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6.0L F*rd motors....why do they "suck"?

Corban_White

Corban_White

Well-Known Member
Location
Payson, AZ
You can have the 12" I just cut out of my chevy bed.:D It should line up just fine! :D:D




For less than the difference between your trucks value and a newer one you could have the work done. No project, good results, none of the issues spelled out above-just the cps which I think you have down to a science. ;)
 
mbryson

mbryson

.......a few dollars more
Supporting Member
Location
Bountiful, land of rocks
I Lean said:
Cody here at work had one, he had issues with the EGR Cooler and the EGR Valve, plus the Fuel Injector Control Module. Since he sold it, it's had boost tube issues, thermostat issues, bad injectors, and a constant FICM low-voltage code.

It's an awesome truck. :rolleyes:
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Speaking of Cody, does his mom or whomever want to sell that 7.3L Excursion yet?
 
jpest

jpest

Anti-Social Networking
Location
West Jordan Utah
Now the 7.3 Excursion would be nice! The one pictured above not so much. Just a normal one. I've looked into buying one before... They're pretty hard to come by aren't they?
 
BCGPER

BCGPER

Starting Another Thread
Location
Sunny Arizona
If I were looking for a project, it would be an older Chebby 3+3 with a Cummins and Alison stuffed into it. But, I know how attached you are to that blue oval, so nevermind... :ugh:

mbryson said:
I might find myself a longbed, stick shift and do that (but I need a "project" like a hole in the head).
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D

dieslcruisrhead

Registered User
Location
Park City & Heber City Utah
mbryson,
I have a friend who has a very clean white 6 speed 7.3, about 115K miles pretty well maintained. He was hoping for $16 (which is high) but it includes a good pop up camper. 4" turbo back exhaust, airbag kit, and a mild chip, runs well. He lives in the Kamas area, not a redneck in the slightest and takes care of his stuff. If interested I'll forward around. I was also looking for a 6 speed in the 150K miles or less area and agreed they are rare, I found craigslist and autotrader.com were the best. There are some great sites to search craigslist in neighboring states, etc...

I have heard mixed results on the 6.0 because those fixes seem to do the trick. I'd be pissed if I went through a lot of that. That said I just did with my 7.3, which are good engines but not perfect either by any means as well. The 250 hp is OK but a hair weak and they tow right at 12mpg, about 16ish on the road, 18 if you keep your foot out of it. Overall I am happy with it and am going to start working to bring a little more power out of it with as little smoke as possible, should be pretty easy, just $$.
 
L

LT.

Well-Known Member
Location
Los Alamos, New Mexico
Every make of Diesel trucks are going to have problems. Some are easier to fix than others. They are kind of like different personalities for each brand. The 6.0 liter Ford has some dussies going on under that hood. More than a few folks have already hit on the EGR and the head gaskets. EGR's can be deleted and the head bolts can be replaced with studs. While replacing the head bolts you will find out that the cab of the truck is pulled for this. Reaching the numbers 7 and 8 is difficult at best with the cab still on the chassis. The cowl and the windshield sit forward of these two cylinders. Injectors are also a common enough problem with them. Again, pulling the cab is standard affair when replacing them. If you are dead set on Fords then the 7.3 is the best motor they have ever put in between the frame rails. The 6.4 is a monster power house if you are willing to part ways with the warranty on the truck. I have seen over 500 hp with a simple programer, intake, and exhaust. Also someone had already hit on a turbo problem. I have seen the problem first hand but, I have yet to see it often enough to think it is another common problem with the motor.

LT.
 
mbryson

mbryson

.......a few dollars more
Supporting Member
Location
Bountiful, land of rocks
LT. said:
Every make of Diesel trucks are going to have problems. Some are easier to fix than others. They are kind of like different personalities for each brand. The 6.0 liter Ford has some dussies going on under that hood. More than a few folks have already hit on the EGR and the head gaskets. EGR's can be deleted and the head bolts can be replaced with studs. While replacing the head bolts you will find out that the cab of the truck is pulled for this. Reaching the numbers 7 and 8 is difficult at best with the cab still on the chassis. The cowl and the windshield sit forward of these two cylinders. Injectors are also a common enough problem with them. Again, pulling the cab is standard affair when replacing them. If you are dead set on Fords then the 7.3 is the best motor they have ever put in between the frame rails. The 6.4 is a monster power house if you are willing to part ways with the warranty on the truck. I have seen over 500 hp with a simple programer, intake, and exhaust. Also someone had already hit on a turbo problem. I have seen the problem first hand but, I have yet to see it often enough to think it is another common problem with the motor.

LT.
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I'm not too much dead set on the F*rds, but curious about the 6.0L. Sounds like more of a project than I'm interested in. I've been pretty happy overall with my 7.3L. Just looking for something with some lower miles. I'd like to find something 120K or less miles that drives respectably that I like.

I like manual trans trucks. Not a fan of autos in a tow rig (save your Allison comments....blah, blah, blah, blah) but have one and have dealt with it since I bought it. I like solid axles (IFS, save those comments as well....I don't like the "feel" on the highway when they're unloaded. Feels unbalanced to me when the front just sucks up the bump and the rear "bounces" like a leaf sprung rig. I find that unsettling and not to my preference. Your opinion may differ, and I'm fine with that, but please let me have mine. You won't change mine if you want to argue about IFS. If you mix the IFS with a 4 link rear, you might have something? I'm not interested in finding out on my dime.) and manual shift transfer cases. My Lariat trim has taught me that I like leather (who knew) but most of the other foo-foo crap in trucks I can do without. I would prefer something that can fit 6 passengers rather than 5 (center consoles are nice, but there are times I need to fit 6 peeps). The tinfoil hat guy and KISS method guy REALLY HATES ONSTAR. Did I mention I want that sh!t so far from a truck that I own that it almost rules out the GM line for me?

GM used to be KING of the KISS method. WTF happened? I'd like a '91 Chev/GMC with a modern motor (more than once I've thought of buying one and dumping a crate 502 in the beast--buy a disposable commuter to drive to work and use the truck for towing) and overdrive trans.

My opinions and likes/preferences point me to a 7.3L Ford, or an '03-05 Dodge. I prefer a long bed, but I've lived fine with a short bed. Has to be a crew cab, not an extended cab (willing to accept the '03 and up Club cab or whatever) I'm driving almost anything in my price range (definitely staying under $20K and likely as close to $15K as possible) and haven't found anything I'm totally excited about buying yet. I'll keep looking for another month or so? I even drove a red truck on Sat. (I don't care for red at all. Just a preference thing. If you've got a red truck and like it, I'm fine with it. I don't know why I don't like red for me to own, but I don't. Must be the red Mustangs I painted? I'll even see something red and like it at times, but I can't own one for some reason)

(quite interested in dieselcruiserhead's friend's truck--definitely worth a look)
 
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L

LT.

Well-Known Member
Location
Los Alamos, New Mexico
mbryson said:
I'm not too much dead set on the F*rds, but curious about the 6.0L. Sounds like more of a project than I'm interested in. I've been pretty happy overall with my 7.3L. Just looking for something with some lower miles. I'd like to find something 120K or less miles that drives respectably that I like.

I like manual trans trucks. Not a fan of autos in a tow rig (save your Allison comments....blah, blah, blah, blah) but have one and have dealt with it since I bought it. I like solid axles (IFS, save those comments as well....I don't like the "feel" on the highway when they're unloaded. Feels unbalanced to me when the front just sucks up the bump and the rear "bounces" like a leaf sprung rig. I find that unsettling and not to my preference. Your opinion may differ, and I'm fine with that, but please let me have mine. You won't change mine if you want to argue about IFS. If you mix the IFS with a 4 link rear, you might have something? I'm not interested in finding out on my dime.) and manual shift transfer cases. My Lariat trim has taught me that I like leather (who knew) but most of the other foo-foo crap in trucks I can do without. I would prefer something that can fit 6 passengers rather than 5 (center consoles are nice, but there are times I need to fit 6 peeps). The tinfoil hat guy and KISS method guy REALLY HATES ONSTAR. Did I mention I want that sh!t so far from a truck that I own that it almost rules out the GM line for me?

GM used to be KING of the KISS method. WTF happened? I'd like a '91 Chev/GMC with a modern motor (more than once I've thought of buying one and dumping a crate 502 in the beast--buy a disposable commuter to drive to work and use the truck for towing) and overdrive trans.

My opinions and likes/preferences point me to a 7.3L Ford, or an '03-05 Dodge. I prefer a long bed, but I've lived fine with a short bed. Has to be a crew cab, not an extended cab (willing to accept the '03 and up Club cab or whatever) I'm driving almost anything in my price range (definitely staying under $20K and likely as close to $15K as possible) and haven't found anything I'm totally excited about buying yet. I'll keep looking for another month or so? I even drove a red truck on Sat. (I don't care for red at all. Just a preference thing. If you've got a red truck and like it, I'm fine with it. I don't know why I don't like red for me to own, but I don't. Must be the red Mustangs I painted? I'll even see something red and like it at times, but I can't own one for some reason)

(quite interested in dieselcruiserhead's friend's truck--definitely worth a look)
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I like where you are going with this but, 6.0 liter fords are not all bad. I know of more than just a few that are running well. Problem is that all the good running ones are the ones left stock. For some this is really hard to do. Nothing, nothing, sounds better than a straighed piped 6.0 Ford.

I am a big Dodge fan but, they also have some parts that are prone to failure just like any other brand. You had said you like the manual, hand shaker, tranny. Dodge used a NV-5600 from 2003 until the end of 2004. During the 2005 model year Dodge switched to a G-56 tranny. Not all bad but is made by Mercedes. The easy way to tell which tranny you are looking at is take a look at where Reverse is located. If reverse is near 5th gear then it is a NV-5600. If reverse in near 2nd gear (which makes more sense to me) then you are looking at a G-56. The G-56 uses a dual mass flywheel. The stock clutch will handle around 75 extra hp until it will start slipping. Changing the clutch is an expensive ordeal, ask me how I know, and is quite time consuming. You will need to replace the fly wheel, clutch, and more than likely the fluid resivior as well. While the Common Rail Cummins is a fantastic motor, it is still in the frame rails of a Dodge. To some that is not much of a problem. The rest of the trucks fit and finish is not as good as the Ford or Chevy and interior room is less, unless you are looking at a Mega-Cab. With the Mega Cab you only get the choice, at least from the factory, of a short bed. I prefer the Dodge to any other Diesel equiped truck out there but, don't try and fool yourself. The Dodge is a slower moving truck compared to the others. The motor really likes to work in the 1600 to 1800 rpm range. In sixth gear this will put you near 65 mph (NV-5600 with 3.73's) and 55 to 60 mph (G-56 with 3.73's). The motor is capable of more but, that is where you will usually find the best fuel mileage. With a redline around 3000 to 3200 rpm this does not give you a lot to work with. The power band is also kind of small. 1300 to 2000 rpm's is about it. After 2000 rpm's the motor kind of flat lines.

Any auto behind any Diesel motor is going to give you problems as soon as you start really working it or hot rodding it. I don't care if it is an Allison or not. 100 hp is the limit for any Allison if you want it to last then you are looking at spending a lot of hard earned cash to up date.

I hope some of this helps you.

LT.
 
BCGPER

BCGPER

Starting Another Thread
Location
Sunny Arizona
Couple things to keep in mind. You know how bad Ferds are steering wise, right? Imagine being a foot and a half longer than you are now, and a couple feet wider. Good luck at that drive through.......

My last oil burner was that truck, except the super cab version. I don't miss it a bit.
 
T

tdavXJ

New Member
Location
South Jordan
I Lean said:
Cody here at work had one, he had issues with the EGR Cooler and the EGR Valve, plus the Fuel Injector Control Module. Since he sold it, it's had boost tube issues, thermostat issues, bad injectors, and a constant FICM low-voltage code.

It's an awesome truck. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

You told me not to buy it but i still did and now i regret it.. Leason learned i guess
 
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