so its a pretty stright foward question.

 

That is a tough one for me to answer though.I did all the mods and repairs on the 350 my self,the only reason it has been to a dealer has been for a FICM flash since I found the FTE.I also bought the Ex off ebay for $16400us 20k $cad to my door,and they were selling in my area for about 28-30k.The truck was in west point NY while I in Alberta.I learned all the questions to ask before buying on here.That one has been trouble free besides a leaking ICP sensor for 2 years(knock on wood).And made some cash by replacing HGs on 3 other 6.0s from the knowledge I aquired since joining the FTE.So easily the FTE has saved/made me near 15k.

 

My wife would say it has cost us money! But without fte I would have had to do the mods more than one time.

 

None lol. Cost me in the end lol.

 

For my 6.0, I can't really think of any money that FTE has saved me, at least for now, while I'm still using the remnant of my ESP... But I'm sure all of this learned knowledge will save me plenty in the future, once I am forced to wrench on her myself.
Now for my highboy with the 460, FTE has probably saved me a few bucks. Mostly its saved me a lot of time in diagnosis' and how to DIYs working on my old truck.
This site is awesome and I thank all who contribute to its success.

 

the most important thing i have learned from reading post and talking in PM's was what would be the right "upgraded" part to replace when the stock parts broke. also i'm pretty young and a lot of mechanics try to take advantage of me, but i guess from knowing more than they thought i did, they could tell i new what was up.
lastly the most important thing to me is peace of mind and having a reliable truck. it took me some time but by joining my local chapter group and talking with those guys i found the right diesel tech for me.

 

It's sort of like Obama talking about all the jobs he's saved...

On a more serious note...

Because of this site I've installed a coolant filter...what would happen if the grit clogged up my coolant filter???

Because of this site I only use Motorcraft / Racor filters instead of the cheapest I could get...what would happen if the cheap filter collapsed??

Because of this site I've learned how to improve my fuel mileage 1.5 to 2 MPG on average X 80K miles thats a few pennies

Because of this site I've learned how to do some of the basic maintenance myself...Saves me at least $200 per year..


Because of this site I've definitely taken better care of my vehicles and that has translated into being able to sell them for more when i get new ones as my subcontractors usually buy them from me because they know how well the trucks have been taken care of..That's worth a couple of thousand in the end...

How's that for starters?? ;-)

 

350.00 to 450.00 learned not to buy fancy air filters

 

Money saved = $x000.00 to $xx000.00

Frustration saved = PRICELESS

This truck has only been to a shop twice (besides for tires): last visit was in April for ARP studs. Prior to that was Ford in 2004 for a computer flash (yes i'm still running the computer flash from 2004). I know Its going to have to go at some point for ball joints but other than that its been my own two hands and often times a FTE procedure print out.

 

It is hard to put a dollar amount on proper preventative maintenance. Including OEM recommended and “fixes” that help to ensure longevity of your investment. Learning how to monitor your truck and not push past its limits can save thousands. It is reliable and that is a huge savings now that the warranty is up. On the other side of the coin when I do have a failure all the information found here and knowledge available will save me $$$ and a lot of frustration.

 

Since I'm still under the ESP, all I can say is "how do you quantify knowledge?" My sa and the mechanic at the dealership appear to respect me for what I have learned here and also because I have given the mechanic, and he's a good one, the heads up on some of the upgrades that he knew nothing about. Case in point would be the fuel press. regulator spring upgrade and the ScanGauge ll. He said he played with my ScanGauge for an hour after I left.

 

Dollar wise I really don't know but I learned how to remove turbo & upgrade oil lines; recondition turbo; replace ICP Sensor; Clean EGR valve; Install gauges to protect my 6.0;Install Coolant Filter;Power Steering Filter;Didn't do it yet but have all parts to rebuild oil cooler and egr delete. I guess I can go on and on..So dollar wise I know I saved a lot of cash Thanks to Guys like bismic; cheezit; npccpartsman; Maxium4x4 and all the rest of the techs and supporters that take there personal time to share there knowledge and support all of the FTE Community that needs there help. ONCE AGAIN THANK YOU ALL!!

 

I bought Black Betty 2yrs ago when diesel was $5 a gallon. I would not have if I had not found F.T.E. I kept the dealer on edge about buying her for a couple of months. The original price was $25,500. After letting him know about the horror stories with these motors and the fact that he had been sitting on this truck for 1.5yrs.he was ready to deal. He let her go for 12,500 + my 1999 E150 HYTOP CONVERSION VAN. $13000 saved from the knowledge gained here on F.T.E.

 

Knowing the TSB's got me new window tinting, new window seals, and an upgrade on the steering stabilizer bar. I would have lived with the issues without knowing that there were TSB's on them.

Also, I know of MANY folks that would PROBABLY have paid a deductible when they didn't have to (emissions warranty).

I also know that I would have plugged my oil cooler if I hadn't installed the coolant filter (first saw it mentioned by Beachbumcook). Even though I would have been under warranty, the whole cascade of events associated with a plugged oil cooler would have been VERY frustrating!

I also think that the proper fluids and filters will result in savings being realized when I get in the higher mileages (after the warranty expires). Better injector life, turbo life, etc.

I guess the best part is that I know so much more now (about the 6.0L) and I know people that can help if practically anything goes wrong with the truck.

Great forum - great folks.

 

This site will always continue to save me money/time. Imagine finding a dealer with a great tech & then willing to help with the right answers to the questions/problems. Then the mpg, i started @ around 13 and now am @ 18 mpg highway not towing!