hey Dallas area, I need a favor if possible

lincolnlocker

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my brother is wanting to find a f150 5.4l 4x4 crew cab short box.. preferably the 99-00 model but anything in that early 2000 model.. so what I was wondering is if any of you could keep an eye out and possibly post up anything you find or even dealerships to take a look at online.. I have a aunt and uncle in north Dallas and they are looking around but we might have them go look at what is found also.. price doesn't matter just post up what is found.

thanks in advance guys!

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jimdawg185

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I think they give those away at goodwill


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Brian22

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Shouldn't be too difficult to find. Just a matter of how beat up it is. Most of those trucks got turned into work trucks for backyard contractors. If you do find one, make sure it does not have the original spark plugs, those things are a nightmare to mess with.
 

lincolnlocker

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I think they give those away at goodwill


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yeah, its a crap shoot for the age of the truck but those years had way less issues after 125k on the clock.. like almost all of them from 2004 on up have cam phaser issues.

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jimdawg185

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Shouldn't be too difficult to find. Just a matter of how beat up it is. Most of those trucks got turned into work trucks for backyard contractors. If you do find one, make sure it does not have the original spark plugs, those things are a nightmare to mess with.



Nightmare is an understatement. I don't think they have a word for how angry I've gotten with a broken plug in a 5.4 head.


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Brian22

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Alot of mechanics will refuse to work on the truck if it has the original plugs. I knew one guy who wouldn't even mess with the plugs. He would just tell the customer that the heads were cracked and that he wouldn't work on it unless the heads were replaced.
 

lincolnlocker

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Alot of mechanics will refuse to work on the truck if it has the original plugs. I knew one guy who wouldn't even mess with the plugs. He would just tell the customer that the heads were cracked and that he wouldn't work on it unless the heads were replaced.
that sucks!!

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lincolnlocker

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might be able to expand to any of the southern states

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99F250Smitty

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I think it may be mainly a 4.6 thing, but I read some of the 5.4's in those years had it. There is also an old TSB where there was bad machining on the heads, and at the rear passenger side there is an oil port, my 01 daily driver leaks bad from there, and its more to fix the issue than the truck is worth. Just something to keep an eye out for while shopping for these.
 

lincolnlocker

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I think it may be mainly a 4.6 thing, but I read some of the 5.4's in those years had it. There is also an old TSB where there was bad machining on the heads, and at the rear passenger side there is an oil port, my 01 daily driver leaks bad from there, and its more to fix the issue than the truck is worth. Just something to keep an eye out for while shopping for these.
yeah man! they all have issues.. I had a 99 and a 2001 myself.. my 99 was by far a better running truck..

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99F250Smitty

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I love the truck, I've had it 6 years, and its never let me down, I've probably hauled 20 cord of wood in it or behind it in my dump trailer, its been an awesome beater, but its leaking so bad, sometimes when the exhaust gets hot it smokes pretty bad, lol. They are great for what they are.
 

BK39

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Alot of mechanics will refuse to work on the truck if it has the original plugs. I knew one guy who wouldn't even mess with the plugs. He would just tell the customer that the heads were cracked and that he wouldn't work on it unless the heads were replaced.

That's just flat out lazy, or bad business, or a ****ty mechanic...........doesn't matter how you word it, pathetic. We did our company truck, had 150k on it, original plugs, 2 broke, but still wasn't an impossible task. And we're not even true "mechanics". If a man labels himself as a "mechanic", he should be able to handle a spark plug change, regardless of situation.
 

Brian22

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That's just flat out lazy, or bad business, or a ****ty mechanic...........doesn't matter how you word it, pathetic. We did our company truck, had 150k on it, original plugs, 2 broke, but still wasn't an impossible task. And we're not even true "mechanics". If a man labels himself as a "mechanic", he should be able to handle a spark plug change, regardless of situation.

Why would any shop owner/mechanic take on a job that costs $150 knowing the parts he's removing have a high probabilty to break off and his half hour job turns into half his day or more for the same price of $150. He can't charge more because he snapped it off. He's just protecting himself from losing money at that point. I would do the same damn thing. Nobody ever goes into business to break even. If you aren't making a profit, it isn't worth it.
 

BK39

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Around here, the 2 shops I called forewarned us. They wanted XXX.xx amount to do the job, with the understanding that if they break off, it is XX.xx per hour and will be added to the invoice. I didn't like that, so we opted to try them ourselves.
 

JRLott

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What Brian said, BK. It's not that they "can't" change spark plugs. It's that a simple spark plug change may turn into a head removal...possibly two. Some simply turn that kind of risk down, while others make the customer sign a waiver stating they'll pay the shop time and any required machining should any of the spark plugs break. Sometimes they can be removed with the tool developed for the purpose, other times it's head removal time. It's a sh!tty Ford design, not mechanical ineptitude.

Edit: I see you beat me to it, BK. I changed mine at just shy of 80k, had the tool in case any broke, soaked them, and worked them back and forth. I had two that were a bit tighter than the others, but none broke and I don't think I had to be as careful as I was...
 
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dboat

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Well, I guess I got lucky.. I have a 2002 Lightning.. try those plugs with all the other stuff the Lightning has going on.. but L owners would change their plugs at 10K mile intervals, so the plugs never got that bad, plus those in the know made sure anti seize was put on the plugs after the first change..
Good Luck!
 

lincolnlocker

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my brother flew down to my aunt and uncles and found a mint condition 2001 crew cab 4x4 5.4l with 155k on the clock.. I think he did very good.
c008e67718ef6e948ba2d38467203709.jpg


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