Hi im a diehard 7.3 owner but iv seen so many 6.0s for sale at good prices im thinking about gittin one. what all problems do they have and is one year better to look for as far as the head gasket problems go.

 

First of all im not an expert! I have researched the snot out of my truck lately though- 04 6.0 f350. In the top ten recommendations for used diesel trucks is the 08-09 6.4. If you do get the 6.0 listen to what these guys on the forum have to say and read the bible stuff on here. should make up your mind for ya. JR

 

Thanks i want a 6.4 but it aint in my budget . the only things iv ever really heard about them is there head gaskets suck and the egr is junk.

 

Good Luck, if I say anything I may not make out of here alive .... Id be mawled to death by the 6.0L lovers......
FYI I have one on our ranch... Wish it burn to the ground....
But like all trucks they each have their own set of issues, and if your willing to spend the money and time, they can be a bad a** rig..

 

Rebel, there is so much you could research on 6.0 psd's... Your head could explode! I will share what helped me pull the trigger on a 2005 6.0 excursion last week. 1st thing I found was that when the egr self destructs it can cause a little trouble or big trouble based on when the driver notices and if they shut it down or keep driving. If they shut it down before it overheats it could be as simple as a new egr and back on the road. most people say if your replacing the egr that you should change the oil cooler too (good advice). Most of the egr/oil cooler failing has been followed back to the coolant that ford used. 2nd problem is the dreaded head gaskets... Gaskets get blown most often by one of two things, if your egr pops and you keep the engine running the coolant flows into the intake manifold and since water doesn't compress when the pistons come up it the pressure has to go somewhere (resulting in stretched head bolts/studs and blown gaskets). The other way they get blown is programing, early programers turned the timing up past 12 degrees and caused cylinder pressures higher than the stock torque till yeild head bolts could handle.

Honestly, other than the egr and over timing (caused by tunes) the 6.0 is a good solid engine. I almost forgot something! The factor FICM (fuel injection control module) has a weak solder joint on the transformers that step up the 12 volt battery feed to 48 volts to power the injectors. When this weak connection fails (and it will) it KILLS injectors! Lucky for us you can watch a youtube and d.i.y. fix it yourself or have a pro like swamps fix it.

I chose a 2005 because it seems like by de-tuning the FICM (sneaky ford) and changing to the updated ford gold coolant they have helped prolong the egr/oil cooler life. Now, I sure if my opinion is off the other great members will set the record straight. Another thing that helped me was getting the vin # and pulling the oasis report from ford. None of the 2005's I checked had any record of head gasket problems.

 

On our 05, it still has the originall EGR and Oil Cooler but it hasnt had ford coolant in it for the last four years. we havent encounterd head gasket issues either but what we have incounterd is PCM, two turbos, and alot of injectors, I believe were on our second set.. also a High pressure oil pump. I have obvioulsy chosen the engine I like and love.. But dont let my ramblin stop you. I do like how the 6.0L run and their power curve when they are running good...

 

Delete the EGR cooler if you are in a state where you can do so, get some gauges, an exhaust, and monitor your engine oil temp and coolant temp. If the spread gets too big, time to do an oil cooler. Other than that... pretty stout motors when it gets down to it. The 5R110 auto trans is the best auto you'll find in a diesel, IMO, and will hold the most power stock. The rest of the truck is a tank compared to the other offerings. (in a good way). The bottom end of the motor is good to ~ 800hp. The top end has been spun to over 1200hp... they're pretty stout, but everyone knocks them because they have to do head studs so early on in the building process, but truth be told most guys are doing studs (cummins included) by this point or around there anyways. Duramax seem to last a little longer without studs, pushing the 650-700hp envelope.

These trucks are NOT for anyone who slides on maintenance and doesn't like getting their hands dirty, that's for sure.

People who eat turbo's on a 6.0 either let their truck sit too long, or idle it too long. People who eat injectors on a 6.0, either don't keep up with their maintenance, run poor fuel, or low fuel pressure, or don't keep their batteries/FICM in good shape. These injectors are picky and like good clean high quality oil (this includes a Ford/Fram oil filter only) and good fuel filters from Ford or International only.

If you don't plan on doing your own work on your 6.0, you better find someone in your area who is WELL versed in 6.0's and become friends with him.

 

Mdub, Thanks for chimming in!!! I couldn't agree more with your statement above. Alot of mechanics that are not familiar with the 6.0 will replace the turbo instead of finding the real problem but, in their deffence they are in business to make money not rethink the 6.0... Same goes for the injectors, if they run low on fuel or power they will DIE. Low fuel pressure from a dirty filter or aftermarket one that comes apart internally is common. Most owners are un-aware of the FICM transformer problem, they don't know the symptoms to look and listen for. When the weak solder joint fails and voltage drops below 40 volts the injectors DIE a silent death (unless you notice/research rough running cold start). If you spend a couple of hours researching 6.0 engine trouble you will find enough information to make yourself a very savvy power stroke owner!

Oh, and don't think weak head bolts are a 6.0 issue only... My 2005 duramax LLY is going under the knife soon. Most duramax's need head gaskets around 150k... I was lucky/easy on it and mine went to 275k before it started showing signs. I pull a 40' fifth wheel with it. I think even though we want to believe these engines are designed for heavy use, the truth is they are made for people who use them for work or light towing. When we the owner want to get more of their potenial released for our intended uses there are just a few upgrades we need to do to protect our investment.

 

Right, these trucks were never designed to be making 400-600hp on stock parts... gotta pay to play!