thoughts on 2005 ford f250 6.0 liter turbo diesel

[adamR]

I'm in the market for a new truck and today found one at a very reputable car lot.  it's a 2005 ford f250 6.0 liter turbo diesel with 104,000 miles for $16,999.  It blue books at $21000 so the price seems right.
I'm looking for non biased intelligent responses as to what I should or should not expect out of this truck. pros/cons, mileage, is it going to last?  I know the 6.0 had a lot of problems when they first came out in 2003, were most of those solved by 2005?
I want to go back to a truck and eventually purchase a camp trailer 25' or so, sometimes pull a trailer full of 4wheelers or dirt bikes, and other than that it will be my daily driver roughly 20 miles each way. 

I also know the 7.3 liter is the "best choice" but they are very hard to find with less than 150,000 miles in good shape

[sirmissalot]

Stay away from the 6.0

Stay away from the 6.0

Stay away from the 6.0!

I'm still having nightmares about mine but I can't afford a new one right now. Mine is an 07 so NO they did not work out the problems. They aren't all bad, and I'm told you can make them near bulletproof with a whole bunch of money dumped into them. I'm halfway there so time will tell but the last year and a half hasn't been fun.

[jackelope]

There's nothing wrong with 6 leakers. The sick liter is a fine engine.

[jackelope]

If head gaskets have been done on it, preferrably with head studs, that takes care of the big stuff. Injectors now and then.

[syoungs]

the blue book vs market value on these trucks is pretty skewed, everyone is afraid of the 6.0, but if its had the few major fixes done to it, they are reliable, and with a little tuning they are rockets!

I wouldnt hesitate to buy it, my next truck most likely will be a 6.0, i have a 7.3 now, there is no comparison while towing in my book, that torqueshift tranny in the 6.0 is awesome!

[6x6in6]

With 104k and if the head gasket and head stud replacement has not been done, you will be doing it soon.  That's a given with the 6 leaker.
A head gasket and stud job is fairly expensive on these given the labor to do the job.  Jackelope can fill you in on that part...

[Skillet]

I have had a 2006 6.0 I bought new.  Has about the same miles as the one youre looking at.  Im happy with it, but its because i take care of it. Not a motor you can defer maintenance on.  Try and find somebody with a Scanguage II or equivalent that knows how to check out the oil/water temp delta.  If it's over 10 degrees, you're going to be looking at some repairs sooner than later (oil cooler).  If it's over 20 degrees, the repairs need to be done asap.  Look around the deguass bottle cap (radiator overflow tank on driver firewall) for leakage.  If you see it thats a bad sign, usually means the headgaskets need replacing along with the headbolts.  Nearly all of the big $$ problems this motor is famous for are a result of poor maintenance, or running a tuner it wasnt designed for. 
Sounds like it is priced right - but expect to put the money you saved into the motor to "bulletproof" it for the next couple hundred thousand miles.  Im getting ready to do mine, and since il do all the wrenching I expect it to run me about $2000.   That includes upgraded egr cooler, replace the oil cooler, and head studs.  Double that + if you need to take it to a shop.
As much as I like my truck, tho, if you arent too mechanically inclined I'd probably be looking elsewhere.  You just dont know how bad the previous owner maintained the truck.  He definitely didnt maintain it to keep it forever... If you still want to proceed, check It out THOUROUGHLY with somebody who knows these motors - dont buy someone else's problem.

[rynokron]

I got 190k out of my 04. The 6.0 is a high maitenence diesel. Mine had problems when it was new, then went on a long stretch with no problems. Once I hit about 175k it was one thing after another. Oil leaks, bad injectors, cam position sensor, IPR, Bad EGR cooler, bad oil cooler. ect. ect. Then when I went to same dealer that I bought it from to trade it in they offered my $5k. There is now a 2013 Ram in my driveway. The 6.0 turned me into a Dodge guy. If you buy one get the extended warrantee!!!

[kglacken]

Stay away from the 6.0

Stay away from the 6.0

Stay away from the 6.0!

I'm still having nightmares about mine but I can't afford a new one right now. Mine is an 07 so NO they did not work out the problems. They aren't all bad, and I'm told you can make them near bulletproof with a whole bunch of money dumped into them. I'm halfway there so time will tell but the last year and a half hasn't been fun.

My uncle has one and he has spent more in repairs then its worth anymore. Awesome truck when its running. If you can find a 7.3 with low or even mid range miles take it! My dad has a 2001 f250 with the 7.3 and it has 425,000 miles on it and only two transmissions! 

[bowpredator]

I have a 2007 f350. Didn't do my research befor buying it. We bought it last May and it had 104,000 on it. Over the past year we have put $5,000 into the motor. We first had an EGR issue and decided to put a new bullet proof EGR cooler in it, we also put a new oil cooler in also. We just recently had 4 new injectors and a new fuel injector pressure gauge put in. We pull a 35ft camp trailer (7,000lbs) all the time and it pulls like its not even there.  Next project will be the other 4 injectors and a head bolt kit. I would not try to amp it up to get more out of it because that's when you start having real problems. I like fords , but if I had to donut again I would have went with a Cummings.

[Mudman]

I had the 7.3, awesome truck crappy transmission.  6.0 can be great if you do the deletes and arp head work. If you have 4 or 5k to do this then get one.  If you have 2 or 3k for a good transmission get a 7.3.  If you don't want either headache get a not so awesome truck like a Cummins.  I did, Tows great.  Really they all can have trans problems if you tune them up.  Allison included.

[buglebuster]

Dont do it i just went through this myself. In february i traded in my 7.3 with 100k on it for a crew cab 04 with 50k, it was prices 5k below book. It had just got done having the head gaskets, egr valve and cooler done and an injector replaced. I thought great, problems are taken care of i should be good to go, wrong! In 2 months it was back at the dealership 5 times. It had egr valve replaced, ficm replaced, injector harness replaced, another head gasket, oil cooler, and 3 injectors. This was a bone stock truck with 50k! I knew i shoulda trusted my gut and stayed away but i didnt and it cost me! I now have a 06 f150. The price of the 6.0 is what gets you because no one wants to buy them. My  dont even consider it, and im a ford guy!

[elkinrutdrivemenuts]

I will say we make a lot of money on the 6.0 s  Head gasket jobs aren't cheap every one seems to need it.  There are lots of other upgrades and repairs we do as well. I would say pass unless it's a lot cheaper,  otherwise find a motor with a better track record.

 You can find  a lot better diesel  out there

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 4 Beta

[Shooter]

I had a 06 F350 TD, at 70K miles I was tired of throwing money at it and the head gaskets were next at 5k-7k to do the job and they have to remove the cab from the truck to do it. What really sucks is Ford settled with International who built these motors but Ford never passed the settlement onto the owners.  Won't own another Ford as they did not stand behind owners who spent 45k plus on trucks, many class action suits on the 6.0.and hope I see some money back. 

[jrebel]

Couldn't give me that truck. No way, No how

[buglebuster]

I will say if i had about 10k to throw at one, it would be my choice for power but without egr delete, upgraded oil cooler, headstuds and gaskets, aftermarket ficm and injectors, external oil filter, inline coolant filter, and an sct tuner they are worthless.

[adamR]

thanks for your help guys...
sounds like unless I know things have been done to the truck it's best to stay away.

Is there anyway to tell if it has the new head bolts instead of the stock tty bolts?

I have to admit I wasn't interested in these engines at all but after feeling the power in this truck yesterday I got a little excited.

[MIKEXRAY]

I ran mine for 200,000 miles and was very happy with it !   I only had to replace a water pump and did normal maintenance.  I got pretty good mileage , 15 mi gal pulling a 3000# trailer and 17-18 truck only.   I think every truck / engine has their horror stories , I've had good luck.

Side note;   I HATE my 2010 ford F350 !   Diesel engine, and can't make it 300 miles to Spokane on a full tank of diesel.  I have to carry a five gallon can because I worry about running out that last 30 miles where there are no stations. Dump it every time & fill up in Spokane.  Pulling a 2500# trailer.  Costs me a fortune !    My 2004 I would stop in Spokane for breakfast and not fill up till well into Montana.  I actually miss my 04.

[wildmanoutdoors]

My brother has dumped 5 g's in his POS 6.0 this year already. There is a reason there cheap.

[buglebuster]

The way to tell if it has head studs is look at the heads, if there is a bolt head, its stock. If you see a stud with a nut on it it has aftermarket studs. Check where the egr valve is on the top of the intake, it there is a flat plate, it has an egr delete.

[sirmissalot]

I've put around 5k into mine in the last year and a half, and haven't done gaskets or studs yet. That will be this winter. I suspect I have a hairline crack in the head now because it only spits coolant out the reservoir when I'm towing a 10,000 lb boat, up a long grade  and she heats up hotter than a pistol.

[Smokepole]

I have a 2005 6.0 in my f250 - original owner.  Had some trouble on the pass with the high pressure oil pump that was under warranty.  Then at about 100,000 the batteries got low and it cooked the Ficm.  We did that work ourselves.  I clean my egr valve every year or so.  I can tell when it is getting dirty.  Spray it down with carb cleaner & brush it with a toothbrush.  Give it some wd40 & it works again.  You have two fuel filters that need it every ten grand.  Two transmission oil filters.  I change the external oil filter every 30 grand & I've recently changed the internal one for the first time. 

I haven't had a lot of trouble.  Since I changed out the ficm, it has been running so good I can't believe it.  Kind of scary, it's been running so good.

If you buy a 6.0, join one of the powerstroke forums.  There is a lot of good info there on maintenance and repairs.  The 6.0 is a good engine.  The smog control components are the problem.  That and a touchy ficm.  I don't hot rod mine like some guys do.  I just cruise the speed limit and I have 160,000 miles on it with just a few bumps in the road.   

[jackelope]

Ford has updated head bolts to put in them, but even at the dealer when we do the head gaskets, we do ARP head studs. Just the head stud kit is around  $600.00. About $5k is correct. I just had a customer put $8k into one at 160k miles between head gaskets, studs, radiator, etc. It was their tow rig and they were full time RV'ers. The way he had that thing equipped, it probably would have cost them $70k to replace that truck to buy it new.

[buglebuster]

Oh ya, you'll also want to run fuel stabilizer in each tank to insure injector life, and do a coolant flush and get rid of that ford gold crap, its what clogs up the egr cooler and oil cooler when it gets to hot over time. In case you wondered what we were talking about when we say ficm, its the.fuel injector control module.

[dewandgin]

Don't back away... run away. There is a reason they are so far below book and for every I love my 6.0 story there are 1000's of what a piece of crap stories. Our Ford dealer doesn't even like to take them in on trade and 98% of the time we send them to the auction so they are someone elses problem. Yes you can make them bulletproof if you want to drop the coin in them but polishing a turd just makes it shiny and you end up with crap all over you!

  Good thing about the 6.0 Ford is that we got a ton of New Duramax owners out of them

[Mudman]

The 6.0 is a great international engine.  Int. version has had a good run.  Problem was ford upped the power to keep up with dodge and chevy hp numbers, then Gov. regulations required more emission control.  This destroys the engine.  No emission crap and less hp and engine will run forever.   My 7.3 was great but heres a list of repairs over 6 years and 100k to 200k miles when I got rid of her.  8 injectors.  Tank clean/repair.  Water pump.  Brake rotors. 2 sets injector harness.  sway bar links.  Transfer case actuator. u joint.  batteries.  Pcm. Cam sensor. Filters etc. oil 3k miles a must. and 2 more auto transmissions!! Truck was on # 2 when I bought it, I put a built one and billet tq converter in for tran #3 which made it to 195k before starting to go.  Great truck but they have issues as well.

[Labs07]

Look for a 7.3 liter!  You will be much happier!

[muzbuster]

RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN AWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Slimdog350]

I work for a local municipality and we have quite a few of the 6.0L in our crew trucks. We have done egr coolers, oil coolers a couple turbos and the fuel pump down on the frame. We do have a lot of idle time though. They do have pretty good acceleration though. They also aren't too awful noisy like the old 7.3L. Not a bad vehicle. I would buy one, but then I'm an ASE master tech and can do my own repairs.

[KimberRich]

Stay away with that high of miles. Tough to get an extended warranty on something with over 100k miles and They are a money pit.
I had an '05 f250 and it had every problem the 6.0 can have and it was all before 80k miles.
FICM, Inter cooler, EGR, turbo, and was about to need head gasket/studs when I traded it in on a Dodge.
I absolutely loved the truck itself.  They are great to drive and have every option a guy could want... but that motor ruins the truck.
It was SO much nicer than the '05 Dodge 2500 I have now.. but the 5.9 in my Dodge has been amazing and zero maintenance. 

[get one leakin]

Ive heard many say worse diesel engine ever made.  Weve had 3 and they were all terrible.  Buddy bought a 05 and the dealer at the time said they had all the bugs worked out of them by that time, I warned him to trade it off...  He finally did when it wouldn't run 7 years old, 80k.  Over 7k to fix it, dodge wouldn't give him a cent for trade.  Only way he got rid of it was buying a brand new ford, they gave him 12,ooo and after he unloaded it off the trailer..(had to haul it because it didn't run well enough to drive after 3000 spent) oil started pouring out of it.  Luckily deal was done... 

[buglebuster]

Ive heard many say worse diesel engine ever made.  Weve had 3 and they were all terrible.  Buddy bought a 05 and the dealer at the time said they had all the bugs worked out of them by that time, I warned him to trade it off...  He finally did when it wouldn't run 7 years old, 80k.  Over 7k to fix it, dodge wouldn't give him a cent for trade.  Only way he got rid of it was buying a brand new ford, they gave him 12,ooo and after he unloaded it off the trailer..(had to haul it because it didn't run well enough to drive after 3000 spent) oil started pouring out of it.  Luckily deal was done... 

Hey your user name sounds like a 6.0 head gasket

[wrangler]

DO NOT buy an 04 or 05. I have an 05 and lets just say I'm now a very experienced diesel mechanic! Those 2 years are chalked full of issues that you don't wanna deal with, trust me. Lots of trial and error at ford with 6.0 during that time frame. (mostly error) If I didn't do the work myself Id be out close to 5 or 6k by now, However after replacing and upgrading damn near every top end engine and rear end part the truck is flawless! And all these problems are without any mod or programmer!

[get one leakin]

Ive heard many say worse diesel engine ever made.  Weve had 3 and they were all terrible.  Buddy bought a 05 and the dealer at the time said they had all the bugs worked out of them by that time, I warned him to trade it off...  He finally did when it wouldn't run 7 years old, 80k.  Over 7k to fix it, dodge wouldn't give him a cent for trade.  Only way he got rid of it was buying a brand new ford, they gave him 12,ooo and after he unloaded it off the trailer..(had to haul it because it didn't run well enough to drive after 3000 spent) oil started pouring out of it.  Luckily deal was done... 

Hey your user name sounds like a 6.0 head gasket

I always had the cummins.  The other guys were ford men...  Now we have 3 6.7s and a 5.9.  SOOOOO glad to see the 6 liters go!!

[eburkett]

I have a 2003 F250 with the same engine. Love that thing to death. It is jacked up 4" and rides nice on 35's. Currently has over 193k miles and still runs great.

[Huntboy]

Take a look at this site.

http://powerstrokehelp.com/

[muleyman]

The 05-07 super duties are great trucks.  Just have to expect to spend around 5k to make the engine reliable.  I own an 05 and that thing will pull a house off the foundation.  I have had very little problems but i have ran gauges and a monitor since i bought it.   Im still running stock bolts and head gaskets but i plan on installing arp studs and some other upgrades next spring.  Anyone that buys a 6.0l should expect at minimum to change to studs, delete egr system, replace the oil cooler and install some sort of gauge system.  Mileage wise ive never gotten great around 14-16 mpg but ive heard some people getting high teens though ive never seen the proof.