NHTSA Complaint #10448457 — 2004 FORD F-150

2 1/2 YEARS AGO MY HUSBAND PURCHASED A USED 2004 F-150 FX4 WITH THE 5.4 TRITAN ENGINE (WITH A 5 FOR THE 8TH DIGIT IN THE VIN) ALONG WITH A 2 YEAR EXTENDED WARRANTY (THAT COVERED THE ENGINE AMONG OTHER THINGS), FROM A FORD DEALERSHIP. IT HAD JUST UNDER 50,000 MILES. OVER TIME, WE HAD THE SUGGESTED OIL CHANGES, PUT NEW TIRES ON, NEW BATTERY AND HAD THE SPARK PLUGS CHANGED. THE PROBLEM I AM MOST UPSET ABOUT IS THE ??TICKING?? SOUND I HEARD THE DAY MY HUSBAND BROUGHT THE TRUCK HOME. WHEN I ASKED ABOUT IT HE SAID HE ALREADY ASKED THE DEALERSHIP WHAT THE SOUND WAS AND THEY SAID IT WAS JUST HOW ??THIS ENGINE SOUNDS??. IT WAS SUCH A STRANGE SOUND, WE ASKED TWO OTHER FORD DEALERSHIP AND THEY STATED THE SAME THING, BUT THEY NEVER LOOKED INTO IT. ONE MORNING IN OCTOBER, MY HUSBAND WAS DRIVING TO WORK AND THE TRUCK STARTED SHAKING SEVERELY. IT WAS SO BAD HE HAD DIFFICULTY CONTROLLING THE VEHICLE. IF IT WASN'T ON A BACK ROAD, WE KNOW HE WOULD HAVE BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT. WE TOOK IT TO COURT STREET FORD AND THEY SAID THEY HAD TO RUN DIAGNOSTICS ON IT. THEY RECEIVED A CODE OF 340, BUT COULDN'T FIND ANYTHING WRONG. THE FORD DEALERSHIP BROUGHT FORD ENGINEERS IN TO HELP IDENTIFY WHAT WAS WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. PER THE ENGINEERS?? SUGGESTION, THE MECHANIC WOULD ASK FOR PERMISSION TO RUN A TEST. EACH TIME, WE WERE TOLD, THIS TEST WILL TELL US IF IT IS THIS REPAIR OR THAT. AFTER 2 WEEKS AND ALMOST $700 IN TESTS, IMAGINE OUR SURPRISE AT THE FINAL DIAGNOSIS "CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE" DUE TO CLOGGED OIL PASSAGES. NOW WE FIND THAT THIS PARTICULAR SOUND IS A SYMPTOM FOR THIS ENGINE THAT HAS NOTHING BUT PROBLEMS AND EVEN HAS A TSB FOR IT (06-19-08). THIS TSB REPLACES PARTS THAT WOULD PREVENT THIS PROBLEM, BUT WAS NEVER PART OF A RECALL. *TR