Oil pan gasket when I bought the truck, $90.
Fuel pump went out at 190,000.
Pick Up coil in distributor went out at 175,000.
Front brakes at 195,000.
Clutch, pressure plate, etc, at 215,000.
Thermostat at 150,000.
Starter at 205,000.
This truck is by far the toughest, most dependable vehicle I've ever owned. As you can see from the list of faults, none of them are major and most lasted longer than expected to. This truck has been used and abused to the extreme, and still fires up first time, every time. It has been a road warrior, a satellite installers vehicle, pulled many other vehicles home on trailers. It has been sunk in a creek (flooded over the tranny hump) and ran for over an hour until we unstuck it, then drowned it out in the same creek and recranked under water. Doesn't use any fluids to this day, except a large amount of gas. Air still blows snowballs, and all accessories still work, and this truck still looks GOOD! It's had 8.5in wheels as long as I've owned it, and still handles good. I did tighten up the steering box at about 210,000. It still turns on a dime and gives you change. Nothing more comfortable than the 40/40/20 buckets in this truck. I have people try to buy this truck from me nearly everywhere I go. I have family members waiting in line to buy it. It would take a lot more money than it's worth to get me to let go of this ole gal. When they say built Ford tough, they mean it.
I agree, I have a 96 XLT with the 4.9... I really love the truck. It's 13 years old, and has never seen the inside of a warm garage, and I still get compliments about the overall look of the truck.
It handles well on the road (it's no Cadillac), the steering is fairly responsive, and is effortless.
The engine is a beast... not very quick, but it's not bad by any means. The torque drives me crazy (absolute tank), but at 150 hp, it could use a bump up in that (for acceleration).. (exhaust, cold air intake, and performance chip)... and it'll be rocket ship.
Hauling crap in the bed is impressive... you can barely feel the load.
Over all, it's a REAL TRUCK, which you don't see much of any more.
Buy the truck and service it like you should, and she'll have no problem surpassing 300,000 miles.
Horrible gas mileage though.
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