Prepping my f-150 for a road trip

Vehicle is a 2005 f-150 fx4 5.4 triton. Fixing to head off with the family for a trip to Colorado. Gonna be towing a Yamaha Viking 6 seater the whole way there so I figure it would be best to get it in good working order. Just rolled over 100k so plugs and coils are a must, along with an oil change, but my real concern is that I had 1 isolated incident where I had a major death wobble when I hit 75 mph, after pulling over the left side rim was white hot, haven't had it since, but did notice a major build up of brake dust on the right rim only (I'm thinking it could be from a caliper locking up). So, does anybody have any suggestions on what to check for the death wobble, and I've heard these plugs are a pain and have to be done very precisely so do y'all have any suggestions on how to change the plugs correctly without leaving half of the two piece plug in the cylinder? Thank you!

Not necessarily an expert here, but have pulled a lot of trailers in my day. If by "death wobble" you mean the trailer starts to go side to side, and only gets worse unless you slow down, you don't have enough tongue weight on the trailer. Assuming this "Viking" is a boat, you need to get it a little farther forward on the trailer. If you have a bolted on winch stand in the front- pretty easy to fix- have to unbolt it & move it forward -try one inch - if that doesn't solve the problem -go another inch. You need a few hundred pounds of tongue weight to stop this from happening.
If the winch stand is welded on, well, a temporary solution is to load all the gear you can into the front of the boat.
Another thing to pay attention to: if this is a "Tandem Axle" trailer (or even if it's not) - you need a hitch insert with the correct amount of drop or raise to it so the trailer runs flat. This ensures you are equally spreading the load of the boat on both axles of the trailer.
As far as brake dust & hot hub on the trailer -you've got a stuck caliper my friend - needs to be cleaned & lubed, or replaced altogether.

Good luck

Maybe a brake sticking on the trailer. As far as the plugs be very careful putting the new ones in. You can strip the threads on them real quick.

Sorry, I may have had a miscommunication here, the death wobble is in the truck, no trailer attached.

Viking is a Yamaha UTV

Oh

Well,

Nevermind, LOL

Humm... Long trip,,,, 100k on truck.. Time for some major maintenance,,, know issue of concern "death wobble?" Ford F-150 not really known for this problem but major area of concern... Find the cause. If cause by locking caliper replace it. If the wheel was "white hot" other area of concern would be hub as it is a sealed unit but heat is a major enemy any doubt replace it. What else was going on during "death wobble" front suspension i.e. Bushings, ball joints, tie rods etc. 100k time for struts and shocks. Then we get to the tune up,,, there is a big difference from the 5.4L gen1 2 valve and gen2 3 valve. From a long time F150 owner of both each present their own idiosyncrasies I recommend letting a proffecional do this. With the gen2 2004-08 it's not a question of if but more of how many plugs you will break and believe me they will. My 06 broke 4,, and you don't have the extraction tool, nor complete knowledge of the process and believe me you don't want to learn on the fly. Coil on Plug (COPs) don't necessarily have to be replaced unless you suspect a miss but the boots definately do as well as they "have" to be coated with dielectric grease. Also the 5.4 "likes" the OEM plugs. Then replace the fuel filter, clean throttle body, serpentine belt, service tranny, xter case, diff and oil change. Brakes if they need replacing flush brake fluid, flush coolant system, power stearing system flush. Air filter replacement and cleaning mass airflow sensor. I'm sure I missed something but if you haven't had these things done now is the time as I don't know the service history. Sorry for the long winded post but a lot of considerations to make if you don't expect any obvious trouble. Good luck as well as these engines have been around a while and will provide long term service if maintained correctly. I put close to 200k on my 97 and 06 and have a couple of friends that have rolled up to 325plus. You also are not limited to going to the dealer as there are very capable independent shops available too. Have a safe trip.

Diff fluid, transmission, coolant, etc have been taken care of, just need to check the brakes for that wobble and do the plugs and coils.

Brake calipers wont cause a death wobble.. If you have a stuck brake caliper, then the truck will pull one way or the other depending which caliper is locked up! Get the front end looked at! If there is any kinda play in the ball joints or anything thats worn in the suspension, then that could cause some kind of wobble. As far as the spark plugs, if you have the 5.4 3valve, then find someone who knows what they are doing! I have done several and sometimes they come out okay with a little knowledge and practice, but they will break off! The other one 5.4 is not a problem! Just be sure and apply the correct torque to the plugs and you will have no issues! Replace spark plug boots!!

How do I know if it's the 3 valve?

1997-2003 5.4 is the 2 valve 2004-2010 is the 3 valve.

That's unfortunate. I was really hoping to save some $$$ and do it myself. Really want this thing in good shape if I'm gonna be towing 2800 lbs for 13 hours straight on the interstate though. Thanks for the tips.

Well I tuned up my 97 three times, the second was because of my own error because I didn't use OEM plugs (valuable lesson). All three times was reminded of Jerry Clower's story of Knock'em out John, you know the guy in the tree with the Lynx. Which is exactly what I looked like each time. That was when I made the decision when the 06 was due for a tune it was better to pay someone else to fight that beast! I've got a old mechanic here in Garland I highly recommend if you want to make the trip PM me for info.

Change your belt, check coolant hoses. Have extra oil on hand it is likely to use a little. I would also keep a gallon or so of water in the truck and part of every towing trip is spare for trailer and an extra hub/set of bearings and tools/grease to change.

I would have the front end looked at before the trip and change the plugs after. Plugs have gone 100k what's a few more? Spark plugs are not going to leave you Found On Road Dead unless it spits one like my pre 2004 did. My brother took his 3 valve to the dealer the day before the scheduled maintenance per their request so they could soak the plugs in PB Blaster over night.

How long until the trip and how many are going? It might save some cash and time on the front end to just rent a 3/4t van for the trip. I've done this a couple times for trips to the West Coast and up to Duluth. Nothing in the van gets rained on, they'll put a hitch on it if it doesn't already have one, and no need to unload the whole package for a night at a hotel. Just throwing out ideas. One can never have too many options. Good luck and have a great trip!

I will be taking my 2010 Ford F150 on a road trip to Colorado and New Mexico next month for a week. Good info provided on things to look for before leaving. Luckily I will be traveling by myself and have nothing but time so I can take my time and not have to rush from place to place.

No van rental. Truck has a bed cover for rain.

Cool. Roll the dice and move your mice. I hope you have a pleasurable safe trip.

Update, just did all 8 plugs, managed to not break any, truck sounds better. Took me 7 hours.

Now put a new belt on it and put the old one in the tool box for emergencies.