Dark metallic purple F-150 might be the coolest V6-powered 1998 Ford truck in America, featuring custom body work and a built engine.
The vast majority of the build projects here on F-150 Online are powered by a V8 engine or a newer EcoBoost V6, but the “Project Purple People Eater” is a beautiful 1998 Ford F-150 packing the original 4.2L Essex V6. However, this truck isn’t all show, as that original engine has been built from the bottom up, so this truck likely runs as good as it looks.
I’ve been here for a little while and posted a couple pics of my truck in another tread but figured I’d go ahead and give it its own thread. It’s a 1998 F150, 4.2 V6. I just rebuilt the motor after it spun a bearing and finished all the body work I had done as well.
I’ll start with the paint and body work. I shaved the washer nozzles, fender emblems, antenna, plastic bed caps, tailgate cap, rollpan, tailgate handle, tailgate F-150 and blue oval emblem and the body line across the bottom of the tailgate. I then molded on a set of side skirts to match the lightning inspired bumper. I painted the rear window surround, 3rd brake light and everything else.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
