Just venting on the 5.4
 

I am basically a diehard Ford truck guy.Parts are way too expensive and not very much available it seems.So why doesn't Ford buy the rights to the Chevy 5.7 and make a real engine for these trucks !!!!!!! Aftermarket galore for these engines plus alot of different crate engine options also.

Uh, I don't know, maybe it's because Chevy starts with a C and so does Crap.

Ford Racing Performance Parts []

wow you shouldnt talk like that around here
even i know better lol

Not really ready to spend $15k on an engine.I have a 1969 CJ5 jeep that we use to bang around in the woods----oil pan dinged up but still original.ALL my Ford trucks needed pans because they are crap.My '94 was in need of its 3rd pan when I sold it.

Having owned a Suburban with a 5.7 for the past 9 years, plus a Chevy truck with a 5.7 for the 8 years prior to that, I feel I can say with all certainty that the 5.7 went downhill in it's final years. The '89 pickup I had was the picture of reliablity and did all I ever asked. The Suburban was nearly 10 years newer and from day one it wasn't as good as the older ones. It lacked power and was unrelaible to boot. Ever seen the Vortec's two-piece manifold? It's great while it works, but nearly all the guys I talked to with similar year engines had them fixed for a nasty coolant/vaccuum leak fairly early, and no its not cheap. How about the wonderful heater hose setup? Ever have one break and douse the alternator, killing it? Thne you go to the dealer only to find out the heater hose on your late model Suburban has ben discontinued? Niiice. My Suburban spent more than a few trips on the rollback tow truck (a Ford towtruck I might add) and is the sole reason I now own a Ford.

Why did they need oil pans? You cannot expect to bash the oil pan off of rocks and have it survive, regardless of what brand of vehicle it is. Your CJ doesn't bash the pan because of it's short wheelbase, not any superior engineering.

The newer LSX GM engines are not cheap to modify either. The small block Windsor engines are right on par to mod with a Chevy anymore thanks to the 5.0 Mustang!!

Wouldn't a skid plate solve the oil pan bashing problem rather than continuing to purchase new pans?

Also, What parts are you having trouble getting? Aside from draining Ford's supply of useable 5.4 oil pans, you didn't mention any specific problems with parts supplies. I mean, if I can get parts for a '67 GT350, it seems rational to think that late model F150 parts should be very plentiful.

cheap parts huh ??????? buy chevy ??? sure if they're gonna blow the d--n plants up and let us guy's watch with evil delight . i can get parts all over for my 4.6 now after being taught and listening to the guy's and gals on a bird forum jonny langton turned me onto , and nope they aren't cheap . i'm just doing a lot of looking and research to figure out what does and doesn't cross reference etc. i can get parts o.e and aftermarket for my flatty , my y block , the fe's i got sitting , all sorts of stuff for the efi 5.0 roller in the parts donor 91 bird , and both the 4.6's so i say pasha on not being able to find parts !!!!!!!!!!!! and geuss what they aren't cheap in most cases , but neither is my wife or my kids and i da-- sure wouldn't trade them for a belly button gm !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! man just calm down and do some research and buy a skid plate and or just dont go boonie bashing ................ yeah right ........ i drug my last 4x4 , an 83 f150 outta the woods broken more than once , and i didn't beeeotch as i was the fool who broke it doing things i shouldn't have been !}>}>}>}>}> p.s the late model bone yard about 2 miles down the road has 3 all aluminum late 4.6 romeo p.i.'s and a slathering of several 5.4's in 2 and 4 valve versions so they're out there !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! now if i could just find a big enough BFH to get a four valve 5.4 in my 95 bird ......................................:eek:

i have a 5.4 in our 97 F250 light duty.... never drive it hard, never off road it, hardly ever tow with it, just light ten mile commutes... and i have had 2 plugs blow out of the joke of a head in 13 months.... my 85 F-150 has cost me 100$ in defroster work in the same time
love ford trucks, but i really hate the 5.4

also about ****ty's errrr chevy's 5.7 POS edition V8.... why the hell would you ever want to put that in a ford? just throw in a stock 351 or 460 and the 5.7 will be left in the dust!
quit bitchin

That is the one draw back of the pre 03 Triton's. Who ever thought that 4 threads in an aluminum head (that you can't even get to) was a good idea is beyond me.
It's amazing that only a small percentage actually fail. There are millions of them out there that never had a plug problem one.

That might have something to do with the 50 year head start the sbc has on the triton.

If your having problems finding aftermarket parts for a 5.4 ,,your just not looking in the right place or trying hard enough.:-missingt

Oil Pans
 

The oil pans all rotted out on my 94 F250.Never off road and banged up.All I was saying about the 69 jeep was I am sure not much paint left on it and still does not leak.I had an 87 Chevy 2500---best truck ever owned.Only went with ford since I am a believer in locking hubs and straight axle.I also lost almost 4 mpg from my 94 5.8 and that had 4.10 axles.Cannot break 10 mpg with the 02 5.4.Beat the death out of chevy tranny plowing and sold it at 140,000 with original tranny.02 ford lost tranny at 68,000 with very light plowing.Would buy a new 76 high boy in a heartbeat.