1997 Ford F-350

7.3 V8 = MPG Pickup truck

7.3L 8 Cylinder Diesel Fuel Turbocharged

Automatic

1ftjx35f0vea92283

Rear Wheel Drive

Diesel

Power Steering

Plans have changed and I have too many haulers....MY LOSS YOUR GAIN! This high miler is just getting broke-in!! Of course this truck isn't perfect....but I assure you until you actually look at the odometer, it resembles a 150k truck all day! I hate to use the term "highway miles" but a quick look at the Clean Autocheck, you will see the majority of it's miles were logged over a 2 year period. Need a strong hauler that needs minimal work for NO RESERVE?? You've found it. Check the pics and full descriptions. Inspect my excellent feedbacks. Then BID BUY AND DRIVE ANYWHERE WITH 100% CONFIDENCE!! The front of the truck has seen better days....I personally don't mine the cow grill but it's a cheepie version that I'd personally remove. It's got surface rust and the prior owner rattle canned black overspray in a few spot on the red paint. A quick buff and the spots will come off. Considering the miles, rock chips and flakes are minimal. Front bumper is tweaked but still looks good. Body panels, roof and bed are ridiculously straight with barely a handfull of dings. No dents. A few spots of clearcoat flake. Paint seems to be original and unrepaired. Nice stainless steel fender lips. Below you can see the recent matching tires on vibration free rims. Minimal wear as these trucks always eat up the edges of the tires. Alignment seems straight but the steering wheel is off center. I'd do a quick toe-n-go alignment to keep tire wear at bay. Below you can see the only noticable areas of rust....bubbles mostly. This is the worst of it. The other side shows a few bubble but no holes. I've never had the undamages dually fenders off, so I don't know how it looks underneath. Nice diamond plate bed guards too! Doors and front body/fenders have zero visible rust or repairs. I'm no bodyman, but everything seems to match as if it were the factory paint. Below you can see the fenders notched out for the mudflaps. Driver's side is missing a flap, passenger side is intact. Both REAR inner tires are new, the outers are mismatched (one Goodyear here and the other is a Uniroyal). Massive tread and zero noise. All tires are are rated minimum 8 PLY rating, I believe. The rear bumper is a 10-footer....looks great from 10 feet away! It shines nicely but has rusted through a few spots. I don't have the original tailgate, only this 5th-wheel version which I prefer for MPG! Note the TWIN WORKING FUEL TANKS! No leaks from what I could tell, but I've never filled em or smelled any diesel. Switch on the dash works properly. Bumper has the 5th wheel wiring plug. Trailer hitch is strong and works properly. Only the ball that is on the bumper comes with. I don't have an adapter to go with the truck as I'm using it for my other rig. Bed is in amazing shape...no signs of any large items hauled or huge dents inside. As you can see, it's setup for the 5th wheel assembly. This is how you get it, as I've never had the assembly to slide on this adapter. You can see the monster exhaust but it's pretty quiet....perfect sounding if you ask me....not too much, not too little. Below there is a little half-dollar sized paint chip. No heavy rust, just bare. This side body looks great too! Door doesn't even hang! Stainless mirrors on both sides. Below you can see the other inner new tire and the outer Uniroyal. Stainless Simulators all around. Fronts are missing the center hub covers. Also you may note the passenger side air-deflector, the driver's side is missing. Nice front diamond plate mud flaps. Below you can see the ugly cow-grill....I'd take it off or at least pull it and have it powdercoated. Personally, I'd get a chrome on along with a chrome bar-grill! The interior is amazing for it's age and miles!! Easily a 9 out of 10 with only the few stains in the carpet and the sliced up steering wheel cover taking away from it's appearance! Even the uncracked/unfaded dashboard looks great!! I hate smoke, but there are a few of what appears to be burnholes in the seat fabric. I can't smeel anything but I describe and disclose everything I know. Above you can see the electric brake controller. Note the Blaupunkt detachable face remote controlled CD player. Below there are no dummy lights on during run. All the gauges work properly. Tach works too! Power windows, accessory mount on dash, power locks, cruise, ICE COLD AIR CONDITIONING, HEAT, glow plugs, overdrive...all work as they should! Factory manual, only one key (non-transponder) and the CD remote are included. Below you can see the heart of the beast! Aftermarket air intake is nice altho the filter has had it...I cleaned and re-oiled but it smoked. Easy replacement with another. All the lighting works, turn signals, headlights, brake/parking, etc. Twin batteries are strong and I just replaced the starter with a new Hi-Torque unit....the motor spins over fast! Note the A/C compressor is spinning...I enjoyed the ICE COLD A/C all summer! Hoses look great with no coolant leaks. No powersteering or charging problems.....but..... ...unseen from the decently clean upper engine is the small oil leak (looks like it's at the dipstick tube mount in the oil pan) left unrepaired over the years, has left quite a mess underneath. As-in....all the underside of the truck. I thought the rearend was leaking but had it checked...it wasn't. A few cans of degreaser and a powerwash should take care of the bulk of it. The mount looks easy to fix, but I would just pull the entire oil pan to be sure. The pan can be pulled with the engine in the truck altho you may need to lift it to clear. Turbo is strong. Motor is strong and smooth. When it's plugged into the heater, the engine fires right up. When it's not, it takes a few tries on the glow plugs but fires up. And now the "catch"....the transmission needs servicing. I've driven this truck for over 300 miles to pickup some rather heavy items and move things. The trans shows all the symptoms of the sticking valve body solenoid in second gear. 1st, 3rd, OD and lockup are perfect. When I drive the truck, I need to drive it "normal" and shift it manually from "D" to "2" (or "1" to "2") to get it to shift into 2nd gear with a little slip. From my searches on the forums, there is a secondary set of valve body shift accumulators that get worn and don't operate properly. Usually 2nd gear acts up because line pressure is lost. After it goes into 2nd, shift it into "D" or 3rd and away we go!! A little annoying driving around town, but on the highway or lower speeds its fine. I'll gladly show you the process but I assure you the truck is reliable to drive home. Would I tow a big trailer?? Not so much. I'd simply hop online (Ebay here) and either order the rebuilt valve body front section (for about $150-180 plus core) or they make a rebuild kit for about $75 to do it yourself. While in there, you may as well install a towing "shift kit" to bring the line pressure up as well. Of course the filter and fluid should be changed and I'm a HUGE fan of the Lucas trans additive. For about $300 and a Saturday afternoon, I think it's worth a shot before a trans rebuild....especially considering the trans fluid is clean on this truck! And...no....it doesn't look to have been recently changed. At worst, you have new parts to carry over for the rebuild. The engine alone is worth $2500 on this truck!! Scrap steel in weight is easily $500. This is the last year of this design before they changed it all!! Within those 300+ miles, the truck was smooth and quiet...even at 80MPH!! A nice cruise speed is 70, tho. As stated, the steering wheel was off center but didn't wander all over the road. No wheel vibrations. A tiny bit of road noise can be heard, but I'd be lying if I knew the difference between a tire or wheel bearing in this case....it's THAT minor. Minor oil leak. Transmission consistent goofyness. NOTHING else to complain about. No suspension noises....actually the nicest riding truck I've driven in a long time. No drivetrain clunks or vibrations. Fix the trans, or don't. Brakes are super strong and don't need servicing. ICE COLD AIR! Everything power works. I've disclosed everything and anything I know. I simply bought an OLDER 94 diesel Ford rig to do my dirtywork. I don't need 2! NO RESERVE!! GOOD LUCK!! I apologize in advance if I sound like I'm scolding....but this NEEDS to be said. This vehicle is AS-IS/AS-SHOWN. The vehicle is in Illinois being sold by a dealer. I CANNOT BE RESPONSIBLE for your individual state's "inspection" or emissions compliance. I am simply trying to offer you and possibly your family a quality reliable vehicle. 690,000 cars were pulled from our roads during the Cash For Clunkers "program"....like most Americans, I still can't afford a new car and now have to sell(and drive)from what's left. I sell $3000-$6000 vehicles...all types and mostly what I would personally drive or own. I don't know if you are buying down the street or in Virginia or California...so I HAVE to make the cars ready for the road trip. I don't know who will be driving the car....so I HAVE to make it ready for your teen or your job in the morning. I can only promise I do the BEST that I can with what I have and what I sell. My EXCELLENT FEEDBACKS prove it. I'm not here to rip people off. I'm also here to help so feel free to contact me after purchase for anything....or even if you have any questions about a future purchase. Also, understand that I spend many countless hours (inspecting, repairing, cleaning, taking pics and writing specific personal ads) for everything I sell...not to mention the $125 sell fee that is charged to me at the end. Please don't jack around if you don't plan to go thru with the purchase. Thanks for your understanding. Now you're at the bottom. Hopefully I've covered the main specifics of the vehicle and eased your mind. I understand that you are putting yourself or your loved ones in this vehicle. I personally have put my own mother in an 01 C70 with 175k miles and I personally drive a 98 S70 with 220k miles! Many of my personal friends drive cars that I have sold them. I treat you no different. If I haven't covered any of your questions or concerns, please feel free to email or call me at 815.744.7223. My name is Eric. Please understand that I have the right to end the auction early due to local sale. I STILL REQUIRE a $500 deposit to be made within 24hours. If you need to use Paypal, you MUST contact me and follow my specific deposit instructions for the non-refundable Paypal deposit payment. Paypal performs random funding "holds" (for a min of 21days to 180days) that only benefits them and does NOT protect my or your interests. Of course I understand each bidder/buyer has different payment needs. We work with you as much as possible regarding payment but CASH IS KING! Sorry....no financing is available on this transaction. Please secure your own from you bank of choice BEFORE bidding. Remember....24 hours $500 deposit due....3 days for payment in FULL. Naturally I will assist in ANY shipping needs! Thank you for your interest on this NO RESERVE auction! GOOD LUCK! Venue of sale is Kendall County, Illinois. ALL BUYERS are responsible for $99 DOC fee. ALL ILLINOIS BUYERS responsible for 6.25% sales tax, $99 License Plate fee (or $30 current valid plate transfer fee), $95 Title fee. ALL COOK COUNTY (Chicago area) BUYERS responsible for 8.25% sales tax. There are about 8 other states that I (unfortunately) have to collect tax....but it's usually at a discount vs. regular in state. Vehicle is sold AS-IS/AS-SHOWN with no warranty expressed or implied. Please follow deposit and payment instructions posted. Cash is King! After full payment is made, you will receive vehicle (as shown/stated in this ad), title, associated paperwork and key(s). Please email or call regarding out of state pickup at local train station (Union Station-Joliet, IL) or closest airport (Midway-Chicago-MDW). I will happily assist in pickup for a fee to cover my time and fuel costs.