ford 250 super duty w/ 6.0

[wat42]

I have the 6.0 Ford engine 2003 model....I have heard from others to stay away from this motor. I have 65,000 miles on this truck and have not had any issues with it other than a small oil leak.

What is supposed to be wrong with this motor and should I be looking for any signs of trouble or taking any preventative measures to protect my unit? Just curious as what the issues are?

Thanks for any info.

[illapah]

Ditto, 73000 miles on mine.

[Bill-N-Donna]

I have the 6.0 and I was told by a very good diesel mechanic that they are good engines and that they just have a bad rap. When I first got mine I took it to the Ford garage and they up-dated the computer, which seemed to help it run better. I think some of the trouble they had was partially due to the programming when they first came out with it. Another complaint I hear about is the cooler being located in a bad place. I lost an oil cooler right after I first got ours but then it also had over 300,000 miles on it at that time. I was told by the Ford garage to keep the oil changed and use the proper oil. Almost 340K on it and going strong!

[TLightning]

The only thing I can tell you is that the 6.0 only lasted a few years then was replaced by the 6.4 which only lasted a few years and is being replaced by the 6.7.

Go to one of the diesel forums, I'm sure someone there can give you all the details.

[herewegotogether]

I just had my 2005 reflashed (73000 miles)as it was running rough and no power when cold. It runs great when cold now. I asked the diesel tech at my Ford dealer about issues with this engine, all he said to make sure you change the fuel filters at the recommended times and keep good oil and chnged regulary. He said these engines should last 200,000 plus.
I did spend some time on the diesel forums, it seems the same people having the same problems and or repeating the same my friend, brother or cousin had this or that. If the engine was so bad it wouldn;t have been in production for 4 years and thousands of trucks on the road. The 6.4 and 6.7 are designed to lower emissions so Ford can meet the Feds emission requirements. When you look at the specs of the 6.4 it has only 25 more horsepower than the 6.0 when the 6.0 was release it replace the 7.3 increasing the horsepower from 250 to 325 hp and 550 to 570F#T.
Ther are some videos on you tude from a diesel tech that taslks about the successe and issues of the 6.0

Have a great day
Bill

[mlh]

The main problem with the 6L is the heads or more accurate the head bolts. Most people think they are too small in diameter. These bolts are stretched a certain amount when the heads are installed. They aren't simply torqued to a certain amount. What you should watch for is coolant coming out of the degas bottle, you know, the place where you pore the antifreeze in. When you have a problem the antifreeze will be all over the bottle dried in a white looking powder. This engine was designed to handle about 200 HP. There is a lot less strain on the heads at 200 HP than 325. The 6.4 has the larger bolts.

[8e3k0]

Some common problems with the 6.0 liter are head gaskets, egr leaks, turbo clamp connections coming apart. If they are pushed to consume that 325 horse they will give in at the head gaskets ( push oil into the coolant). Driven sensible the engine should last 200,000 miles plus! The 6.4s were beefed up in all these areas to make a tougher engine which has proved to work out well.

[BB_TX]

Problems with EGR valves, turbos and injectors have been widely reported. But I think the vast majority of owners who drive them sensibly have had little or no problems.
I had an '03 F250 6.0 I traded at about 55,000 miles for an '07 F350 6.0 that has about 51,000 now. EGR valve replaced on the '04 under warranty at about 35K. Otherwise never a problem with either.
Good friend had an '03 F250 6.0 that did have some problems at around 100K miles. His local dealer (that he bought it from) worked on it for a long time replacing the turbo twice. Finally gave up and told him they could not fix it. He took it to another dealer who immediately replaced 3 or 4 injectors and it ran like new again.

[maphillips]

Talked to a guy this week-end. Said he has a 2006 6.0 with over 300,000 on it. "One bad apple don't spoil the whole bunch".

[sailer]

I have a F250 2006 and all the problem has been the turbo which they just replaced at 73000 miles. I hope it runs another 100000 miles as we love the truck ...sailer

[ragdoll]

Mind blow up @54k. On extended warranty paid for 98% of it.The problem with the first 18,000 or 19,000 engines made they had bad injectors. Take your vin # to a dealer and they should tell you what # on production line yours is ,after 19k it has new injectors in it and you should be ok. Jack

[cbgaloot]

quote:Originally posted by wat42

I have the 6.0 Ford engine 2003 model....I have heard from others to stay away from this motor. I have 65,000 miles on this truck and have not had any issues with it other than a small oil leak.

What is supposed to be wrong with this motor and should I be looking for any signs of trouble or taking any preventative measures to protect my unit? Just curious as what the issues are?

Thanks for any info.

I have 2004 6.0. The best advice I can give any powerstroke owner is to go here
http://www.powerstrokehelp.com/
And watch all the videos he has on 6.0s. This guy really knows his powerstrokes. He also has a dvd for sale , but I have not seen it.

You will be especially interested in the "How To Make The 6.0L Powerstroke Diesel BULLETPROOF!" video.

[cbgaloot]

A couple of quickies.
ALWAYS use the correct Radiator coolant. Check your owners manual. The standard green stuff is not good for your stroker.

Never add a THICKENING type oil additive to the crankcase. It's bad for the injectors.

A bypass oil filter is a great idea. It filters carbon particles out of the oil and saves your injectors. And you can run the oil much longer between changes.

Watch the Fluids and filters video.

[Bill-N-Donna]

Thanks for posting the link. There seems to be a lot of great information about the powerstrokes.