Wifes truck.
04
6.0l
4x4
extended cab
stock
130k miles
we have owned it for last 40k miles
when we bought it, had coolant and tranny fluid flushed.

Here is the thing. We have always had a little car in addition to the trucks. Now the car is dying, and were thinking what she loves most is driving her truck. hates driving cars at all.

We put on about 20k a year that will go on her truck now.

would like to maximize mpgs (she is 35, not a hot rodder anyways...)
I know a truck is not a civic. I get it. At the same time, we HAVE to have the truck. Pulls horses, gets hay and grain etc. So what can I do to maximize MPGS and what would that number be? is 20 unrealistic? What about 18? Seems like we get 14-15 now, and that is mostly highway (80% or more). Will custom tune or exhaust help?

Also, should I be worried about the 6.0l? At one time they were considered junk. Now it seems people say if you maintain them, they are reliable, others say bullet proof kit/EGR delete etc. I am reasonably handy. Is that all DIY safe for average guy?

 

I have an 07 and am also curious to the above question.

 

I cannot answer the mpg question. I'll look into it maybe. (I only know about the 7.3 for mpg)
But with the high mileage, I wouldn't be concerned. My excursion is also an 04 (red label 6.0) Be careful with FICM's. Part of the reason the injectors go bad is from a bad ficm causing early failure.
The ex had injectors done at around 180k. I partly blame the ficm.
The 03 blue label 6.0 did not get bad injectors until the 200k mark.
The turbo did go bad on the 03 before 200, but it had a bad exhaust manifold which wasnt keeping good back pressure on the turbo.
Turbo on the 04 seems to have a bad plate now.
Both had the egr cooler go bad around 210k. Do not replace with factory. Bullet proof or delete. That's about it with them. Maintain them, look out for these early problems that can cause more and you're good. Don't push for power, then you need studded heads ect.
These jobs aren't average diy, but they are my diy.

 

The 6.0 has a bad rep but it can be helped by as noted above proper maintenance. Many claim dont run tuners etc. I have an 04, 4 inch turbo back exhaust, it was BP'd and I had head studs done at the same time. The tech brought it up to the latest 6.0 TSB's but I told him not to touch the computer with any of their 'upgrades'. So it is on original tune with a replacement hypertech tune installed. Have gotten high teens on highway but not often. Sounds as if you are in the ball park for mileage now. Just read about one making BIG HP in one of the magazines but it did have all the BP done. MY BIL uses his hard and has had all the issues. Big thing was to get the intercooler replaced on the last go round. Has 150K+ on his. I run the stock air filter as they are supposed to be good up to 500 or so HP.

As to DIY I had mine done cost a little over $4K and was done in a timely manner. Read all you can in the tech notes here and on powerstroke.org and make that call yourself. My issue is age and getting up and down anymore. To do studs they say requires cab lift, but others say it can be done cab in place, just a little more difficult. If you do keep and up grade yes look at the replacement FICMs and I would also suggest the BP waterpump upgrade just because you have it all apart and it would be again good preventative maint in my mind. Also install a oil and cooler filter kit. and be good on oil changes.

 

If you have a good set of tools and would not hesitate to take an intake and heads off of your small block Bronco, then you can likely handle 6.0 stuff.
The big difference is there will be a lot more trouble shooting potentially, but keep in mind, when you have something come up, the odds are REALLY good it's happened to someone here on this forum and you can tackle it on your own.
As far as being worried about a 6.0, I don't think I would be THAT worried about one, after all you said you put 40k on yours? The key is getting something like a Scangauge or something else to monitor the vitals of stuff that, when/if it starts to go south, can be replaced before it starts a chain reaction.
Say the alternator starts getting weak.........then your FICM will suffer.....then you have injectors not happy........there is one example.
Those gauges on the dash are nothing more than glorified idiot lights and tell you NOTHING about a lot of things going on.
Don't have the Mrs. baby that thing either. These engines need a good workout, most say at least once a week or two. If this truck is a grocery getter then it will suffer unless Ma takes the long way home and beats the crap out of it for a few minutes. Keep the turbo vanes happy.

Your mileage is not that bad. You could try cetane booster if you don't already use it. I also run a Archoil product, it does help some. Mine will get around 17 on the highway, maybe a bit higher depending, but I have bigger tires than stock. I have heard a lot of folks say that a tune to the FICM made a noticable diff, I'll find out after I get mine back from Ed

 

I had an 04 ex that had crappy mpg. It was a 4x4 with studs, egr delete, cat delete, updates etc. it was my wife's daily driver and I ran a canned SCT tune on it. I tried cleaning the EBP tube, ran arch oil, etc. but it wasnt until I got the atlas 40 that it started getting good mpg (around 18.5). Not any single thing is going to boost your mileage. I think in my case it was a total of all the fixes that made the gains. Toreador diesel helped me. He can chime in to add his insight

 

If you're getting 14-15 mpg highway pulling a trailer or other type of load....I wouldn't bother buying something to improve MPG. If you were to spend $500 and were "lucky" enough to get 17-18 mpg...you'd have to drive 25,000 miles just to repay yourself back the $500. If ya spent $1000...50,000 miles, etc.

Check tire psi and make sure you don't have any brakes sticking by lifting 1 wheel at a time and spin it.

Just some tips from a frugal thinker....LOL

 

Buddy who runs campers to and from shows says he gets a little better mileage with 5w full synthetic oil. I would suspect it only changes .something but its good for the engine anyways. Rotella T6 5w-40
Go full synthetic from engine to differential. May help minitely but will add up.
A&E intake helps on 7.3 along with btm muffler. If there's a btm for the 6 it may help. Going up to 4in may be a little too big for the 6er but with the turbo and all it may help too. Just speculation, I haven't looked into the 6 mpg boosts extensively.
If the rear diff wears too much dropping to 3.31's may help if you don't tow heavy, but if its 4x4 you gotta do the front too (maybe drop in the front axle from a coil sprung)
All expensive but you're saving money from not buying a car. The first few may be more worth looking into than the first.

 

I second tire pressure and checking the brakes, and then drive with a light foot. think ahead and lift off well before you have to brake.

mind you, if you're doing short trips to get stuff for horses you're not going to get more than 15-16. that's exactly what my wife does and exactly what she gets

 

I have a SCT street tune and Ed Steffan's Atlas 80 FICM tune. Before the atlas 80 tune I got 12.5 MPG. After the tune I now get 16.5 to 17 MPG. That is just normal driving. The power and throttle response are awesome. I would you suggest you give Ed a call.

Ed

 

I have an '06 with about 130k on the clock.
I can get up to about 20 mpg on the highway empty and around 16 mpg combined by doing the following:

1. Run full synthetic Rotella T-6 and change the oil and filter every 5k miles.
2. Keep the tires properly inflated and perhaps even a bit more
3. Install a tonneau cover if you do a lot of highway miles.
4. The truck will get its best mileage at 55 mph so the faster you go over it the worse your mileage will be..
5. Use the cruise control whenever you can.
6. I use Stanadyne Performance fuel additive also

 

Just over 20,000 miles of mixed highway and city mostly empty my average is 15.4

9000 miles of towing my average is 11.8. All miles are various tunes with atlas 40.

Speed, bio fuel, lift and big tires kill mpg. Keep it at 55 mph you might get 20 but around here you will get run over.

 

I just found this.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/s...09&postcount=6

I think I am going to start with Stage 1 and 2 and make sure all the maint. is up to snuff.

I have one concern.
I did have to replace the alternator recently. I need to replace batteries next because if I leave truck sit for 2 or 3 days it will drain and not start. Should I be concerned about the FICM?

One more thing. I am sure a search will answer this, and I will search, but what gauges are most important? Seems like most people have digital and not the pillars. What do I need to do and what do I need to tell her?

Thanks again. All advice has been appreciated!

 

No guages in the 04 ex. But I would recommend a boost guage to detect early problems. I think some of the digital guage displays will tell you the duty cycle etc. Neither of my 2 6.0's needed it but I know someone with an Amarillo edition that blew his (he has the studded heads and a time ect)
Hopefully someone else will chime in on what needed. I don't doubt your wife but if she's not as into checking all the guages keeping the amount minimal may help her check the important ones.
If you don't trust the FICM get a scan tool and Check the voltage. Should be 48. Auto enguinity does, idk about the others.

 

Yes to synthetic oils, gauges I have Fuel pressure (with blue spring mod), Boost and egt all pillar mounted. I run a scan gauge 2 and monitor primarily eng oil temp, coolant temp, voltage as well as some others in the 4th spot. Also I run cat ELC coolant. The 6.0 will handle a 4 inch exhaust easily as it will breath better particularly if you go turbo back. The oem down pipe is restrictive. As to the batteries going down, keep a small maintainer hooked up when not going to use. There is a lot of stuff with 'memory' to be kept alive on these, clocks radio, alarm systems etc.

BTW the ficm can be monitored with a scan gauge.