WHAT HAVE I DONE!!??
Just sold my 2002 F-250 4x4 Lariat 7.3L that had 207k miles on it. Was very happy that I sold it so quickly and I was going to be able to get my 2008 model I have been lusting after for so many years. So as I was searching for one to buy and I stumbled across a forum here, and to put it bluntly,,, I think I might have messed up bad. Reading the horror stories about the 6.4L motors are unreal. Question is now what do I do?? I love the looks of the interior an exterior of the 2008 and newer models but no way I can afford the 2010-2011 model. Now I have no truck and so very confused on what I should do now. ANY advise would be greatly appreciated.

 

If you can get a a job 2 or 3 truck with a clean oasis you'll be good to go, just do your research. Maintence is key to keeping any vehicle running good and and up to par. Just be warned ....opinions are like azzholes , everyone has one!

 

What is a job 2 or 3 truck mean and what is an Oasis report? This is all new to me. Thanks

 

08 had three production runs 1,2,3, 1 being first and 3 being last. Most will say that the bugs got worked out in the later builds???? an oasis you can get at the ford dealer if you look for a truck at ford, it will give you al the info as far as warrantee work that was done to the truck.just ask the dealer for one, they are free.

 

I have a job 1 and no worries. Just maintain it. No big deal.

 

Thanks! How do you know which production run a vehicle is?

 

I have an early job 1 and as long as you keep the maintance schedule, you are good to go. I look at it this way. The squeakiest wheel always gets all the attention, with that in mind, you will see and hear of many things that go wrong with the 6.4 but just put it into perspective. There are still thousands not having issues if any. My issues on my 6.4 have been rather normal. Nothing exotic, as I knock on wood.
Biggest thing, don't drive it like a grandma, I love that line! Picked it up in another thread.

 

If I remember right, Job 1 was 1/2007-6/2007, Job 2 was 6/2007-12/2007, and Job 3 was 1/2008+.

This applies to the 2008 MY only, but this was when many of the issues were worked out. Do you plan on keeping this truck out of warranty? If so I'm afraid this may not be the truck for you.

 

I have a job 1 08 and my truck kicks butt. I bought it with 47k. Now has about 58k.
It was a 1 owner with all records done by dealership.
Do the severe duty maint. and have fun. Never owned a nicer vehicle.
Pulls my boat like nothing, handles the Rocky mountains like mole hills.

Remember people come on here for help, not to proclaim their vehicle awesomeness.

 

Maintenance - Maintenance - Maintenance

The new emissions controlled diesels *do not* tolerate neglected maintenance like the old diesels did. If you keep up the maintenance they do just fine though.

6.4 key points:

• Oil and oil filter change every 5k mi. Use only OEM (Motorcraft or Racor) filters. Get a sample analyzed at each change (Blackstone) to track for any fuel dilution or coolant contamination issues.

• Fuel filters every 10k. Use only OEM (Motorcraft or Racor) filters, and only FD4617, not the obsolete FD4609.
  
• Coolant nitrite test at least every 15k. I do every 5k since test strips are cheap. Add VC-8 if needed.

I use M1 5W40TD oil and am quite happy with it, though at 5k intervals conventional oil is probably fine as well.

Short trips and long idling periods are bad for all the new emissions controlled diesels. Try to get as high a percentage of highway time as you can. Monitor your miles to hours ratio, the higher the better. I get about 43:1, anything under 25:1 is considered a problem.

Get the new 11B23+ flash update, it has better fault detection which can detect developing problems before they do a lot of damage. If there are problems developing, the new flash can detect them before you get 10 miles from the dealer, so don't be too upset if you get a "wrench" on your way home from the flash.

This early detection is a good thing if you are under warranty, and even if not it's still good since early detection generally means less costly repair. In fact if I were looking for a used 6.4, I would require the flash update and 50+ miles of test drive before I would purchase the truck.

You absolutely want to get the ESP warranty if you can, it can be very valuable in the event of a problem since many problems are pretty expensive to repair.

Do not blindly blame the DPF for all problems as some less knowledgeable folks do. The DPF isn't great, but it is rarely the source of problems. If you have high fuel dilution in the oil, it is usually an injector problem or fuel rail leak, not related to the DPF regeneration process.

Do not "tune" or (illegally) DPF delete if you are under warranty as this has a good chance of getting your warranty voided. These trucks have plenty of power and run just fine in stock configuration if properly maintained.

Keep all receipts, oil reports and a good maintenance log. I recommend buying filters and whatnot at the dealer if they don't mark them up much since it keeps them familiar with you and lets them see that you are on top of maintenance.

I also recommend using fuel conditioner at every fill up. I use the Ford PM-22 / PM-23 conditioner, but the Stanadyne is good as well and I have seen it referenced in Ford docs as equivalent. Other folks seem to do ok with the PowerService conditioner. Be sure to drain the water separator regularly. If the water separator drain slows down you probably have parafin globs building up and clogging the drain, which you will need to clean out.

Some items that are particularly important if you are looking at a used truck that is near or past 50k:

• Coolant flush with VC-9 and fill with new coolant (60k item).
• Rear axle fluid change for Dana axles (50k item).
• Transmission fluid and filter change (60k item). Avoid the early '08 trucks with the external transmission filter.
• Transfer case fluid change (50k item).
• Check the tailpipe for soot if you are under 5/50k, the emissions warranty that covers the DPF is 5/50k so get the DPF replaced under warranty if it is cracked. I just had my DPF replaced.

 

Door Cert will have the build month and year.

 

Very interesting.... And yes to your question Crazy001, I do plan on keeping the truck many years. I am assuming even after warranty. I do not know what fords warranty is on a 2008 though. Anyone know? Is the 2008 giving better fuel mileage then its predecessors, that being the 7.3L & the 6.0L?
WP6529, THANK YOU! Really opened my eyes there. Thanks for taking the time and being very detailed. And what a great idea regarding the flash and the 50+ miles. I will require that. What is a DPF Delete done for?

 

Gas mileage is not so good on these trucks. That may be the biggest downfall of them.
They love the highway, the longer my trip, the better the MPGs.
People delete the DPF for many reasons. Mostly to stop the Regen cycle, and the ability to tune it to higher HP settings. I can see the advantage of that, but not while under warranty.

 

Zealous, hi. I just want to say I know exactly how you feel. I had a wonderful 2001 that was 7 years old and still in excellent condition. I bought a bigger 5th wheel and needed a dooly. saw an 08 at a great price and jumped on it. Sold my 01 about 6 houras after I put it on CL. My 08 was a job 1 and then I started reading more and more sorry stories on this forum and a couple other sites. I had a case of buyers remorse just as big as yours. That was three years and 35,000 miles ago and I've not had any real probems with the truck. It tows much better than the 01. Like everybody else said, love the truck and it will love you back. And, learn about the DPF and the issues associated with it so you will understand whats going on with it. Good luck and welcome to the forum. PS> the fuel mileage sucks and there is not much you can do about it.

 

A few more things:
- Do not run more than B5 diesel. The manual says that also. Can't remember the details, but there was a big writeup explaining fuel dilution and more soot generation
- avoid using low cetane fuel. Stick with name brands. 45 or higher is what the manual says. Your DPF will thank you.
- Regen is the biggest annoyance. When I'm in stop-and-go traffic and there's no chance I'm getting out of it anytime soon, I'll throw the truck in neutral at stoplights to cancel regen, otherwise, it'll sit there pumping fuel out the exhaust in a futile attempt to heat up the DPF. Watch how fast the fuel drops when that happens. I'll let it do its thing as soon as I'm on the expressway/freeway and then shut it down again shortly before my destination to let things cool down. I might be wrong, but the trick that seems to work for me is constant throttle, not stop-and-go high speed runs.

My advice--congrats on the purchase and enjoy the rig. Remember, folks who write stuff in forums tend to be looking for help on problems, so it might appear worse than reality. There's a lot of support out here in the forums, so you're good. This rig has some quirks, but what doesn't. Most of the early bugs have all been addressed via TSB's. Never mind the miles per gallon; I look at how many smiles per gallon I get. Nothing has come close yet