@ belloscuria, I have done A LOT of the work myself I
I have paid $11,975.00 in parts alone. Roughly 80 cents a mile.

Yup got the coolant filter on it

 

I do most of my own work (I don't do tires)...so my costs are DIY. The parts aren't cheap...smoke an injector and your looking at $200 bare minimum...I've heard of dealerships taking guys for $350 a piece. There are certain things on these motors that if you don't have the right tools (AE Ford Bundle) and basic troubleshooting...they'll eat your lunch. I think the best gauge for cost is an oil change. To do it right...correct weight/API rating oil with a Racor made filter you looking at $65 with you spinning your own wrenches. And that's before you go with synthetic blend or straight out synthetic oil and take a raping from FoMoCo on one of their repackaged filters. If you want to save money on these trucks...don't be afraid to get your hands dirty and do allot of forum reading. Without getting down to an exact dollar amount; I've spent over $7,500. The greatest expense have been the two sets of Michelin X-Radials I've put under it. The first set went 68k miles...they were starting to dry riot before I had managed to wear all the tread off.

I get asked this question from time to time. Would you buy that 6.0L powered truck again given the chance for a "do over"? To which I reply, your darn skippy I'd sign on the dotted line again. Yes, they're expensive to maintain and their fuel is at a higher cost. But when I can pull our 9500# 5th wheel down the interstate at 70mph and get 12mpg while facing a head wind...there ain't a gas engine out there that can do that. Even after 104k miles of ownership I still enjoy the truck...just not the fuel price.

 

I wouldn't just start replacing the EGR simply because you got a code. Why do so many people recommend it and/or even listen to advice like that? What does your mechanic say? Post up your MAF, MAP readings and EBP or something. Someone is bound to be able to help you. Don't just replace the EGR.

Do you have the ScanGauge II? It will help you tremendously. Worth its weight in gold.

 

Not back in until Monday, but he just said he's going to have to take a look deeper into where the flow is being restricted. He said along with it which I guess makes sense for the issue is an excessive amount of carbon buildup on the egr valve

 

A neglected EGR valve will have excessive amounts of carbon buildup. I've seen photos of some really bad ones. People without EGR valves (the delete) get that code, so it can't possibly be just an EGR valve issue. I think you should look into it more and verify different readings. I hope the experts jump in here soon. Changing parts can get really expensive. When he cleaned your EGR valve, did he replace the o-rings? What did he clean it with? Did he know that he wasn't supposed to submerge it past a certain point or he'd damage the internals? Also the MAF, EBP, MAP you need to post those readings. I am sure they are all related, just need an expert to guide you along.

 

EGR valve cleaning with pics...

Another EGR Valve cleaning w/pics - Ford Powerstroke Diesel Forum

and this...

Learning to Live with Your Powerstroke 6.0L EGR