Way OT, looking for feed back from Ford Diesel 6.0 users.

[Deuce Stevens SASS#55996]

Hey guys, hoping to get some first hand experience from some of you guys. I am in the market for a new(used) truck. Needs to be 3/4 ton and really would like to stick with Ford. Currently have a V-10 gas Ford. The trucks in my price range all seem to have the 6.0 diesel unless I go 10+ years old and go with the 7.3. I am going to be going after clean southern trucks with probably 150k miles on them or more. What is your experience with the 6.0 ? Looking for the good and the bad. Yes I know there are lots of other forums to ask on but I like hearing from SASS pares.

[Kiowa Kid, SASS #69870L]

I had one loved the truck the 6.0 ran good but had some turbo lag, I used to haul horses didn't care for the lag because it jerked the trailer sometimes, other than that it ran well and I had no issues.

 

KK

[Colt McAllister]

Not first hand, but I always heard they were tough on transmissions.

[Rootin Tootin Tim,Sass#57091]

Deuce,

Try Powerstroke.org. 6.0 did have a few issues with egr and head bolts. I ran my 7.3 into the ground with 358,000 and would still have it if the frame held up. Now have the 6.4 which is pulling our 40ft fifth wheel like its not even back there. The boys on powerstroke can give ya the info your looking for.

[Rock Hound]

For what it is worth: I have a '02 F350 with the 7.3 the thing has 160k and is tip-top. I teach at a vocational school and the diesel-agr instructor says it was the best motor Ford produced. He says the 6.0 was the worst diesel Ford made and has more than one junk one laying around the shop. He also said to me that the 6.0 diesels you need to take the cab off of the frame to do some of the regular maintenance. When I first asked to bring in my truck for some maintenance the first question he asked was if it was a 6.0 or not.

[Cheyenne Culpepper 32827]

Deuce, I know you said you wanted to stick with Ford; but, don't miss checking out the Cummins diesels in Dodges....the 6.o/5.9 has been around for over 20 yrs...loved mine. I had the 6 sp manual, ran like a bear.

[Cofachique Dick]

Long time Ford partsman here. There are some good 6.0s out there, but a lot of owners have had a lot of repairs on them. And on a diesel repairs get very expensive very fast. If I just had to get a diesel and not a gas rig, I would go up to the 6.7.

The 6.7 is a Ford design from the ground up and not an International motor. But I would have to need a diesel REAL bad before I would choose one over a gas rig.

[Medicine Creek Johnny]

Hi deuce. Had an 07 for 80000 miles. Had to replace a turbo because of sticking vanes. Was warrentied. The later ones had les egr issues. The earlier one had trouble with the egr coolers pluging with casting sand but seemed to be corrected on later ones. Try to get an 06 or 07. They are usually discounted quite a bit

MCJ

[Diamond S Doug]

In your research don't pass up Bullet Proof Diesel. Their existence is to fix the 6.0 shortcommings. If they built a business on it then they could have some info to help you search.

 

I'm a Cummins man myself and would prefer a Destroked 4x4. I think they can't be beat for reliability.

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

6.0L Ford diesel=JUNK

The best consumer diesel ever made was the Ford 7.3L built by IH.

Good luck with your search,

LG

[Tequila Jim #14501]

Mr. Grits has it right. Got an 03 in 04 still under warranty so the 2 turbos,egr valve, egt valves didnt cost me anything

except a lot of frustration. When the fule pump ( the one the gas tank) went, that cost me 8 bills. Now driving a Tacoma.

Your milage may vary, TJ

[Assassin]

There's a reason the 6.0 was replaced after a relatively short run. However, they can be had cheap. Do alot of homework before purchasing a 6.0, 7.3 was a good engine. In cold country the older Ford (IH's) ate up alot of glow plugs. Friend of mine had his 6.0 F-250 stolen when he went to Texas after a new ski boat, it was stolen from a motel parking lot. He told me the cops were wondering why he was so happy, they also laughed when he told them it was a 6.0 liter.

 

Assassin

[Cofachique Dick]

The 7.3 and the 6.0 are both International engines from the same engine family. The 7.3 being older did not have to meet all the emission requirements the 6.0 did. All the added on emission junk was the 6.0 biggest weakness. That and all the extra horsepower they tried to squeeze out of the same design. Horsepower costs in longevity.

[No Horse Hair, SASS #77464]

Friends don't let friends buy 6.0's.....

[Buffalo Bill Mathewson, 37826]

My sons 6.0 Power Stroke has been a pour excuse for a truck. EGR, Transmission and currently manifold gaskets or something of the sort ford dealer quoted over $3000.00 to fix.

[Guest Milo Talon SASS #23163]

My 03 6.0 went through two turbos and had numerous other problems. My brother in law had similar problems with his 04. My buddy at work has an 02 7.3 with 160,000 on it and never had a problem. Am not a fan of the 6.0. Good luck in your hunt!

[Bear Saint Paw]

I have a 2006 F350 6.0 Powerstroke. 94k miles currently. My biggest trailer I tow is a 15k toy hauler. I had the egr fixed and ARP head studs installed. Those are the 2 big high Potential failure items. I also use a programmer with 3 different tunes. It pulls really strong, much better than any 7.3. So far no big problems and no more issues than my 97 and 02 7.3L's had yet it out runs or out tows them.

For many years ford sold more diesels each year than GM and dodge combined so it seemed they had more failures but the reports I saw showed they had about the same number of failures per engines sold as GM, dodge, just the fords were more publicized.

Look up dodge trans issues and Dodge cummins issues or duramax issues, yeah, they all have some really bad problems!

 

The 6.0 was designed to give higher performance and lower noise levels more like a gas motor to meet customer demand supposedly and reduce emissions at the same time. No small feat!

The 03-04 6.0 were the ones Ford had the most problems with before figuring out the egr cooler and engine tuning issues.

The 05-07 were much better.

The 5R110 Transmission is also a very strong trans and was actually higher rated than the much famed GM Allison trans. when they first came out.

The 6.4l is actually the worst diesel Ford ever used. It was used the least number of years (08-10) and had more problems per engines built. We are fortunate to have a Ford trained certified tech here in DFW that now has his own shop and that is what he reported while still at Ford. He also said the 6.0 was one of the easiest engines to get crazy power out of reliably with just the previously mentioned mods and the right tune. Then the 6.7 came out. He was so impressed with it and the low number of issues in the first 2 years he traded his heavily built 7.3 for one, 400HP/800torque stock!

 

Bottom line is the later model year 6.0's can be strong reliable engines. any you consider you need to look up the service history by VIN number to be safe. If the egr/cooler and head studs haven't been addressed then plan to do those.

[Harvey Mushman]

Not to hijack the thread, but in keeping with Ford diesel experience, what are the reports coming in on the 6.7s - as BSP brought into the discussion?

[Bear Saint Paw]

Not to hijack the thread, but in keeping with Ford diesel experience, what are the reports coming in on the 6.7s - as BSP brought into the discussion?

 

Just do a google search and see for yourself, very few issues.

 

So far the few people I know with them are real happy and say they pull better and will easily outrun their previous Powerstroke trucks except the stock fuel MPG isn't quite as high as hoped for even though they are not EPA rated

 

A couple people have done some mods to theirs like EGR and DPF delete, etc and say that really brings them to life and then the MPG jumps up to better than any previous engines. (Seems like if you burn less fuel per mile you would be doing less poluting but no)

 

As EPA requirements get tougher and enforcement increases in different parts of the country (Smog/Pipe sniffer testing of diesels during inspection), Not sure I would be willing to do too much to one unless I knew my area wasn't going to Smog test.

 

Hopefully in the next few years they will figure out how to reach the great power levels, high MPG and low emissions.

[Assassin]

Just do a google search and see for yourself, very few issues.

 

So far the few people I know with them are real happy and say they pull better and will easily outrun their previous Powerstroke trucks except the stock fuel MPG isn't quite as high as hoped for even though they are not EPA rated

 

A couple people have done some mods to theirs like EGR and DPF delete, etc and say that really brings them to life and then the MPG jumps up to better than any previous engines. (Seems like if you burn less fuel per mile you would be doing less poluting but no)

 

As EPA requirements get tougher and enforcement increases in different parts of the country (Smog/Pipe sniffer testing of diesels during inspection), Not sure I would be willing to do too much to one unless I knew my area wasn't going to Smog test.

 

Hopefully in the next few years they will figure out how to reach the great power levels, high MPG and low emissions.

 

Ford is dealing with a class action lawsuit with the 6.0 as we speak, it's a turd!

[Gunner Gatlin, SASS 10274L]

Diesel schmeasel Get the 3V - V10 gasser ('05 and up) with 4:30 gears - will pull anything

 

Of course at 10mpg....well...that's another story.

 

GG ~

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

The BB 454 in my 1T dually loves gas too.

LG

[Deuce Stevens SASS#55996]

Thanks for the input guys Appreciate it.

[Cofachique Dick]

So far we have seen very few issues with the 6.7s. They are a Ford design and were designed from the ground up with the new emission regs in mind unlike the 6.0s and 6.4s where they had to tack the emission equipment on later. They are still going to cost a lot more to operate than a gas motor but if you have the Tim Taylor disease (Mo' Power, Mo' Power) they are the way to go.

[Cheyenne Culpepper 32827]

if yu are going to tow a lot then diesel is the cat's meow, more power and mpgs. if only every so often then gas, 25%- 33% more for fuel is hard to justify

 

also, the weight of trailer,

[Deuce Stevens SASS#55996]

Well after doing some more research I might be changing my thinking. We pull a 30 fifth wheel dry weight of 8900 pounds about 3 times year 3-5 hours away from home. Probably gonna stay away form diesel

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

Well after doing some more research I might be changing my thinking. We pull a 30 fifth wheel dry weight of 8900 pounds about 3 times year 3-5 hours away from home. Probably gonna stay away form diesel

Good idea-Much cheaper too.

Get the biggest gas motor and every trailer tow option the truck maker has.

Think about 4 wheel drive too. Also, make sure you have a limited-slip rear end.

First time you tow on a muddy road, you'll see why I say this.

Good luck, and let us know what you get.

LG

[Elk Creek LeMieux]

My wife and I have 3 ferd diesels. 97, 02 (hot rod) and an 06.

 

Most of our towing, horse trailer/hay trailer/tractor, is done with the 97. The 97 isn't stock though...

 

As far as her 06 goes, it's by far the nicest truck we own. Rides great, comfortable, etc...

 

But... I've got a SCT Livewire TS on the dash, and at all times we're monitoring the difference between engine coolant temp, and engine oil temp, among other things. Once engine oil temp starts gettin away from coolant temp, you're gonna be in trouble if you don't address some things.

 

Namely... The ferd factory oil cooler in the 6.0 has small passages, extremely small. There's a lot of hype over which type of coolant you're "supposed" to run in 6.0's but, the bottom line answer is it's a poorly designed part. Being a poorly designed part, when your coolant starts gettin dirty, it starts plugging the coolant side of the oil cooler. Once the coolant side of the EOC is plugged, no/insufficient coolant gets to the EGR cooler, and it overheats and ruptures. Once that ruptures you're introducing quite a bit more heat to the intake, and potentially raw coolant into the intake. Coolant doesn't compress, and since the 6.0 only has 4 mailable (vs tempered) bolts per cylinder, the head lifts. AKA, blown head gasket.

 

Also... People talk about injector failures in 6.0's. Yeah, they happen. They happen on the 7.3's too though. If either engine is properly maintained though, it probably won't happen. My 97 had 303,000 on the original injectors when I pulled them. It was gettin hard to start during the winter months. Back on track though, as your oil cooler plugs, the heat exchange with coolant degrades. So your oil gets hotter, and thinner. The thinner it gets, the less protection it offers anything inside the engine. On a HEUI engine like the 6.0 and the 7.3 the injectors are the most vulnerable items when oil quality degrades.

 

So...

 

6.0 isn't a horrible engine. I still prefer 7.3's for day in day out hard work, but if you watch your oil and coolant temps on your 6.0 and address the oil cooler as soon as you have a 20* difference or so, there's no reason a 6.0 can't be a long lasting reliable engine. All else constant, maintenance, etc...

[Augustus Goodnight]

I wouldn't touch a 6.0 with 60 foot stick. As matter of fact I won't touch a diesel engine that's not an In-Line.

 

If you're only pulling 3 times a year you might be doing yourself a favor and sticking with a gas engine. But if you pull often there's no gas motor that can touch the pulling power of a diesel.

 

There's one other thing to consider, fuel mileage. I have two duallys, one gas, one diesel. I average about 17MPG with my 5.9L Cummins and get about 10MPG with the gas 454.

 

My $0.02.

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

I wouldn't touch a 6.0 with 60 foot stick. As matter of fact I won't touch a diesel engine that's not an In-Line.

 

If you're only pulling 3 times a year you might be doing yourself a favor and sticking with a gas engine. But if you pull often there's no gas motor that can touch the pulling power of a diesel.

 

There's one other thing to consider, fuel mileage. I have two duallys, one gas, one diesel. I average about 17MPG with my 5.9L Cummins and get about 10MPG with the gas 454.

 

My $0.02.

Only 7mpg diff would take along time to break even with the high cost of a diesel engine option and higher diesel fuel costs.

To me, the greatest asset of the diesel engined rig, is in engine braking on long down hills.

LG

[Ya Big Tree]

Deuce,

In 2005 I bought a one owner 2003 6.0L F250 Crew Cab Lariat with 1,200 miles on it. I now have 57,000 miles on it. I change the oil and filter every 7,500 miles. Fuel filters as scheduled.

I run an older Bully Dog tuner at 70% and run the crap out of it in a sensible manner (if that makes any since). The best mileage was 21.4 mpg lowest was 9.5 mpg. The average since I've owned it is 15.4 mpg. In the current weather conditions we've been having in Northern Indiana having to be in 4 wheel drive I'm getting 14 mpg. I have tracked the mileage every tank since I bought it. Total fuel used 6,890 gallons.

 

I haven't had any major issues with it and I would surely buy another one.

[irish ike, SASS #43615]

I have a 2007 6.0. Very disappointed with low end start and the turbo. It can hardly get out of its own way. They added twin turbos after this. We pulled a 32' 5th wheel with it. No problems and then it started blowing turbo boots.

 

Go to the inter web thing and just google Frod 6.0 diesel and problems. You'll see. They can' tube trusted. My diesel mechanic had his blow head gaskets and stretched head bolts at 32000 miles. I don't trust mine to pull anymore.

Ike

[Three Foot Johnson]

I bought a new 6.0 F350 crew cab in '05 and, other than a faulty speed sensor that would often disconnect the cruise control, it has been absolutely trouble free. (sensor was replaced under warranty)