Check Engine Light On problems of the 1997 Ford F-150

1997 Ford 4. 2l f150 - 91,000 miles vehicle properly maintained, "babied" it. It never had oil, coolant, or any engine problems. Started vehicle and heard an engine sound "pop", and noticed white smoke emitting from tailpipe. The gauges were reading all normal, as well as oil and transmission fluid levels. The check engine light came on. I immediately took the truck to my shop, they said without taking engine apart it sounds like a rod or bent crankshaft. They mentioned that it appears to be a common problem with Ford 4. 2 engines. It is now at the local Ford dealer - they have not explained how this happened but that I need an engine rebuilt. Really. Thank you Ford for standing behind your product. Cheaper to buy a rebuilt engine? does it have the original engine gaskets? then I can expect to spend another $4000,00 in three years or just after the warranty expires. If you have an engine problem with the Ford f150 4. 2l just do an internet search! where is the class action lawsuit?.

Dt: in October of 2003, the check engine light came on. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times and they said the problem was fixed. The dealer also mentioned that the problem was something near the carburetor.

Consistent problem with the engine light. Engine needed to be replaced. Dealer inspected vehicle for several years and couldn't fix the engine light.

I own a 1997 Ford F-150, and I believe that the truck's mileage is approximately 80,000. My truck has been maintained the entire time since I had it. My truck has never been abused nor has it ever pulled a trailer or been used for hauling. We have put thousands of dollars into my truck over the past years. The truck has had numerous problems. It has run poorly, and the check engine light has come on many times. We have brought the truck to Ford for service, and we have permitted all of the repairs that Ford has recommended. In April, I brought the truck in to woody anderson for service. . . $1100 later, the truck still faltered when starting, and continued to run "rough". The service tech at woody anderson told me that trucks run rough. I took the truck to sears, and they said her battery was bad, so we had it replaced. The truck still ran rough and did not start properly. Last Friday (3 October 2003) the check engine light came on again! on Sunday, I attempted to start my truck . . . And the engine made a horrific sound. I turned the engine off immediately, and had it towed to woody anderson on Monday morning. Now I'm being told that the engine has "fallen apart," and woody anderson wants $4000 to put in a new engine! I feel that replacing the engine is Ford's responsibility. Our records show that we have done our part in keeping the truck's maintenance current. It was our expectation and belief that Ford would do their part and service our vehicle properly. The fact that the check engine light continued to come on after numerous service attempts to fix the problem(s), indicates to me that the service the truck received was not sufficient to maintain the engine properly. The check engine light came on again two days before the engine's failure. Whether or not the check engine light is related to the engine's failure I do not know, but it does support the fact that problems with the engine were never resolved.

My 1997 Ford F-150 4x4 spontaneously burst into flames from the engine compartment after having been parked in my driveway for 12 hours over night. The engine had not been run, was not hot, and had no malfunctioning parts to my knowledge. I was awakened Friday morning by a jogger beating on my front door screaming that my truck was on fire. It burned the engine completely, destroyed the hood, cab, and the entire of the front end of the truck before it could be put out by the fire department. The local fire marshal and arson investigator investigated the fire and found no signs of malfunctions. Parked the vehicle at 6:00 pm at around 6:00 am the next morning the vehicle caught on fire. The fire was coming from the engine compartment. The fire seemed to be hottest on the drivers side of vehicle. The tire on the drivers side was totally melted. The tire on the passenger side did not fail. Shortly before the fire the cruise control stopped working. Once in a while the check engine light would come on. At one point an interlock switch on the vehicle brake pedal was replaced because could not get the vehcile out of park. Will e-mail pictures to bruce york. Only aftermarket equipment was a stereo professionaly installed. The vehicle only had liabilty insurance.

Consumer states while driving the engine light comes and stays on. Had vehicle check, the evaporative system gross leak was detected code po455. Contacted dealer.

I have a 1997 Ford F-150 with a v-6 4. 2l engine. This engine ran rough after being driven at highway speeds and was then slowed to normal city speeds. This was investigated at least three times while under the warranty period with no trouble found each time. At about 70,000 miles this truck began to run rough and the shop which serviced it told me that there was insufficient spark in the right half of the engine, but came up with no satisfactory resolutions. I notice that I was loosing coolant and the check engine light would come on and blink occasionally. This continued for several months until one day when I turned on the engine there was a loud bang and an obnoxious clattering. The truck was towed into a dealer at which point I was told I needed a new engine which cost $4200. After 55,000 more miles I started losing fluid again and experiencing similar problems and took the truck into a dealer which found no trouble. The symptoms were a fluctuating temperature gauge and no heat when the heater was turned on. Also, loosing fluid with white smoke from the exhaust. From other postings on various online forums I found out this was a classic failure for the 4. 2l v6 with a blown head gasket. I seem to be on the verge of another blown engine. When I called a dealer to schedule a return visit I was informed that this the same engine as the taurus 3. 8l with a long stroke hence making the displacement 4. 2 liters. Also, I was informed that engine had the same trouble and many have to be replaced.

Truck was taken to dealer on 11/22/2000 due to owner detection of water in oil. Dealer found no problems with any foreign substance in the oil and engine checked ok. On 01/15/2001 the engine check light came on. Several miles later , engine attempted to stall at 50 mph with all dashboard lights activated. Clutch was depressed and raced to prevent stall. Engine recovered after a few yards and was driven home. Truck was taken back to dealer and was told that the crankshaft bearings were the cause of the failure and that Ford would replace the engine if owner agreed to pay $500 of the cost.

On highway driver needs two hands to steer the vehicle. Steering is hard to handle, sometimes oversteering occurs, dealer contacted three times. Dealer has aligned the front end and adjusted the toe, camber and caster, however consumer still complains of steering wheel stiffness, dealer can not remedy. Check engine light illuminated.

Vehicle skips, misses, backfires and has very little power. No check engine light illuminated.

Check engine light comes on sometimes. Yh.

Transmission jerks very hard from gear to gear. Also, engine check light comes on, and vehicle experiences exceesive gas consumption.

While driving the engine seized, check engine light did not illuminate. Nlm.