1999 Ford F550 XLT Crew Cab Saga

Specifications:

Engine: Power Stroke 7.3L V-8 DI Turbo Diesel

GCWR 26,000 lbs or 30,000 lbs with High Capacity Trailer Towing Package* 

    According to the 2001½ Towing Guide the high capacity trailer tow package includes the trailer tow package (531), synthetic rear axel lube and a radiator in-tank transmission oil cooler for automatics. The 1999 Owner's Guide book does not list the F550 Crew Cab GCWR but ours is supposed to be at least 26,000 lbs. I have installed the synthetic rear axle lubricant but I cannot find any details as to why they only list the automatic* as up gradable to the 30k limit so far.  I already have the radiator in-tank transmission oil cooler. Further research may yield more information and I will post those as I find them.

GVWR 17,500 lbs

Front GAWR 5,790 lbs

Rear GAWR 12,460 lbs

 

Engine Oil 15W40 Super Duty - 14 qts     I now use AMSOIL 15W40

Cooling System 32.75 qts

Fuel Tank - Main 38 gal \ Aux 60 gal

Manual Transmission  - ZF 6 speed manual 3.4 qts MERCON ATF ( Be sure to use only the standard ATF or synthetic equivalent. Do not use the heavier gear lube.) I now use Royal Purple.

Front Axle - 75W90 gear lube

Rear Axle - Dana 135  now with AMSOIL Synthetic lube 80W90 24.5 pts 

Axle Ratio - 4.88

Overall height - Crew Cab 4x2     81.4"

Overall width - Crew Cab 4x2     93.5"

Track Front - Crew Cab 4x2     68.4"

Track Rear - Crew Cab 4x2     63.4"

Overall length - 249.6"

Accessories:

XLT gray interior package split front seat, matching custom gauge pod in left front roof post with transmission temperature, boost pressure and exhaust gas temperature gauges, custom steel flat bed  with forward steel tool boxes , auxiliary fuel tank, Power Brake exhaust brake, a Western Diesel towing power chip, 4" stainless exhaust,  K & N air filter, Dhal fuel filter/water separator, tow hooks, 20k articulating Reese 5th wheel hitch, goose neck hitch, air brake line attachment points, 4 Trojan 6 volt wet cell batteries mounted in custom battery boxes in the tool box compartments (See Our Solar System),  aluminum center mounted diamond plate tool box, 5 gal metal fuel can, spare 20 lb LP tank, rear electric folding bench seat.

FORD - Fix Or Repair Daily?

Now we being newbies to the big truck world had hoped that we would be lucky and made a good choice on the used F550. I can sum it up by saying, "I love the truck but hate dealing with Ford."

Our story begins:

Before leaving to go out west on our first adventure the fuel pump began leaking. This was easily taken care of by our local dealer and I had the exhaust brake installed by them. From reading discussions on the RV Club about tow vehicles, I determined that adding an exhaust break was one of the first things to add to the truck in order to handle a large RV. The unit installed is the electronic type that uses the existing exhaust back pressure valve on the Power Stroke engine. It seems to work just fine as we really needed it on the downgrades we traversed out west later on.

Our next mechanical problem began when we were passing through Louisiana. The AC quit working which wasn't a big deal until we tried to get it fixed at a Ford dealer in Slidell. The dealer refused to warranty repair the defective switch so we had to pay out of pocket. We have a Re-acquired Vehicle Warranty that is essentially like a new vehicle warranty for the 1st 12k or 12 months but the dealer couldn't (or wouldn't) verify it. We ended up getting reimbursed by Ford by writing to our original dealer in Orlando. This was not a good sign. This proved to be the case as we traveled farther.

We eventually made it out west to Arizona and enjoyed the new experiences there. We eventually decided to move on to visit friends in Colorado. On the way through Utah we started experiencing power problems. The truck continued to loose power and stalled as we were pulling into a desert campground in Hanksville, UT. We were very thankful to have made it there. I began thinking that we may have gotten water in the fuel and tried adding an additive to the diesel fuel. The truck started ran the next day but still had poor power. We made it to Grand Junction in Colorado. There I called the local dealer and explained our problem but they said it would be two weeks before they could even look at it. Needless to say, I was getting real aggravated with Ford by now and began looking for another dealer who would take us in and help us. The truck stalled on us several more times in town so we stopped by an independent diesel repair shop and had them diagnose the problem. They did not have the latest software but were pretty sure that we had a bad fuel injector. They could not do the repair under our warranty and we didn't want to pay out of pocket for it then so we opted to try another Ford dealer. We located a dealer in Delta about 30 miles away who said to bring it right in the next day. I drove down to Delta to find that the dealer service manager decided he couldn't get us in for a least a week. I was fuming by now and left without making an appointment. I figured that I would have to pay out of pocket to get it fixed but on the way back the engine completely shut down. I was stranded on the side of the road for a couple of hours until the emergency road service could get there. I didn't know where else to tow it so I had them tow it to the Grand Junction Ford dealer that wanted us to wait 2 weeks before. It was close to the campground we were staying at. Low and behold when I showed up being towed they decided they could now get me in. The next day they called and said it was fixed much to my surprise. It seems they figured a new fuel pump would fix the problem.

We left Grand Junction hoping that we could find another dealer near our destination around Glenwood Springs. Did this ever turn out to be a disaster! The dealer there turned out to be the worst dealer we have dealt with to date. We had to wait a week for our appointment. The ABS brake light had come on in the interim so I asked that they fix it too but I had to sign a promise to pay $100 for repairs note first. When I asked about the engine they had a blank stare and said I didn't mention anything about that and I would have to come back in another week to have that checked. I nearly popped my cork! I called the Ford complaint line who agreed that it was a bad dealer but could do nothing more. Judy called around and found another dealer in nearby Rifle who said they would help us. I was skeptical but we went the next day about 20 miles to Rifle and discovered a decent Ford dealer for the 1st time since we left Florida! They took us right in and did the proper cylinder contribution test and replaced the bad fuel injector within 2 hours! We were very happy and relieved to have found out that not all Ford dealers are alike. We enjoyed the area for a few weeks more and then headed for California.

On the way to California we noticed that the transmission was leaking. We still had a few thousand miles left before the re-acquired vehicle warranty ran out so I made an appointment with a Ford Sterling truck dealer in Fresno which was about 30 miles away. We dropped off the truck to find that there was no car rental allowance by the dealer which was an unexpected expense. They said it would take about a week to do over the holidays so we rented for a week. Well, the holiday week came and went and I showed up on schedule to find that they did not have the truck done. It seems that they broke the machine to reassemble the transmission and the part so they had to reorder. I was annoyed that we had to wait another week but had no choice. A week and a half later they said they had it done but would not cover the expenses for the rental car past their ready date. I showed up on time but they said they needed another day to finish and paid half the rental only for that day. I could sue but it is like beating your head against a wall, so I just let it go. Big mistake!

We left heading back east to return to Florida. We made it as far as Congress, AZ when we realized that the transmission was leaking again. I made an appointment with the local Ford dealer in Wickenburg who took us in the next day. I thought they fixed it. Much to my dismay, I found a week later that the transmission was still leaking, the rear bolt holding it on was missing and the drain plug had been stripped out! I made another appointment for the next week and took it back to be repaired again! They did so without fanfare or cost. Apparently the mechanic who worked on it had quit. 

Now I waited 3 more weeks to see if things we going to work and so far it did. We left heading back east again and made it as far as Amarillo before stopping again to find the transmission leaking again. The dealer in Amarillo seemed nice enough. They had a good deal on tires so I had the rear duals replaced and oil changed while there. They seemed to finally get the leak problem fixed this time and we continued on our way.

We made it back to Florida and enjoyed the summer fixing things and adding storage to our home base. We didn't have any more problems with the truck until the fall when we were headed back west. We made it to New Mexico when the transmission suddenly began acting up. The replaced synchronizers seemed to go out again and grinding gears was the order of the day. We stopped at the nearest Ford dealer in Sorraco, NM. They would have took us right in but they didn't have a mechanic who could work on our truck so they referred us to the nearest Ford dealer near our destination in AZ. We limped in to Congress but with our last experience with the dealer in Wickenburg I decided to try a big Ford dealer in Glendale, AZ. I made an appointment and drove in to Glendale about 70 miles to find that they could fix it just fine. The only problem was that they would not cover it under warranty. They said we had exceeded our 12k miles already for warranty repair. I contended that we had only covered about 9,500 miles but they said the mileage started from out original repair in Fresno last year! That put us over by about 1,200 miles. We left disgusted.

Of course now that the 12/12 warranty had just expired, the AC quit working. Wickenburg Ford replaced the bad compressor with more money out of pocket.

Shortly after getting the A/C fixed the truck would just stop running. If I waited for a few minutes on the side of the road, the truck would startup again and run just fine. I managed to make another appointment with the dealer in Wickenburg. It turned out to be a bad exhaust backpressure sensor (EBS) covered by the 100k engine warranty less the $100 deductible. Oh lucky me!

We continued to drive when we had to until we could come up with the money to repair the transmission. We had no choice. I called Ford. Of course they refused to grant that the warranty should have been from the last transmission repair. We contested to no avail. They have the big bucks. They don't care if we sue them. Basically, we were screwed.

We had a remanufactured transmission installed by a local repair shop in Wickenburg. It seems to be working for now. I hope it works for a while. It has a remanufactured warranty from Ford for 12K/12 months.

Reflecting back on our experiences with this truck it is easy to see that there are several things going on here:

One; Ford as a manufacturer makes good vehicles but has a real problem with servicing them,

Two; The used F550 was probably not the best choice for a trouble free tow vehicle,

Three; We could have waited and bought a used larger capacity truck.

I feel that the truck handles our rig just fine but the wear and tear is too great when you approach or exceed the maximum rated specifications on the vehicle. Give yourself a larger margin if you are in the market for a large tow vehicle. And by all means, don't trust the salesman. They will tell you anything to get the sale. Let's face it, The strain on the power train is much higher than the average user. I have to keep a close eye on all components and routine maintenance is very important in keeping the truck in good working order. If you want a vehicle that is trouble free take a bus. You have to maintain it in order to use it.

It is my opinion Ford has no interest in helping Ford vehicle owners get a fair shake on their warranty repairs. The dealers have no incentive to cut the owner any slack when it comes to warranty repairs. Ford has made it plain that they will not authorized proper long term warranty repairs. They only want the dealers to do the absolute minimum work to get the customer out the door. They don't care weather the job was done right or if you are satisfied with the work. Our transmission should have been replaced with a remanufactured unit in the beginning. Repairing the old transmission was the cheapest way for Ford to deal with the legitimate warranty claim. There is no interest in long term serviceability. It was clearly an effort to just get the customer out the door without regard to whether or not the repair was adequate. When trying to get Ford to understand what had happened, it was clear that their position is to let the owner bare the burden of proof and associated costs. They buried us in bureaucratic stalling techniques through the Dispute Settlement Board. They never intended to really consider our dispute. It is typical of corporate pressure to cut as many costs at the expense of the consumer. Ford is not a customer oriented corporation regardless of the hype they may purport. 

I would not recommend Ford as a company to do business with.

I just discovered that the turbo charger is leaking oil and the transmission is leaking again. I  made another appointment to get it fixed. The 100k engine warranty should cover the turbo repair and the transmission leak.

I went to the local Ford dealer in Afton, WY and to my surprise they actually were interested in helping me resolve the turbo problem. They did say up front that Ford is really tight when it comes to warranty repairs but they would try. Apparently, the condition of the turbo was bad enough to meet the warranty replacement criteria and they ordered a new turbo. When I learned of this you could have knocked me over with a feather! After a few days of waiting for the parts it was installed and running with a minimum of hassle. I have to admit that this Ford dealer was an exception to the expected crap I've come to know too well.

The transmission still leaks though. I will have to go back to have that re-done. I went back to the Ford dealer in Wyoming on the transmission leak. They determined that the leak was now from the top boot seal. They said whoever did the last repair should have put in a new seal. DUH? They were glad to repair it but not under warranty. I would have to take it back to the transmission shop in Wickenburg, AZ to get them to fix it for that! Another $120 bucks down the drain.

April 2003  - Turned 100K and no major problems.

I must say since then the truck has been running beautifully. We haven't been traveling under load as much due to time we have to take from traveling right now. 

September 2003 - 106K water pump

The most current problem is the imminent failure of the water pump. Fortunately, I caught it before it a catastrophic failure occurred. I had it replaced and the system flushed and treated as per specs.

I have been running 15-40W Amsoil for some time now and have gotten good results. I plan on adding an additional oil filer system and a coolant filter soon. These are all items that will help increase the life of the engine. I am also going to change out the Ford ATF transmission fluid with the Royal Purple Synthetic ATF .

Bottom line so far -

Have a good war chest when running a truck like this. When traveling the mechanics see your desperation and gouge you every time. Learn as much as you can about how everything works so they can't rip you off so bad.

Ford dealers are not your friend. They mark up their prices higher than everyone else. It would have cost me over $800 dollars if I had let the local Ford dealer repair my water pump. I found a local mechanic who only charged me for 3 hours labor if I got my own parts. I tacked down all the parts in one day and had it done the next for less than $200.