I've been running Ford trucks for the last 10 years or so, for the last 2 it's been a 2000 7.3 F350 super cab dually which only has around 30k miles on it & should last forever. I bought it to tow a 5th wheel which weighs around 10,000 lbs but we might go a bit larger (15,000lbs) in a couple of years time.
But, I have the chance of a 2005 F250 Harley Crew cab, 6.0 powerstroke, low mileage (35k) never been messed with for what I consider to be a good price & the full size cab would be great plus I do like the trim level (I had a Roush supercharged F150 Harley before the dually) but I have read all the stories about the 6.0 which is why I bought my 7.3.
I have read this https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...f-a-6-0-a.html & it has good information but as I am in the UK I would want to source all parts needed from one place ideally then get them sent to my shipper in Florida. I am capable of doing the work myself although I don't have a facility to remove the cab, or if I pull the pin on this one do I leave the head gaskets & studs until there is a problem & just do the coolant filter, EGR, oil cooler etc.
If I buy the truck I just want to do what's needed so that with normal regular maintenance it will be good for the next 10 years or so, then enjoy our travels.
Your thoughts please guys, do I cross the line or stick with what I've got??

 

You have to know that the only reason you find the bad stories online is because that's what the forums are for, people who are enjoying their truck don't post as often. But when problems come up, questions are asked.

Do you have a link of the truck? Carfax? Get yourself a Scangauge II, Android with Torque pro or Apple device with Forscan and use it while test driving, monitor oil/coolant temps, FICM voltage, icp/ipr etc. Do some research well before hand and it wont come back to bite you.

As for the headgaskets and stuff after the purchase, leave those for "IF" they go bad. Things to do before going bad would be the EGR delete, once deleted the Oil cooler being out of range a little isnt so scary.

Do regular maintenance like any other vehicle, drive it, fix as needed.

 

Thanks, I have Torque pro & a great quality OBD2MX so was going to run that anyway. No link to the truck as it hasn't been advertised for sale yet. But we will do a carfax check for sure. I'm going to see it in a couple of hours time so I'll report back!

 

The best thing you can do for your 6.0L is educate yourself by reading the tech folder at the top of this forum and gauges that provide live data are a must that coupled with regular maintenance will provide you with many years of trouble free driving.


As far as bullet proofing goes, head gaskets in particular do not need to be done until you have a blown head gasket. There is no way I would tear apart a perfectly running engine just to "bullet Proof" it. She will let you know when and "if" the time comes to replace head gaskets. There are some items however on the 05' and up that should be addressed and they are the STC fitting and updated standpipes and dummy plugs.


Also make sure you are only using OEM filters at the recommended intervals which are 5000 miles on the oil and 15000 on fuel filter. Don't skimp here or you will pay big time down the road.

 

I will be the spoiler.... No more than you use the truck, I would stick with what you have. The Harley I assume is a single rear wheel and you currently have a duel wheel truck which to my liking, is more stable towing.

On the other side, no need for a lift, just ****** the engine out the front if you plan a major overhaul.

 

Just back from viewing & it is pretty well a mint condition truck. Drives really nice, smoother ride than my dually & the steering is nice & tight. But it didn't seem to perform as well as I was expecting. No smoke, no oil leaks, nice quiet motor but lacking in throttle response. From a standing start it pulls away well with part throttle & continues through to 70-80 mph no problem. If you stomp on the pedal it will downshift but just doesn't want to pull hard, it's like there is no difference between half throttle & full throttle. There's no CEL & I didn't get to run my Torque Pro so don't know if there are any codes. I will try to get back there with my OBD2MX next week.
One other thing is there is a white light showing on the dashboard, just below the trans temp, it comes on with the lights.

 

An 05 with 35k miles has likely been babied, and driven as such. The 6.0 does not wish to be babied or pampered all the time. These engines were used in UPS and MD trucks with the pedal mashed to the floor all day, difference being they don't put out as much power and didn't suffer as many problems.
The truck might just suffer from a lack of driving and the fact it's hardly broke in. Low mileage on a diesel is not always a good thing.
They don't tell guys to drive it like you stole it for no reason, and those that are babied will end up running as such.

 

Another possibility is that the truck has a bad software revision on it on the ECM and/or FICM. It's astounding what a difference throwing a tune on these trucks will do.

I know you are surprised to hear that we flash both of these units...

Sounds like an incredible truck, but I'd have to agree with the previous poster that a dually will do better stability wise than a single rear wheel any day. Most folks aren't racing when pulling a heavy load.

 

i would say stick with what you have, no reason to go from a drw 350 to a 250 when your thinking about getting a even bigger trailer. 6.0 does have a little more power but the 7.3 will handle the weight just fine and be on a better platform for towing.

 

Sure that's an 05? That looks like an 04 gauge cluster.

In 05 they added a boost gauge underneath the speedometer and moved the Odometer to the center and made it much larger.

Easy way to tell is the front suspension. Leafs = 04, coil springs = 05.

Boost reading would help tell why truck is slow. With that low of miles there's a good chance the turbo vanes are stuck.

 

Sounds like a stuck turbo to me. If it is going to sit alot you may want to consider a non vgt turbo, like a 362. You will need custom tuning to make this work, but it is an option.

 

It looks like the trans temp gauge is missing the low end peg to keep the needle from dropping. That would be the white back light you are seeing

 

Ah that figures, thanks. I've pretty much made my mind up though that I'm going to pass on this truck as the rear seats (captains seats) just won't work for us. If we get a crew cab it will need to have a split rear bench seat that folds down. It still needs sorting though & as it belongs to a friend of mine I'll run my Torque Pro on it & see what I can find.