I just read through this, some is right some is wrong.
jamesdfo wrote:I sent a link for this thread to my friend Steve, who has owned a couple of these trucks.......here is his response to what he read in the previous posts......
James
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Interesting. I agree with most of what was said on the forum.
The 6.0 is a good engine once you address the issues that cause problems.
1, change the coolant on a regular basis. This keeps the failure prone EGR cooler from corroding and leaking. Better yet, install an EGR delete kit.
EGR delete is the way to go
2, Change the oil religiously. This prolongs the life of the HPOP (high pressure oil pump) and keeps injector failures to a minimum.
This is true, keep the fuel filter fresh too...
3, Stay away from aftermarket programmers. They increase injector pressure on an already overtaxed system and can lead to branch tube failures. A lot of them also do not support the latest FICM (fuel injection control Module) profiles issued by Ford which can lead to hard starting and injector issues.
4, Stay away from aftermarket air filters/ cold air intakes. Ford has spent a lot of time and research on designing a system that works and will actually support up to 600hp. Aftermarket filters usually lead to turbo failures because they just don't have the filtering capacity.
I agree, it's been proven time an time again.... paper is best, ever see an OTR tractor with a k&n on it? The rest is total BS, Ford didn't design this engine, Navistar did. 600hp....rrrrrrrrrright!
5, Low batteries can be traced to many issues with hard starting and FICM issues.
The same goes for the 7.3, except the FICM thing.
6, The whole 6.0 head gasket issue is a direct result of EGR failures and water contamination in the fuel. Water evaporates in the head causing steam which stretches the head bolts leading to head gasket failure. The fix is to install head studs with greater clamping force and change the fuel filters regularly.
There is 1000 blown head gaskets without a bad EGR for every one that has one. A not uncommon performance add on for turbo diesels is water meth injection. Navistar thought they could get away with less head bolts....wrong!
7, it's a TURBO charged vehicle. Apply uncommon sense here. If you have just come off the freeway and the turbo/engine is hot, allow some idle time for the turbo to cool down. Failure to do so in ANY turbo charged vehicle leads to coking of the oil in the turbo which leads to turbo failures.
While this was true in the 80s, not the case with these engines. like every other modern turbo diesel, the 6.0's turbo is water cooled. It would only coke the oil if there was a coolant system failure.
The majority of failures with the 6.0 engine are a direct result of poor maintenance and operator ignorance. I have 200,000 miles on my 6.0 and it still runs like a top. The notion that the 06/07 6.0's are far more reliable than the 03-05 6.0's is entirely due to a re-design of the failure prone EGR cooler by Ford.
This is waaaay off, plenty of these, both my new ones included had problems before the first oil change was due. The EGR is only one of the problems. Mine had bad injectors, hpop, hgs, turbos, rear main seal, and lpop.
You have to look at the sheer number of sales of Ford Superduty trucks vs Chevrolet/Chrysler to really understand why there seem to be so many issues with Ford. They have literally outsold almost 3 to 1. With that many more Superduties sold over the GM/Dodge, of course there will be greater number of issues.
http://www.allpar.com/news/index.php/20 ... hd-in-2010
Diesels require more maintenance and typically higher repair costs over gasoline engines. With climbing gasoline prices, many are first time diesel owners and they just don't have the knowledge but are the first to cry longest and loudest about how they were stuck with a lemon when something goes wrong regardless of brand.
The diesel is a logical choice if you need the extra torque for towing. If you just want to jump in and drive off and ignore proper vehicle maintenance, buy a gasoline engine but be prepared for anemic towing and bank breaking fuel costs.
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http://www.bankspower.com/magazines/sho ... ls-and-why
Steve
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I've owned at least 25 diesel vehicles in my life, including a 81 electra with the only diesel with a worse rep than the 6.0, the 5.7 olds, the 6.0 is the worst I've ever had.
Kathy 