So, looks like the engine in my truck is shot. The Ford dealer says there’s a hole in one of the pistons, so the pressure is blowing back into the engine and apparently blew an oil seal, and that explains the vibration and oil leak. Of course, they want to sell me a brand new engine, but I’m looking into my options for a used or remanufactured engine. And if there’s no damage to the engine block, I don’t see why they can’t just replace the damaged piston–I’ll have to look into that as well.
My experience with this dealer, Allen Patch Ford (now known as Legacy Auto Group, but their website doesn’t reflect the change), has been dismal. The details are long and boring, but suffice it to say that it’s nearly impossible to get ahold of somebody on the phone who knows what the fuck is going on. And even on the rare occasion that you can talk to somebody, they’ll eventually tell you that they’ll call back, but they never do.
I’m going to take my time making a decision. The way I see it, I’ve got two options: (1) sell the truck as-is and use that money to pay off part of my loan (which stands at $7,000 right now), or (2) get an additional loan of $2,500 to $3,500 for an engine, and hope I don’t have any more problems with this truck.
I’m also open to suggestions from readers of this website. If you have an idea that I haven’t thought of, I’d love to hear it. I’d like to avoid making a big mistake this time around.