I like that statement!

 

its prolly to late but sounds like he doesnt want to pay the 5200 to fix it so he is selling it to you be very careful i just had mine fixed

 

Yes owners can cause lots of damage, But the system itself has a flaw. I had mine replaced twice while I owned it. It was never chip and well taken care of. I sold it right before the warranty was up and was sitting on the side of the freeway with broken truck hooked to my trailer. That was the deal breaker for me. The only common problem I did not see was the injector failure.

 

I just bought a 2003 with the 6.0l and so far I have every 'common' issue that comes up every two days: FICM dead causing hard start/no start, a white film around the degas lid ie head bolts. The alt is dying (maybe that wiped out the FICM), and the dome light staying on for 5-20 minutes.

The head bolts are a design flaw that I'm not willing to spend $4-5k to fix Fords mistake. The shop I had it at last Friday quoted me $1025 to fix the FICM. Depending on the alt $150-350 and $250ish for two battery's just to get it to the point that I can check everything out before adding a coolent filter, maybe a EGR delete, and hope that the oil cooler isn't plugged. Now if the turbo 'runs away' and smokes the entire engine.....

Yes I'm jaded but I've had this truck less then two months and it sits dead next to my 33 year old Jeep that starts after sitting for 3-5 months at a time. My old 4Runner with the 3.slow had head gasket issue(not bolts I know) and Toyota had a national recall and replaced them for free. I love the truck and I fully expect to replace normal wear items but not $800 for getting the studs plus $3k+ to have the engine pulled, heads milled or checked for straitness then reassembled is too much.

My truck has 117k miles.

 

Just found out that my 03 f35 6.0 requires head gasket. I just purchased with 87K miles and have only 95K now. Have done two oil changes so I am doing what I thought was good for vehicle. Now this... I thinkthe dealer sold me a bill of goods...I was told to ask about the heads and EGR, I did and he said the vehle is good...Ok now here I am.

I am getting ready to do the Head Gasket job myself (novice, to moderate exp) I just ordered ARP studs, Victor Reinze Head gaskets, Oil cooler (ford), Intake/Exhaust gaskets, Oil Screen, and Turbo botls....( I did the EGR last month in the shop)

1. Is this a complete and good parts list to complete the job?
2. What things should I be looking for for deeper problems to prevent getting worse while I have the engine open (cylinders, thermostat, etc)
3. What special recommendations form users will be helpful in not making stupid mistakes???

Thanks

 

your taking on a major task they had to pull my cab off to get the passenger side head bolt out also they haed to shave heads which fords have very very little tolerence between pistons and valves , so the valve seats will have to be honed also . i am a mid level mechanic and i didnt want to take on the task . the 5200 hurt but its good as new ( also look up motorcraft part to upgrade your fuel pressure regulator ford reccomends the part and it take 30 min to put in really easy

 

Just a heads up- the VR gaskets have a much higher refailure rate than OEM. Check this info before ordering:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...they-fail.html

Also, the early HPO pumps have a ball in the housing that blocks a hole drilled during manufacturing. It's a good idea to tap it for a proper plug while it's apart. Some trucks have spit the ball out causing a loss of high side oil pressure. Not to mention where the ball ends up inside the motor. You won't have the front of the motor apart but the early engines have a plastic impeller on the water pump. Better (metal) pumps are available. Not a huge job if you want to add it to the list. And new seals on everything you take apart. It would also be a good time to crack open the turbo and clean it up if you have time. Good luck!

 

Understand. Not that I want to do it myself it is a finance thing. Was not expecting this in my budget. I need for work and there is no way I can come up with that kind of money immediately. Forced to go the hard way. Hobby shop has reference mechanics to help advise. Trying to get a friend to come down for a bit. I can do the manual tear down and put together, its the making sure Ive got all the right stuff and checking to see there is no further damage or things to work on while eng is apart. Your advice has been helpful. Maybe I can win the lottery!!!

 

Lol! Lottery winners drive NEW vehicles! I understand the tight $$ and even the Auto Hobby Shop. I'm prior service (many years ago) myself and it was the only option when you live in the barracks. You can skip the water pump, and leave the turbo alone if it's working ok, and many times you can re-use the intake gaskets (they're more than $100), but for real- read up on those head gaskets. The VR's are a few bucks cheaper and there a few guys here who have used them with no problems but MANY have had to go back in and change gaskets a second time and if you studded it, it's even more difficult the second time. I think it has a lot to do with surface prep and following proper torque procedures.
Just being nosey but how did you verify the head gaskets are bad?

 

Take your time, a friend also helps to keep you from going insane....

OEM gaskets are best, the torque to yield bolts stretched which caused your failure. Once apart, drop the heads off at a reputable machine shop and have the surface checked, do not use the Ford guideline for flatness. You can mill no more than .009 off the surface.

 

When my truck was in the shop 2k miles ago (196k) for injectors, the mechanic noted the heads were replaced not too long ago by the previous owner by saying the head bolts looked brand new. My truck is bone stock and I do not tow, will my head gaskets be fine if I leave it stock?

 

They should be fine, even if you do tow often; I tow a couple of times a month (10k pound 5th wheel) and I'm still running a mostly stock engine. Where you get into trouble is when the engine overheats; oil cooler failure which kills the EGR cooler, thus leads to coolant dumping into the intake; or the turbo sticks causing an over-boost (more than 30 psi) several times. I'm not going to sit here and say you'll never have another problem with 'em, if they were done wrong you'll have issues. Keep an eye on your coolant level in the degas (overflow bottle), if you have any issues, that will be one of the first places you'll see the change. Do you have bolts or studs in the engine now? Look right below the rocker boxes (valve covers) and you should see 5 or 6 large fastners. If they look like bolt heads, then it's more than likely factory torque-to-yield (TTY). But if they look like nuts on the end of a bolt/stud then the PO may have paid a little extra for studs. Going with studs is the preferred method, but I know of several folks with allot of miles on TTY without a heat gasket issue.

 

My engine is bone stock. I use my Scangauge II to moniter my temps and turbo boost. Turbo boost wise I see around 18-22 while crusing down highway. I also moniter my oil and water temp closely. I've heard if their more than 14 degrees apart (at normal temperature with oil being slightly hotter) you have an oil cooler problem. So far the largest difference I've seen was 8 degrees.

 

 

Can hardly tell them apart!!!