Hey guys,
I have an issue with our worktruck my "smart" boss bought. He picked up a 2004 E350 with a 6.0. The original engine died with 112,000 on the clock. We bought a junkyard engine with 35,000 miles, did the EGR delete (believe it is a full replacement for the EGR, a hard line instead), and oil cooler. We didn't do the head studs and gaskets because the mechanic thought with the low miles we should be fine. After about 3 months or so we started having excess pressure blowing out the de-gas bottle. After several new bottles and caps, the mechanic figured it might be the head gasket, and decided to pull the cab again (third trip). Now we have APR studs, and Black onyx gaskets. After the cab was back together, discovered a valve got bent putting the heads on. This was fixed without taking the cab off, but left us with very small valve cover leak. After a few weeks, starting blowing out the de-gas bottle again. After some troubleshooting and research on this site, the general consensus was oil cooler plugged. We brought it in, and the valve cover leak was fixed, as well as a new oil cooler. At this time a new alternator was also put in, bad voltage regulator was leading to pulsing lights. It was also flushed with directions I found on here. When we got it back, and as the weather started getting cold, we discovered the heat was not working correctly. We also thought it the engine in the cab was louder (we spent quite a bit of time this summer quieting the cab, lots of sound deading, we do quite a bit of phone business while on the road). We couldn't get any heat at startup/idle. After driving for a short time, heat would come on, but intermittently. At partial throttle, no heat, full/high throttle, very hot heat, when the throttle was dropped from high, as the truck dropped to idle, no heat. And I mean no heat, it blows cold. After a few days this went to heat only at one or two very specific throttle settings, and not very much at that. More research, more checking, thought it might be the water pump. We just finished a water pump change. Seems like it is still having the issue. We could twist the impeller on the pulley shaft slightly, but using quite a bit of force. The top of the impeller had groves, and the housing showed some rotational wear. This leads us to believe it has/had an issue, but doesn't seem to have fixed the heat issue. When driving, on the throttle, we have heat. When we let off the throttle, and slow to a stop, the temerature coming out the vent gets cooler and cooler, eventually approaching outdoor temp.

So, after reading all the above, HELP!!!

 

A little information here would help. An 04 can have an 03 engine, the easiest way to tell being the location of the ICP sensor--under the turbo (03) or on the valve cover (04). The 03 engine had a slightly smaller pump than the 04 engine but that hasn't been an issue with heat.

If your coolant level is too low you can have heat issues, but I think your issue is with the pump housing itself. If it's scarred/grooved it doesn't take much wear for the pump to cavitate and not pump correctly. I don't know exactly how much wear it takes, but we've had tech's with this issue before. Another thought would be a partially plugged heater core

 

The new engine we put in was from a 2005. The pump housing had slight wear marks, but I wouldn't call it scarring. It was enough to see the difference in the color of the aluminum, but not real deep. It was mainly in one location.

A plugged heater core was our idea as well, but we really don't want to take anything apart without a pretty good idea of issue. Is there any way to test this?

 

That only applies to F-Series trucks. Ford didn't introduce the 6.0L into the E-Series vans until 2004 model year.

 

Okay, after reading through the entire post by the OP, I still have difficulty understanding what the point of it is. First off, the vehicle in question is a 2004 E-350 with a 112,000 miles (and I'll ASSUME it is a regular E-350 VAN body, NOT a CUBEVAN/CUTAWAY). What was the original issue that led to the conclusion the engine needed to be replaced in the first place? So, as it stands, a donor engine was found and installed in its place from a 2005 model year with only 35,000 miles on it. Did the donor engine come from an F-Series or E-Series truck? And I'll also assume the parts you list were installed onto the donor engine, correct? BTW, LOSE the Black Onyx head gaskets. I'm sure it won't take too much searching before you find more than a few who have experienced repeat failures using them. Also, I'm sure you'll already know that 2004 and 2005 engines use a different high pressure oil pump and intake manifold setup too. Which parts did you use and/or transfer? Does this van have any aftermarket add-ons? Does this van have auxillary heat-A/C? What is your present issue? Sorry for more questions than answers.

 

The original engine overheated bad enough the oil filter innards melted, which means oil temp over 450 (melting point of the filter). The donor came from an E-350 as well. All the parts listed were installed on the donor now in the van. I did not do the work on new engine until the water pump, so I will check on the oil pump and intake manifold. No auxiliary heat/AC. Our present issue is blowing antifreze out the de-gas bottle, and no heat at idle, or at higher RPMs. Our concern is we do not want to damage something else.

What we would like is any ideas you have to test for issues, I have heard plugged heater core and blown head gaskets. What are the best tests for those issues. We really don't want to pull the cab, pull the heads, and find out its not the head gaskets.

 

So, any new ideas?

 

As I said in my initial post, LOSE the Black Onyx head gaskets. It won't take a lot of searching before you find SEVERAL members here who have experienced repeat failures using them. BTW, pulling the body on an E-Series I find to be easier than pulling them on an F-series in that there are less components to disconnect, believe it or not. This time around, use only FORD gaskets.

 

I know you have mentioned loosing the Black Onyx head gaskets, but is it worth taking the cab off the van to change them, when we dont know for sure that is the issue? Is there a test(s) we can do to confirm they are the problem? We don't mind doing the work if needed, but really don't want to devote the time if they are not our issue currently. Thank you all for your help.

 

Tee in a pressure gauge to the coolant degas bottle and operate the vehicle under the conditions described, that put the greatest load on the engine. VERIFY that the VDF cooling fan is functioning as it should (if you haven't already done so). You've already verified proper cooling system flow, by what you've already described in your post, including water pump flow, so what else does that leave? If pressure exceeds the cap relief rate, the problem is right there. BTW, if you've replaced the heater hose with one from Ford, the replacement hose should have a restrictor plumbed in. And the present symptoms you describe point SQUARELY at firing ring failure on the head gaskets. May I suggest this go-around, that you spend the money, and have the heads sent out, magnafluxed, pressure tested, valve seats checked and addressed as necessary BEFORE you re-install everything. Check the block deck for flatness too. Also, E-Series applications engines are de-rated to 235 bHP and 440 ft-lbs. of torque so failures of this sort are relatively rare compared to F-Series engines at 325 bHP and 570 ft-lbs. of torque. Good luck.

 

Thank you for your help so far. We are basically setting ourselves up to pull the cab and do the gaskets again, but a few more questions. You mentioned sending out the heads, any recommendations as to where? Also, do you recommend factory Ford gaskets? What we want to do is build this thing as bulletproof as possible, not for massive power but general reliability. Any recommendations would be helpfull along these lines. Anything else you can think of?

 

We have a local machine shop that can do the head work, is there something extremely specific about these heads we should send them to a specialist, or is it pretty standard when it comes to head work.

 

Just make sure the heads are flat to within 0.000". Have them clean, magnaflux and check all valve seats for cracks. Also check between the glow plug and injector holes for cracks. Also check to make sure the block deck surface on the engine block is perfectly flat too. Yes, use only Ford or Navistar head gaskets. As far as ARP studs go, it can't hurt to install them although these engines are de-tuned from the F-Series versions. In any event, that's about as bulletproof as you need on a van. Also make sure the fan clutch is functioning as it's supposed to, and you should be good to go.

 

You have mentioned checking the fan clutch, what is the best way to test it? It seems to be spinning, but how can I make sure the clutch is working correctly. I have a v-10, and at startup, or under throttle on a warm day I can definitely tell the fan is spinning, but we don't hear the fan the same in this truck. We never have heard it the same. We had an older ford van with the 5.4, and that fan was loud as well under throttle.

 

To test fan clutch operation on a 6.0L be it an E-Series or F-Series requires use of a scan tool that can monitor FANVAR_SS, FANVAR_% and engine RPM. You also need to increase engine speed to, and maintain 2500 RPMs. You would then need to take active command of FANVAR_% from 0% to 100%. At 100% duty cycle, FANVAR_SS should increase to above 2800 RPMs within seconds if it's functioning properly. And when it does this, it will be LOUD.