Need opinions on a Older Ford Truck
- Thread starter Majicmike
- Start date
- Replies 36
- Views 815
In short yes, but they are good engines once all their personality disorders have been worked out.
I’m sure someone will beat me to the details, if not I’ll post more tonight. Lots of things to look for and be aware of when purchasing one.
I’m sure someone will beat me to the details, if not I’ll post more tonight. Lots of things to look for and be aware of when purchasing one.
OP
I don’t really know honesty. I’m just trying to figure out if it’s a dependable motor. I’m guessing with 197k maybe the kinks were worked out. I believe it was a DOT truck at one time. So I’m guessing if was somewhat maintained?
Main things on the 6.NO are the EGR and the head studs.
If the EGR has clogged and overheated the engine is highly questionable. If the head studs have stretched it's only a matter of time before a huge repair bill pops up.
If the EGR has behaved until now you can delete it and relax on that. If the price is low enough to leave room in your budget for addressing the head studs I would say go for it.
If the EGR has clogged and overheated the engine is highly questionable. If the head studs have stretched it's only a matter of time before a huge repair bill pops up.
If the EGR has behaved until now you can delete it and relax on that. If the price is low enough to leave room in your budget for addressing the head studs I would say go for it.
OP
9k price tag. I don’t know if that’s good or bad. I’m looking a once a month pulling a small tractor truck
or maybe a boat
heavydoc
The Southern President
2A Bourbon Hound 2024
2A Bourbon Hound OG
Benefactor
Life Member
Supporting Member
Multi-Factor Enabled
The 6.0 were dependable until people wanted to add more power like they could the 7.3. Adding the more is where the problem came into play. This is where the bulletproofing came from. Let me know if you need more info than that. Being a dot truck I doubt it had the power adders
Hammer12b
I'm you're Huckleberry
2A Bourbon Hound 2024
2A Bourbon Hound OG
Charter Member
Supporting Member
After you do an EGR delete, they’re great motors! Chances are if it has that many miles on it, it’s already been done. I had 2, an 04 and an 05. The first one was a dog! It would blow exhaust into the cab. I would ride to work with all four windows down, in 20 degree weather to keep from suffocating! The 05 was a good motor after I deleted the EGR valve and put new head bolts in it. I put 200k on that motor and it’s still running for the guy I sold it to for a company truck.
Last edited:
9k price tag. I don’t know if that’s good or bad. I’m looking a once a month pulling a small tractor truck
That's a really good price, particularly in the current vehicle buying climate.
I wish I could tell you how much the head studs would cost but I don't know that for sure.
Last edited:
Clogged oil cooler causes the EGR cooler to go.
Coolant to oil temp delta should not exceed 10-15 deg. If it does, the cooler is clogged or starting to get that way.
This doesn’t matter if it has a BPD oil cooler added.
Can’t tell much by pics. Needs to be put it on a scanner to check engine vitals.
You may be able to get a service history if you can get someone at a Ford dealer to pull an oasis report, if they still do that.
You may be able to get a service history if you can get someone at a Ford dealer to pull an oasis report, if they still do that.
Somebody here will snatch it out from under you
Last edited by a moderator:
Chdamn
Dungeon Master
Staff member
2A Bourbon Hound OG
Charter Life Member
Benefactor
Multi-Factor Enabled
The 6.0 is as good a motor as any other motor on the market from any manufacturer.
People love to glorify certain motors and then say another motor is horrible. But the only ford diesel motor that had really major, wide spread issues was the 6.4 and not all of them were bad motors either.
I’ve got 2 trucks with the 6.0. Neither of them have given me any real unexpected engine problems.
The Kernersville dodge one has given me lots of problems but that was mainly electrical and periphery systems. And those issues were caused by the previous owner.
As has been said the 2 main issues are the EGR and the head bolts. The EGR is a horrible design and causes premature injector failure even if it’s working properly.
The head bolts are only an issue if you start adding more than 100 extra HP and start doing tractor pulls.
With as many miles as it has on it you should delete the EGR immediately. Then expect to have to replace the injectors in the next 50,000 miles. But go ahead and start putting archoil in the oil now. That will help the injectors not stick.
People love to glorify certain motors and then say another motor is horrible. But the only ford diesel motor that had really major, wide spread issues was the 6.4 and not all of them were bad motors either.
I’ve got 2 trucks with the 6.0. Neither of them have given me any real unexpected engine problems.
The Kernersville dodge one has given me lots of problems but that was mainly electrical and periphery systems. And those issues were caused by the previous owner.
As has been said the 2 main issues are the EGR and the head bolts. The EGR is a horrible design and causes premature injector failure even if it’s working properly.
The head bolts are only an issue if you start adding more than 100 extra HP and start doing tractor pulls.
With as many miles as it has on it you should delete the EGR immediately. Then expect to have to replace the injectors in the next 50,000 miles. But go ahead and start putting archoil in the oil now. That will help the injectors not stick.
OP
Lol, if so there will be another one eventually,,,,I hope.
We are closing on another house on the 24th. I can’t really do anything before that.
Last edited:
heavydoc
The Southern President
2A Bourbon Hound 2024
2A Bourbon Hound OG
Benefactor
Life Member
Supporting Member
Multi-Factor Enabled
The 6.4 was international saying FU to Ford cause Ford was designing their own engine, the 6.7 which had the be released to early cause of the 6.4 problems
6.0 and the 6.4 are NOT the vehicles to go FOMO on. You need to do your due dillagence.
An impulse buy can cost you many thousands to get squared away.
An impulse buy can cost you many thousands to get squared away.
Chdamn
Dungeon Master
Staff member
2A Bourbon Hound OG
Charter Life Member
Benefactor
Multi-Factor Enabled
Hell I had to look it up. Thought I was missing out.
Last edited:
As someone who hates Fords in general, I own 3 including a 2006 F350 dually. Be prepared to spend 10-15k "bulletproofing" the 6.0. Because that is what I am currently in the mix of deciding how much I want to spend on my truck. You find some 6.0's once you just do studs, and delete the EGR and baby it when you drive you're good for 500k. You find some 6.0's that you dump 20k into and they still suck. The 6.0 has a much better transmission than the 7.3's. The 6.4's are probably the worst diesel motor's ever made.
Unless you are buying both heads, you are getting hosed with that cost just to bulletproof.
Like bend over dry type of hosed.
He got the “I don’t want to screw with this” quote.
The truck was given too me, hasn't been cranked since 2013.
So its getting 2 oringed heads, studs, turbo, injectors, exhaust, coolant bypass, oil bypass, intake...plus random things like, tires, windshield, bed liner, bw hitch etc...
But my father in law (gave me the truck) has another 6.0 that he want's done. Where do you recommend getting it done at, at a better cost?
Last edited:
Re the 6.0’s, IMO there are two critical things. 1, don’t put a performance tuner on them, and 2 delete the EGR COOLER. It’s not enough to delete the EGR valve if you leave the cooler installed.
When (not if) the cooler fails, it can cause the cylinders to fill up with coolant. This results in a destroyed engine.
When (not if) the cooler fails, it can cause the cylinders to fill up with coolant. This results in a destroyed engine.
Trucks Unlimited in Winston Salem.
I will pass this a long to him.
Aside from a design flaw in the early EGR coolers the lack of coolant filters from the factory caused a lot of these issues. Ford/motorcraft gold coolant didn’t help either. Oil cooler gets cloged up with casting sand or coagulated coolant, coolant flow restricted to the egr cooler, coolant in egr cooler flash boils and causes it to crack/rupture causing water to get into the cylinders and/or the coolant system becomes over pressured and pop goes the gaskets.
Last edited:
Chdamn
Dungeon Master
Staff member
2A Bourbon Hound OG
Charter Life Member
Benefactor
Multi-Factor Enabled
Yeah I forgot about the coolant.
I drained and flushed mine. Used a piece of pvc sized to fit in the bottom hose with a water hose adapter. Ran some cascade and flushed it out good.
Then went back up with red CAT spec fluid.
Scott is a good guy to deal with, he’s done work for a few of our members here. Did my gaskets/studs/fire rings years ago.
I did the same, chemical flush, ELC coolant and added a coolant filter.
Depending on where you are. There's a place in Denver nc that will do the heads turbo and Injectors for right around 7500
Qball
Member
2A Bourbon Hound OG
Charter Life Member
Benefactor
Supporting Member
Multi-Factor Enabled
I would look at the exhaust manifolds, the turbine housing, and associated tubing. If they’re pink, then the engine has been overheated to the point where the manifolds and such were glowing like a rocket bell on the Space Shuttle.
I drove a 550 (think it was an 03 model) with a 6.0 in it for 386,000 miles before it died in my yard.
When I tell people this they always ask how many times it was rebuilt. Answer: never. Oil oil filter and both fuel filters were changed every 5000 miles. Egr problems, a few injectors and one high pressure pump was all I remember we had to do to it.
And quite Franky I drove the hell out of it.
When I tell people this they always ask how many times it was rebuilt. Answer: never. Oil oil filter and both fuel filters were changed every 5000 miles. Egr problems, a few injectors and one high pressure pump was all I remember we had to do to it.
And quite Franky I drove the hell out of it.
Last edited: