DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Everything Else... Does anyone here drive a 4x4 truck I have a dilemma of sorts

I have a 2005 F-150 4x4. Solid truck. No Rust
Never plowed with it or went off roading.
I baby it to be honest.
I rarely drive it in the snow.

Anyhow I came across the same truck model
Etc in Virginia.

It has a 2 inch lift on it.all it needs is a oil pump.

I don't know whether to just lift my current truck and go bigger on the tires or buy this truck in Virgina for $3,000.

My dilemma is how to get it back to Ohio if I choose to buy it

My opinion, leave your current truck as is. Basically, it ain't broke don't fix it. If you want this other truck, rent a trailer and go get it.

How can you be sure it only needs an oil pump?

Eh I saw it on Facebook Marketplace
Description said needs oil pump
But who knows how many miles that 5.4 Triton
Was driven with a bad oil pump

If your truck is fine and you really want the lift and bigger tires then do it to yours because you don't know what kind of problems you might have with someone else's truck when it is that old.

$3000 isn't all that much for nearly anybody, and I am not making light of $3000. Rent a trailer and lug it back or hire a transport company to deliver it to some repair shop to put in a new oil pump. If you can do it yourself, deliver it to your garage.

If you can fix it up, the thing will be worth more than the $3000 cost plus the few hundred you spend to get it back.

Then you have 2 trucks. Decide which one you want to keep and sell the other. That is the beauty of a pick-up....everybody wants one for those times you need to lug stuff around, thus there is always a demand. They almost look better as they age and have a few nicks and bruises on them.

You might not want that on a older Mercedes, but a old Dodge truck, it's almost required. It's almost a right of passage.

Trucks are built for a purpose. The beds are going to get scrapped up, you are going to back it in to a rock or tree at some point...they are supposed to look a little worn. It's a truck.


Like I said, if you are driving around in a dull, beat up Mercedes, people are going to wonder what's up with that guy?
In a truck? That is his work truck. Good for him.

You know how your truck has been treated and maintained. You have "the bird in the hand". You have no idea how this other truck has been treated and maintained. As such I would stick with what I know and just have your current truck lifted and put the bigger tires on it.

GM would know better than me, but $3000 for a 2005 F-150 4X4, assuming that it's all there, and the 4x4 works, seems like a steal.

Lifted trucks have things wear faster and Used 4x4 trucks imo are a risky buy as you don't know what was done with them, its like buying a lifted used jeep. I'd say its probably fine if its a body lift and not a suspension lift. I had an 08 F-350 with 6" fabtech lift on it, no expense spared, but everything around the lift points were wearing faster. Id def have it checked by a mechanic first. Not sure if its supercrew or not and the miles but 3k is probably decent deal at what it should be for a 15 year old truck needing an oil pump (assuming it don't need more)But I do know that the 5.4 before 2009 ish was the gas version of the 6.0 powerstroke. Cam issues, plugs breaking off in the heads. Def have a ford mechanic give it a once over. But if it only needs a 100.00 pump you got a good deal

If you have the spousal goodwill, money, space, and time (in that order) to swing having 2 trucks at the same time... then I say go for it.


As far as actually making the acquisition... fly there (or I guess these days you rent a car and drive there), look over the car (take it to a nearby mechanic for a pre-purchase inspection), buy it if all is on the up-and-up, make the necessary repairs and drive it back home.

If life is getting in the way of going and getting the truck yourself, you can pay someone to transport it. I used uShip, and I was pretty happy with the result. It's an online broker, and the trick is to be VERY patient once you put out the bid for work. Quotes will come back EXTREMELY high. Once you've waited about a week, they'll have come down to respectable levels. The key is to be patient and reject the first few bids you get. They'll come back with more and more competitive quotes.
Another thing to keep in mind is that once you've agreed on a quote, the clock resets and you wait on them to schedule you. Once they've scheduled you, the clock starts on them picking up your car and getting it to you.

Cannot stress the pre-purchase inspection enough. As the buyer, you pay for it (at least that's what I do). You and the seller agree on a place to take it (they'll know the local mechanic scene better than you... take it to a dealership if you're worried about getting a poor inspection).

It's been on Facebook Marketplace for a week.
I'm just curious why it's still available cause
I can't be the only person to inquire about
What worries me is that If all it needed was a
New oil pump them how come the owner didn't just Have it replaced?

Those 5.4 Triton engines really came with headaches ....cam phaser, #4 plug breaking
Vct sensors.....

Blah stay away from it. an 05 with engine problems and they say its oil pump. if its just oil pump why dont they fix it and sell for more. those engines have multiple concerns. spark plugs blowing out, cam phasers bad. i am in the auto repair field. not worth the money.
the rockers also have problems with rusting out like all truks from this era.
if the exhaust manifold bolts are broken with that year you basically have to pull the motor because the pass side is covered by the strut tower.