2007 F-150 questions

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Tim Gregory

Tim Gregory

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For practical reasons, I needed a vehicle I can use reliably while I'm working on my '78 Cherokee. We found this '07 F-150, I think it'll fit the bill for the next few years!

Does anyone who drives one of these have any tips or suggestions?

Thanks! 2636.jpeg
 
Raul B

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Tim Gregory said:
For practical reasons, I needed a vehicle I can use reliably while I'm working on my '78 Cherokee. We found this '07 F-150, I think it'll fit the bill for the next few years!

Does anyone who drives one of these have any tips or suggestions?

Thanks! View attachment 70596
Click to expand...
I have a 2012 f150. What exactly are your goals for it?
 
James Deaton

James Deaton

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I have a 2006. What tips are you looking for?

Truxxx has a great lift kit for them, for about $400... I have the owners phone number, maybe we could go in on getting two kits for half price or something... :)

We are selling our Expedition and moving our overlanding over to our 2006 F150 here soon, so I’ll be doing some other things as well, like building a bed rack to mount our roof top tent on.

How many miles does yours have on it? What kind of maintenance has been done to it?

James
 
Tim Gregory

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James Deaton said:
I have a 2006. What tips are you looking for?

Truxxx has a great lift kit for them, for about $400... I have the owners phone number, maybe we could go in on getting two kits for half price or something... :)

We are selling our Expedition and moving our overlanding over to our 2006 F150 here soon, so I’ll be doing some other things as well, like building a bed rack to mount our roof top tent on.

How many miles does yours have on it? What kind of maintenance has been done to it?

James
Click to expand...
It is at 87k miles, and it looks like everything is in great shape. We bought it from a Ford dealer, so no paperwork from the previous owner; just a promise that it was thoroughly checked by their pros. I tend to believe them- another truck we looked at came with a list of "these things will need to be repaired or replaced in the next year or two."

I want to take it out for some short trips before deciding if it needs a lift for my use - I'm not against it, but I dont want it so tall that my wife (who has some back trouble) can't climb in.

I'm interested in hearing about any maintenance quirks or typical gotchas!

Things I will want to add- offroad bumper & winch, and build or buy drawers or something for organization in the bed.

Thanks!
 
James Deaton

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Thr Truxxx lift for these is about 2.75” in the front, and only 1” in the back... it’s helpful for the front end on ground clearance, and more of a leveling kit... I installed a similar one on our Expedition and it was pretty easy with an impact gun/sockets. Alignment is required afterward.

That’s very low miles! Mine has 120k. Do the spark plugs at 100k miles and expect to break 2 or 3. The new style plugs are one piece instead of two, so it’s usually only the original set that breaks. Once again, easy to do if you have ratchets, extensions, and swivel socket adapters... you will also need the special tool to remove broken spark plugs on the 5.4L (it is a 5.4L right?)... the tool is a Lisle #65600.

Which rear end does it have? Does it have limited slip?

Ours has been very reliable, except for: the rubber pad on the fold down armrest peeling away from the plastic backing (I had an upholstery repair shop staple it back together), and the driver’s power window button stopped functioning in express down mode (I took it apart and used precision pliers to adjust the spring inside), also the 3rd brake light leaked water into the cab so I used some black Butyl rubber tape to seal it up... other than that it has done well. I expect it to last a good long while...

James
 
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Tim Gregory

Tim Gregory

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James Deaton said:
Thr Truxxx lift for these is about 2.75” in the front, and only 1” in the back... it’s helpful for the front end on ground clearance, and more of a leveling kit... I installed a similar one on our Expedition and it was pretty easy with an impact gun/sockets. Alignment is required afterward.

That’s very low miles! Mine has 120k. Do the spark plugs at 100k miles and expect to break 2 or 3. The new style plugs are one piece instead of two, so it’s usually only the original set that breaks. Once again, easy to do if you have ratchets, extensions, and swivel socket adapters... you will also need the special tool to remove broken spark plugs on the 5.4L (it is a 5.4L right?)... the tool is a Lisle #65600.

Which rear end does it have? Does it have limited slip?

Ours has been very reliable, except for: the rubber pad on the fold down armrest peeling away from the plastic backing (I had an upholstery repair shop staple it back together), and the driver’s power window button stopped functioning in express down mode (I took it apart and used precision pliers to adjust the spring inside), also the 3rd brake light leaked water into the cab so I used some black Butyl rubber tape to seal it up... other than that it has done well. I expect it to last a good long while...

James
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That amount of lift sounds perfect. I will have to consider it!

It is the 5.7, but I honestly don't know what rear end it has. It seems to be a relatively base model - not a Loredo or Platinum or anything. Is there a vin decoder that will list this particular truck's loadout? The owners manual doesn't really say, it just describes them all.

The switch is 2wd, 4hi, 4lo - and I will say that in 4hi it *feels* like limited slip. It is much harder to turn :)

The interior looks great other than missing the floor mats, I'm pretty happy with the purchase (it has only been three days) so far! My dad always drove Ford trucks, so it feels like a little nod to my childhood to buy one.
 
James Deaton

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There should be a door jamb sticker you can use to decode the rear end ratio and LSD (or not)...

The 5.4L is a good engine, once past the first spark plug change. There are also a lot of posts on cam phaser issues in these years, but I kinda don’t wanna know, so I try not to read them :)

James
 
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Tim Gregory

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James Deaton said:
There should be a door jamb sticker you can use to decode the rear end ratio and LSD (or not)...

The 5.4L is a good engine, once past the first spark plug change. There are also a lot of posts on cam phaser issues in these years, but I kinda don’t wanna know, so I try not to read them :)

James
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Axle code 19- non-ls.
I'm not planning to do it soon, but now I'll be wondering how hard it would be to get a limited slip from a junkyard and install it ;)
 
Tim Gregory

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Doesn't even look all that expensive, like the lift. Working on my old Cherokee I'm used to seeing things start over $1k and then comes the optional equipment. I'm sure a good winch bumper will still run me $1500 or so.
 
Tim Gregory

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Is a basic puck-style leveling kit a good call? She's a pretty tall truck already, so I'm not sure I want a full lift, and I'm fine with the tire size.
 
James Deaton

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That worked perfect on my 2003 Expedition. Pucks (actually called a spacer lift) will only work in the front. The rear uses leaf springs. Did you check out the TRUXXX kit for our trucks? It has pictures for reference.

James
 
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Tim Gregory

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James Deaton said:
That worked perfect on my 2003 Expedition. Pucks (actually called a spacer lift) will only work in the front. The rear uses leaf springs. Did you check out the TRUXXX kit for our trucks? It has pictures for reference.

James
Click to expand...
I was looking at the Motofab ones, they are about $60 and are solid aluminum. It would seem to me that a solid billet like that might be stronger than the welded style. I'll certainly include the TRUXXX kit in my searching. Thanks!T537265~2.jpeg
 
James Deaton

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Either one should be fine. Welded steel is perfectly fine, they build cars and buildings out of it. Steel flexes... Aluminum is fine too. Aluminum doesn’t flex, it breaks instead.

Either way should be good, I just had an excellent experience with TRUXXX customer service.

James
 
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4L_Warrior

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Hey Tim & James!
Add me to your list. I've just joined and also have the same time period truck. Mine is a 2005 F150 Lariat... already installed Bilstien 5100's, air bags in rear and upgraded rotors to Powerbrake system.

I had heard all about busting plugs on my 5.4L, but watched a great YouTube vid on pre-soaking the plugs, then warming the engine before trying... WORKED!, all came out without problem. Here in Calif, AutoZone loans out the kit for broken plugs. I also replaced all 8 coils while I had her apart.

A month later, the dreaded cam-shaft chain problem reared it's ugly head. I chose to go with a Ford factory rebuilt with EVERYTHING installed minus the alternator on it. Even came with oil in it. It cost 3,200 bucks, but I love my truck. Why spend $60,000 on a new one?

I'm having trouble finding rock sliders that are good quality... might have to build them myself.

Cheers guys!

Ed

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Cam Phasers have been a black eye for the 3V 5.4L, but otherwise are a pretty solid motor. They're no 5.0 by any means, but still pretty good. I think what a lot of people have run into is that when/if the cam phaser issue rears its head, it's usually at a higher mileage point to justify buying all the timing components. That said, some have put lockouts in the cam phasers to disable VVT and the issue will never arise again.

As for swapping out the diff, I agree with James above. I would not go with the stock clutch-pack limited slip, those often wear aren't as durable as the Eaton. P/N for the 9.75" axle is 225C194A.
 
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