Interested in techs opinions on this DieselPower magazine statement:

6 0L Ford Power Stroke Engine High Pressured Oil Pumps Photo 15


I have always heard that the 03 and 04 HPOP's had the highest failure rates. I have my doubts on this articles validity, because the 05 pumps were the same as the 06's and 07's (at least that is what I believe to be the case).

 

i saw the same thing and im also curious.

 

Although I didn't really read through the whole article, I think they are only referring to the STC fitting. For what it's worth, I am not adverse to charging the labour to install updated rail plugs and fittings, if for nothing else other than to prevent the owner from every having to suffer a hot no-start issue ever, at the most possible inconvenient moment. The problem is, most mechanics unfamiliar with the inner workings of these engines find it far easier to pursue problems using a parts replacement diagnosis approach, rather than to pinpoint the cause of an issue first. I shouldn't really be saying this, but there are times that service advisors tend not to have the patience for us to explain what the issue is, or the cause because they only want to relay the information to the customer as, "....... okay Mr./Mrs. so and so, the mechanic says your truck needs thingamajimmy bob, and it's going to cost $1000 to replace it", without even having a clue or giving a damn as to what and why.

 

I agree Mike. The thing is, the way they choose to "word" the article is misleading. they say "problems with the pump themselves" so that implies the pump and not the piping (ie STC fitting). Just thought I would see what ya'll had to say about it.

I couldn't read the entire article either. The concept was good, but IMO they missed the point on some of the issues.

Say one unrelated question - does the 6.4L still have the extrenal tranny filter or does it rely solely on the internal pan filter?

 

From what I got out of it it wasnt just the Pumps it was the fact that 05+ HPO SYSTEMS have the Highest Failure rate mainly from all the gaskets and seals that Fail (STC Fitting,Standpipes,and Dummey Plugs)

then give 05+ a Square EGR Cooler that has a High Fail rate

IMO Bottom line is you have to do more Reliability Mods to an 05+ truck

03-04s got a Bad Rap because of the Learning Curve the bad parts got changed but the Root Cause didnt always get addressed so there was a repeat failures

IMO they should have stayed with the round egr coolers and the same HPO System for 05+

Now the Bigger water pumps and injector plunger coating and stuff like that was a Good move IMO on the 05+ I wish that I had some of these things on my 03 BUT I wouldnt trade my 03 for an 05 just for those things


I too am Curios to what the Techs are seeing as far as repairs/years/models

 

Only the early build 2008 model year trucks have a non-serviceable external transmission filter. Later build trucks changed to what Ford calls an "HESF" (High Efficiency Sump Filter).

 

Thanks Mike

 

but the pump have a such higher failure rate on the '03s and '04s rather than the '05s to '07s. id say that a fully updated hpo system on 05 or up(updated stc, stand pipe, dummy plugs) is much better than any 03 or 04 system. ive never heard of any 05 pumps going out, and the icp sensor is in a much better place.

 

Definitely agree Joe.

 

Shure 03 pump vs 05+ pumps yes 05+ has the better HPO pump

Yes my 03 Might lose a HPO pump at some point (MIGHT) But you can Bet on the Fact that an 05+ is going to have a HOT NO START at some point (unless you just rebuild it before it happens)

OVERALL HPO System Failures 05+ Dominates
Ya there Great when a Guy goes threw the HPO system on 05-07 and rebuilds/updates it shure But they shouldnt have to

But doesnt that kinda Defeat the Idea of Buying a Problem Free reliable ride

Most people dont go out and buy a truck for 40K or whatever with the intentions of having to rebuild the HPO system they just want a problem free truck that goes down the road from the start

 

He pretty much said what you did Benny - when he said a "fully updated 05 system". You may be right in your implication - ie that there are fewer 03 HPOP failures than 05 and up oil leaks in the HPO system. I wouldn't know either way on that one.

Pretty much comes down to the reliability of the pump itself (which is why I stated the thread). Certainly not trying to trash the 03's!!!

 

I've never heard that the '03 and '04 pumps themselves were less reliable. When you say "higher failure rate", do you mean significantly higher? Or measurably higher, but still a very small percentage of overall units.

What is it about the different pumps that make the earlier ones less reliable than the later ones?

 

Its stuff like this that gets me going^^^^^^

This came from a recent thread about a guy inquiring about buying a 2003 6.0L

Now he probably has heard all the problems and repeat failures on them but if he knew the whole story this would not have been his reply

the 6.0 in general has a bad rap but 03-04 is thought of as Demon Spawn its just not the case

 

According to a car facts report my 03 high pressure pump was replaced at 30,000 miles. I'm now at 145,000 and zero HPO issues. From all the countless hours I've spent reading on this and other sites, I've come to my own personal conclusion that the 03 was the best of all the 6.0's.

The one serious design flaw on these motors was never fixed by Ford for any year. That'd be the crappy *** oil cooler.

 

Did anyone see the picture of the wire harness? Is that really all it takes to make one go bad?