Topic: 2002-150

[spankyjr]

Does anybody own or know somebody that owns an 02' ford 150 4x4 ? I'm thinkin bout buyin one for a daily driver, I found one with 130k hwy miles 4" lift 5.4 lariat..blah blah for $8k. I've owned 76-79 and loved em, but with all the electronics on them now are they still tough?

[88_Pathy]

They are good trucks.  I personally think that the trans is crap for towing, but overall a good truck.

[yotarunner85]

I have been working at Ford dealerships for 17 years and can tell you they are good trucks. My Dad owns one that has 114,000 miles on it and has had no problems. I am also looking to buy an 02 F-150 4x4 for my wife to replace our 2wd explorer. The 2002 to 2003 F-150s are good years for the F-150. They are the last years of that body style, last years of a cable operated throttle, and last years of the 2 valve 5.4L motor. The 2004 and up F-150s have the 3 valve 5.4L motor with an electric throttle body and has those stupid $20 a piece spark plugs that break off in the cylinder head (not fun & very expensive). The last years of a long run of a truck are the most refined and most reliable. The F-150 ran that body style from 1996 to 2003. The common problems to look out for are, trucks that are lifted with bigger tires tend to wear out the ball joints. If the cooling system is neglected the heater cores will leak. The ignition coils can cause misfires if water gets in them (don't pressure wash the engine or go full throttle though a big puddle or water crossing). To prevent this use dielectric grease in the coils. Also use the factory spark plugs and make sure they are tight or your going to have problems. I make a lot of money from people who use cheap spark plugs (spend the extra $4) Towing with any lifted truck and big tires puts a ton of stress on the trans, use an aux. cooler. Maintenance records are a bonus, these truck will go over 300k when properly maintaned. The dealerships parts truck had 350k and was still running strong when they replaced it. Hope this helped, good luck.

[SloCrawler]

I love mine, only thing i dont like is the factory allignment, got to buy aftermarket camber adjustments if it gets off. It tows great with all my trailers,

[SloCrawler]

I have been working at Ford dealerships for 17 years and can tell you they are good trucks. My Dad owns one that has 114,000 miles on it and has had no problems. I am also looking to buy an 02 F-150 4x4 for my wife to replace our 2wd explorer. The 2002 to 2003 F-150s are good years for the F-150. They are the last years of that body style, last years of a cable operated throttle, and last years of the 2 valve 5.4L motor. The 2004 and up F-150s have the 3 valve 5.4L motor with an electric throttle body and has those stupid $20 a piece spark plugs that break off in the cylinder head (not fun & very expensive). The last years of a long run of a truck are the most refined and most reliable. The F-150 ran that body style from 1996 to 2003. The common problems to look out for are, trucks that are lifted with bigger tires tend to wear out the ball joints. If the cooling system is neglected the heater cores will leak. The ignition coils can cause misfires if water gets in them (don't pressure wash the engine or go full throttle though a big puddle or water crossing). To prevent this use dielectric grease in the coils. Also use the factory spark plugs and make sure they are tight or your going to have problems. I make a lot of money from people who use cheap spark plugs (spend the extra $4) Towing with any lifted truck and big tires puts a ton of stress on the trans, use an aux. cooler. Maintenance records are a bonus, these truck will go over 300k when properly maintaned. The dealerships parts truck had 350k and was still running strong when they replaced it. Hope this helped, good luck.

Any tricks on getting to sparkplugs easly?

[yotarunner85]

Any tricks on getting to sparkplugs easly?

What year & motor?

[SloCrawler]

2002 5.4 tritan

[yotarunner85]

The only ones that are hard to get to are the back two. I use a 7mm 1/4 in drive socket and a few different size extensions to get the coil bolts out. You'll need a 7mm 1/4 drive wobble socket for #7 coil bolt (third one back drivers side)(I use a craftsman wobble socket from sears). Twist the coils to free them or the boot will stick in the spark plug well (if that happens I use spark plug wire pullers to get the boot out, rare but happens some time). Then I use a spark plug socket with a 1in extension, then a 1/2in wobble joint, then a 14in extension to get to all the plugs. Use the factory Motorcraft spark plug (you can get them a little cheaper at a Autozone/Kragen type auto parts then at the dealer sometimes, call around for prices). Don't forget to gap the plugs and put dielectric grease in the coil boot (you can get it an auto parts store, you'll need a small tube or about 4 small packets). Also after you get the coils off, use compressed air to blow the dirt out of the spark plug wells before you pull the spark plugs or the dirt might fall in to the cylinder.

[SloCrawler]

Im haveing problems now with my Ford, bad vibrations when put in gear, got codes P1705 & P1501 , programable speedometer & odometer module vehicle speed sensor intermittent failure. So I replaced the sensor located on axle. The truck drives better  but not 100%. Fuses all good no loose conections. Any ideas?

[yotarunner85]

Nether of those codes will cause a vibration in gear. P1705 - Transmission Range Sensor Out of Self-Test Range. P1501 - Vehicle Speed Sensor (VSS) Out of Self Test Range. Sounds like you may have a misfire. Have you been driving in heavy rain? It's common to get water in the ignition coils.

[SloCrawler]

yes, its been storming here for a few weeks now, I thought it might be a coil, this weekend im going to put all knew ignition coils and plugs, any advice on a good cheap brand? found some for $100 on ebay, yellow top. I replaced my VSS, should I replace Transmissions Range Sensor. Thanks for your knowledge

[yotarunner85]

P1705 can set by running a scan tool test with the shifter in gear. Make sure your in park when testing. If code comes back after clearing and retesting, then check your shift linkage and TRS adjustment. If all is good you might need a new TRS.

I wouldn't replace all the coils, just the one thats bad. I would also stay with the factory Motocraft coils, they fit better and are more reliable. Remember you get what you pay for. The factory Motocraft coils are about $100 each at the dealer. You may be able to find them for less if you look around. Also if it hasn't been misfiring for very long, and you find water on the coils, you can use compressed air to blow the water out of the coil. Put the coil back in drive it around and see if it still misfires. (note you can pull the coil boot off of the coil to make sure you get all the water out.)

[SloCrawler]

I'm pretty sure its just a bad spark plug, the miss seems to come and go, and no more codes.