREMIUM part # FD-34. It includes the timing tool, sensor, and has a lifetime warranty (and, it's made in AMERICA!).
Another item that's wrong with my truck is, the brake light on the dash cluster lights up on/off intermittently. To fix that I have to remove the cluster/dash pieces. There is a huge wiring harness that is plugged into the cluster. The wires are bent at such a bad angle that it causes the light to come on/off. On a YOU TUBE video a tech recommends wedging something under the wire to ease the tension.
Other than those 2 items, my truck runs/drives great! I have been using CASTROL (Made In Germany) 0W40 oil and a M1-209A oil filter. My engine is as quiet as a church mouse (when the synchronizer is not whining) using this oil/filter combo.
I'm enclosing a video (Mustang with the 3.8, which is basically a 4.2) of a Mustang's cam synchronizer whining, and a video of a FORD TECH oiling the bushings on a CS similar to the 4.2.

https://circuitboardmedics.com/2004-...-light-repair/

2004 – 2008 FORD F150 LCD ODOMETER AND BRAKE LIGHT REPAIR

https://cdn1.bigcommerce.com/server1...00.750.jpg?c=2

• https://cdn1.bigcommerce.com/server1....60.90.jpg?c=2

115 Reviews
$149.99

I don't have the money for that right now. So, I'm going the cheap route.

209,000 on a 2000 f150 4x4 w 5 speed

1999 ford e250 service van 4.2 v6
 

1999 ford e250 service van 4.2 v6
330,000 miles