2004 F250 6.0 diesel concerns

[Charles Firth]

I have been looking at a 2004 F250 diesel 4x4 to for an update . The original owner has it for sale, only has 60,000 miles.He has receipts for all recommended service. NO modifications on the vehicle or engine. Anyone using this type of unit to tow. I have heard that was a bad year for Ford diesels. The engine is a 6.0.

[TURBS]

They call that engine the 6.oh no.
Pass



http://www.internationalpowerstroke....-problems.html

[stealthWA2313]

Charles,
I have a 2006 f350 with 6.0, and it has been a wonderful truck. I have had the truck since brand-new and currently have 124,000 miles on it. I have always maintained it to the letter; oil changes, fuel filters, egr cleanouts, transmission flushes, coolant flushes...etc. I am completely stock with the exception of a 4" turbo-back exhaust system...heck I am still working with 8mm of the original OEM brakes. I am knocking on wood as I write this, but I have had none of the notorious 6.0 issues, and it runs like a champ.

The truck has always been used as my everyday driver, as well as our tow rig. Having said that, there is no question that the 6.0 has a horrible reputation. Not being a tech, I really can't say what to look for, but the one you describe sounds good. I figure I would give you some positive feedback because the haters will be coming.

[Charles Firth]

The truck is really nice, low miles, decent price , mature owner, dealer maintained. But I am guessing this will be one of my last vehicle purchase , and I am not looking for problems. Looks like it would be a possibility of issues later on. Thanks for the response.

[Charles Firth]

Now you have me thinking again. If it were going to have problems, wouldn't they have been early on ? The owner owed the truck for 10 years and has given me open book on the repairs and maintenance. All dealer service . It would be using it as a daily driver as well as a tow vehicle. It would replace my 2001 f250 5.4 with 150,000 miles, which still runs great but shows its age towing a 7000 TT up almost any grade.

[Jammer3025]

The 6.0's had turbo, and head gasket problems. The fix was better turbo's, and stronger after market head bolts. When you try to force to much air into the engine the head gaskets are the first to go. The stock head bolts could not take the pressure. The head bolt kit and install is around $2,000. The turbo's I have no idea, but at least $1300 ea.

If the engine has no leaks, and nobody has put a tuner on it, and it's lasted this long it is probably ok. Not all of them failed.

All manufacture's have had there share of diesel engine problems. Ford has had the most. New trucks are so expensive, I can see why you want to go with a used one for sure. Of course I can't tell you it will be fine, but it sounds like the guy has kept it up, and probably took care of it.

[NOLA]

I have a 2004 Lariat with a 6.0. If you can get it on a monitor and check the deltas (temperature difference between the coolant temp and oil temp) and it meets the under 15 degree criteria, that's a good start. The oil cooler is a weak spot that leads to egr problems then head gasket problems. Plenty of info on the web. Youtube has a powerstrokehelp channel that will give you tons of info. I love my truck and am confident in it now that i changed the oil cooler and always use a monitor to watch the health of the truck.

[Jammer3025]

The 6.0 Diesel came out in late 2003. It replaced the 7.3 Diesel. So anyway they probably got a lot of the bugs out of them by 2004. The 6.0's also had injector problems.

[MillerTime]

I have one buddy that had all three of his 6.0 trucks in the shop one month, I dont think a one came out without a $2k repair bill, and one couldnt stay out of the shop for more than a month. Everything from injector control modules, to injectors, to turbos, it was a mess. He got rid of all 3 and then got another 6oh. I asked him why, he said he had time to work on it now since he went to work for someone else instead of himself.

Another buddy with an 05, 6.0 just called me a couple weeks ago, his truck with about 120k and all stock, just got his egr cooler replaced to aa tune of $3,500.
I cant tell you how many people I've heard about around me that have dumped many thousands of $$ on a 6.0.
My take is, pass. You can find better trucks out there, and there is a reason that 6.0s and for that matter 6.4s can be found so cheap.

Just my $.02 and somebody elses money thankfully!
Millertime- Sabre Handler

[rburns4147]

I have a 2006 F250 6.0 diesel. When I was researching trucks, I remember reading that the early 6.0 engines had problems, but I can't recall now what it was. In 2006, they corrected whatever it was and from then on, everything was fine.

I could be that this particular one will go for several hundred thousand miles with no problems, but it might be worth doing some Google searches to see what the issue was with the early 6.0s.

[dbarr]

Supposedly, they were straightened out in the late '04 models. Mine has only needed an EGR valve in 106000 miles, engine wise. Of course, that had to happen half way down the Florida gulf coast on my way to the Keys. Made a nice souvenir. All 4 ball joints went bad at 70,000 just like my '97 did. Non-greasable junk! That's it...no other problems.
I would assume mine is a late '04 seeing how I bought it brand new at the end of '05. It's been a great truck. No mods.

[SKnight]

I'd vote pass also. Odds are you can find a similar era and condition Duramax or Cummins (Woo hoo! Love Cummins.) truck for a similar price.

[MillerTime]

I've seen the problems in 04s, 05s, and 06s....well actually haven't heard of any years that didnt.
Someone once told me the 04s were better, and then his had to have an icm and 4 injectors.
I think its a crap shoot, and the dealer usually wins. (Literally and figuratively).
I'd buget for issues if its a really, really good deal.

Millertime- Sabre Handler

[Jammer3025]

Maybe the guy selling it knows something, and is holding his cards tight.

My Brother is a certified Ford technician, and I was a Dodge/Cummins tech. When those 6.0's came out that dealership didn't have enough techs to fix them all. Every time I would go down to see him there would be 2-3 Superduty's with the whole cab off, and they were working on the turbo's, head studs,injectors and what ever else was broke on them. He stayed busy like that for year's. We used to share horror stories, and beleive me his were way worse than mine.

I've never worked on a ford diesel of any kind, and I'm glad I didn't have to go through what he did.

Didn't Ford make a 6.4 after that, and now a 6.7? I can't keep up with them. I like the Cummins engine's , even though they have had their problems also.

[dwcjb]

I own a 2005 6.0 with 55k miles. Most are towing miles with 12.5k 5th wheel. I had ARP studs installed and a Bulletproof Diesel oil cooler and remote oil filter/bypass kits. Use the Fleetguard filters not junk Carquest they sell. Coolant filter added. If you can buy the truck right and will spend the extra $ you'll be fine. I plan to install a Banks technicooler (weak point) and larger exhaust, just prior to retiring. I've only been on the side of the road once due to staple holes on the turbo outlet clamp split. I carry a spare, now. Has been a good truck and have confidence it will take us coast to coast and back without issues. Add pyrometer and never over boost or go past 1250 degrees climbing hills.

[Frank-VA]

I have a 2004 F-350 4x4 with the 6.0. I have 75,000 miles. @ 60,000 miles I noticed a small amount of oil in the Degas bottle. Showed it to Ford service tech. I had to replace Oil Cooler, EGR Valve, EGR Cooler with a BulletProofDiesel - Darn-Near Bullet Proof Diesel Products for your 6.0 and 6.4 Cooler. Flushed the engine with Purple Stuff. The Head bolts were checked and they were OK. I caught the problem before it did major damage. I added a ScanGauge II Digital Data Monitor after the repair was done to my Truck.

[BigJohnD]

I had 2 of the 6.0's prior to my new one. Only troubles I had were one stuck injector and one glow plug. I didn't baby any of them. All 3 brands have had issues, including the favorite cummins. I like all 3, and won't knock any of them. Heck there's several guys around us who have dropped the cummins in their F350's. I personally would probably not buy a "used" 6.0 unless the EGR was deleted, head bolts / gaskets changed etc (Bullet proofed per say). Just me, and I'm a Ford guy. A 7.3, different story. Hard to find one. I'd buy one of those quick.

[BigBaron]

I have been edumacating myself about the Fords just for kicks. One guy in Texas (Skeeter) that works on diesels says that Fords keep food on his table and a roof over his head. He also said that he had a Cummins in that day-for an oil change.
60,000 miles seems to be the magic point. They can all look good and then around 65,000 little things start popping up.
EGR cooler plugged because of the silicate-based coolant, turbo problems, injector problems, and the dreaded head gasket/stud failures.
It's well north of $5K to fix the studs, etc. because it's a cab-off job.
Good ones are really good. Bad ones, well...
Go to the Powerstroke Nation.com 6.0 forum for all the dirt.

[dwaynerz]

We have an 05 6.0 at work that has required nothing more than tires over the course of its 198000 miles. It gets maintained religiously though as do all our motorized vehicles from the smallest lawn mower to the biggest excavator we have. You will not sneak in or out of anywhere with the 6.0 as it is noisy when cold.

[Charles Firth]

I think after reading the postings, I need to look for something newer. Besides its a 10 yr old truck and I tend to keep my vehicles a long time.I have had my current one since 2001, but its a 5.4 Gasser.. Off course I was looking at the cost of the diesels more than anything. Its probably more of a crap shoot than I wish to take. Being on a fixed income I need to watch my few bucks I have. I will continue looking for something a bit newer, what year is a good year to start at ? New ones are OUT OF THE QUESTION.(60,000 + ) I don't wish to start a debate but I like my Fords. Thanks again Chuck in Va