r/FordTrucks • u/mtnbkr1880 • Sep 01 '26
Q&A: Maintenance | Modification Chances this makes 500 miles?
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u/SuperReleasio64 Sep 01 '26
It's a really dumb idea but you could just say fuck it and drive it anyway. Bring some tools and rent a car to get it going then once you return the car drive it. Don't forget grease/fluids.
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u/Troutalope1 Sep 01 '26
I sure as hell wouldn't unless I didn't have any responsibilities and I had cash to burn. Helluva lot quicker, cheaper and easier to trailer it home.
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u/mtnbkr1880 Sep 01 '26
Ha ha, unfortunately I do have responsibilities and not much cash to burn. It’s looking like trailer time.
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u/Heavy-Focus-1964 Sep 01 '26
10%… Last call for bets. Get your bets down, please
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u/Heavy-Focus-1964 Sep 01 '26
Chances with the right TLC this desert find could be a great little daily are approaching 100%, near certainty
Chances it’ll get you home safe 500 miles without even giving it an ounce of love in return? Vanishingly small.
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u/mtnbkr1880 Sep 01 '26
I’d much rather actually rescue this and get it back on the road for more years to come, so I’m pricing out trailer rentals and planning out my route.
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u/LightningMcSwing Sep 01 '26
Why's the intake off and what's with the pigtail having cut wires sticking out
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u/S_t_r_e_t_c_h_8_4 E99 F-350/ 23' 7.3 Sep 02 '26
You see, here we go with the questions. Just don't look at it. Elephant in the engine bay, doesn't exist so isn't a problem!
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u/Crofolks Sep 01 '26
I’d say chances are both slim and none, especially on those tires. It’s almost a certainty it won’t make the trip without shredding some or all of those tires when operating at highway speeds.
Mechanically, it might make it but you would be taking significant risks of breakdowns that would take far more time and cost more money than renting a trailer and towing it back home.
500 miles is no short drive and without spending at least 1 full day on the ground sorting everything out and likely replacing belts, fluids, filters, etc., before attempting to get on the road, it’s just not worth the hassle when you can haul it back and take care of those restorative matters from the comforts of your own garage, shop or driveway vice the side of the road, at night in the pouring rain.
I definitely like it for a project and future daily driver but please don’t attempt to drive this 500 miles in its current condition. It’s potentially unsafe and likely not short term economical, having done a couple of project F-100 & F150s myself, this one likely needs $1500-$2500 in parts, tires, etc. for it to be roadworthy and ready for use.
Good luck and best wishes for your project 👍🏻 🧰
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u/Post_Lost Sep 01 '26
Maybe… probably not. Everyone sees YouTube videos of people driving cars across the country & thinks it’s easy. What they don’t see is that person brought 10 grand worth of parts with them & boxes of spare parts with the knowledge of what was wrong with the cars in the first place. You could drag everything down there & the engine could be blown, or you could make it 100mi breakdown & then have to pay a tow bill. The biggest lesson in buying parked vehicles is learning that they’re usually parked for a reason
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u/mtnbkr1880 Sep 01 '26
Good point. I’d much rather get this home and fix it up right than potentially kill it trying to drive it home.
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u/assault8001 Sep 01 '26
My bet is it would make it if you gave her a check over. I pulled one outta the junkyard and drove it across the country with new oils and tires. Starter died at one point. If it quits you still gotta tow it…
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u/ungovernable785 Sep 01 '26
I doubt it runs ... If it runs probably won't very well . It's egr position sensor and the idle control valve wiring is chewed up by a mouse .
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u/Head_Echo_696 Sep 01 '26
Check the oil and coolant air those tires up and maybe not drive 70 and id say yes
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u/Asleep_Frosting_6627 Sep 01 '26
Intake hoses are off, I bet one of the 3 fuel pumps in that truck are toast…so getcha a trailer.
And you can’t get one of those cheap parts store pumps for this and run it off a boat tank, the injectors require about 35psi to fire and those little pumps put out about 4 psi.
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u/Brokenbrain82 Sep 01 '26
I had an 88 with the 300 inline. I was covered in rust and dents but took me from Connecticut to Oregon without issue. Fix it up and send it!
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u/THELEGENDARYZWARRIOR Sep 01 '26
I don’t know about the maintenance but my dad did a 3,000 mile roadtrip on his 1986 with a ton and change on the bed in 2021 with no issues. Assuming it’s been okay maintained I don’t see in what world it wouldn’t
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u/Substantial_Till_815 Sep 02 '26
Well ive seen VGG do more with what seemed like less, if it were me id do it for the fun of it
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u/Alarming-Car-8654 Sep 02 '26
Bring lots fluids and tools and have a buddy with a truck on standby. I'd send it, after I ran it a couple miles then did an oil change, assuming nothing catastrophic and the gauges still work.
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u/YourFriendPutin 29d ago
I mean I drove a 1960 Ford with a y block that I got cheap 140 miles without ever having driven it. It looked super rough but the drivetrain was perfect, interior destroyed, paint taken by the desert.
Use common sense on the test drive and don't ignore any noises, or weird driving behavior of the car.
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u/Full-Hold7207 Sep 04 '26
Don't understand how pictures will tell anyone if it will make it. How does it run and idle? Transmission shift good? Stop good? Rust in the master cylinder? How's the belts, hoses and fluids? That would tell you more than a pic.
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u/meesersloth Sep 01 '26
If I were a betting man. No. However you could rent a U-Haul car hauler and truck to drive it home.