This truck just came in the dealer I work at. Its a 1999 4x4 lariat with 157000 miles and 7.3 powerstroke engine. I bought it for $9,000 is that a decent price? Only options I can tell is leather seats???

Thanks
Chris

 

If its clean and mechanically sound, then its a steal.

 

I am with FL4X4. Good thing about it and if you plan to make crazy power you can. As you have forged rods instead of powder coated metal rods. So you are good for 5-600HP

 

An early '99 at that (as opposed to the '99.5s). Looks nice.

 

Thanks guys...how can I tell if its a Early 99? Thanks

 

I might see if i can find a good tune for the engine but nothing crazy.

 

Generally speaking, the early 99's had their (motor) badges on the fender (behind the lights), similar to the placement of the V10 badges and the 99.5's on up had their badges on the doors...
(99.5-03 had almost identical badges except the 99.5 & '00 had the red lines under Power Stroke & the 01-03 had the chrome lines under Power Stroke)

But you can always check the sticker on the door jamb to find the build date...

 

I'd say you got a steal. Most stock unmolested super duty's around the central Florida area are selling anywhere from around 12-17k.

 

Go with Tony Wildman tunes, you will be set!

 

Hmmm... weird things going on with that truck look wise.

It has the early Lariat Wheels (99-2000 I think?) (also used on limited Excursions) and plastic grill? Kind of confused at that. Was it in a front end wreck?

 

Well it is a Lariat model. Carfax shows it was a 1 owner vehicle and no accidents? It was a contractors truck so its possible the grill was damaged and changed?

 

Keep in mind that since the truck is an early 99 there are a number of parts that are specific only to early 99 trucks.

- The front hubs and rotors are different, and the front hubs from Ford are over $400 each unlike the 99.5-04 hubs which are only $300 each.

- The injectors are smaller (120cc instead of 140cc)

- The turbo has basically what is called the "wicked wheel" factory installed. The wicked wheel was designed after the early 99 wheel and was used to help try and stop turbo surge. The 99.5 turbo is slightly larger as well.

- The bed is ever so slightly different. If you want to put any kind of running board or step bar that extends back to the bed they will need modifications to work with the bed.

- If it still has the original factory air box then it needs to be replaced ASAP as they commonly fell apart causing the engine to get dusted. There was a TSB for this but it has long since expired.

Overall The $9k price is fair, but I wouldn't call it a steal. Around here its about an average deal for that truck with that many miles.

As for the chip, just make sure you have the supporting mods first before you put a chip on it. At minimum you need a full set of gauges (EGT, boost, trans temp). After that I'd suggest a little bit of work to the automatic like a good valve body and a larger cooler. In stock form the 4R100 won't like the extra hp and will live a short life if you're not careful with it. Take a look at either Tony Wildmans chips or Beans Diesel Performance. Had I not sold my F250 I'd have gone with Beans. How many other chip makers have a $60k load dyno in the shop they can use to fine tune and tweak their programs?

 

.....Wishin' ya good truckin' pard!

 

Hi,

Thanks for all the new information. As far as the Wicked Wheel type system I was curious why i always heard a high pitched sound most of the time and it sounds like a turbine winding down pretty cool actually.

I put half a tank of fuel in and the onboard display shows 379 miles till empty exactly on the half tank mark is that accurate?

Thanks
Chris

 

Don't hold your breath, the overhead display is almost always wrong. To find you actual economy first make sure that the speedo is reading right (ie calibrated for the size of tires installed). After that fill the tank until you see LIQUID fuel in the filler neck. Remember diesel foams quite a bit which takes up alot of space in the tank so until you see liquid fuel you have no idea how much you actually have. Drive until at least 3/4 of the tank is gone and then go fill up the exact same way (until you see liquid fuel, not foam).