Hey guys. Im browsing for a newer truck to replace the ol IDI and found a truck that fits the bill. Its somewhat rare so I cant find a ton of info on it. Heres what it is:

2008 F-350
6.4L
Automatic
4x4
And the kicker: Reg Cab

They might not actually be that rare, but I sure as heck haven't seen many. I want a long bed so I can haul my truck camper, don't have the need for a crew cab, and absolutely HATE the look of an extended cab long bed (no offense).

Iv heard of oil cooler problems with these 6.4s. How "widespread" of a problem is it? I haven't heard anything bad about trannys. Do these new trucks ride pretty decent? And lastly, the one question that's been run into the ground over and over: whats kind of MPGs could I expect out of this set-up?


Whats some pros and cons of this generation of truck

 

I've seen very few oil cooler issues come up on here, seems to be a lot better then the 6.0L coolers. Ours went out in under 60K on one of them, have over 100K on the 6.4L and no issues. Helps to have a tuner or scan gauge to monitor EOT and ECT to make sure they stay close to each other, otherwise probably have a cooler going out.

Compared to your '92 these trucks are 10x better on the ride, compared to a newer gen F150 not so much. You'll also notice a hell of a lot better turning radius over that '92. Can't say mileage on reg cab, our Ext. cab before the delete got 13-14 highway at its best and usually 9-11 towing, after delete 14+ is possible highway and only see under 10.5 towing either with terrible headwind or a lot of uphill stuff. All of that at 65-75mph. Went and got a load last week, pulling 7Klb trailer lie o meter was claiming 13+ for most of the empty trip down so probably was in the 12mpg range, coming back loaded with terrible head and cross winds it dipped to 9.6 before it started getting better when the wind went down.

Only two cons I can think of are the whole DPF, regen process and problems that creates and the poor mileage compared to all previous gen diesels. Some of that has to do with the regen cycle. Ours replaced a '93 IDI with ATS, really nothing better about that '93.

Pro's: ride, power, comfort, nice quiet engine

 

i would totally agrea with galaxie641, we came from a 94 ext cab turbo IDI wanting the full crew cab. we bought the 2008 with ~132k miles and already have about 5k miles on it since the first of the year, about what we normaly put on the IDI in a year, so we are driving the truck way more and loving it. depending on what you find for a truck if it still has warranty would be the first thing id look at if not id seriously consider finding a tuner and delete pipes for the DPF. i think there have been a few egr coolers issues some casing the engine to hydro lock i think. you cant get much further apart in engine design and technology from the idi to 6.4L. Our 6.4 actually yeilds very simular fuel mileage as the idi did. the best i have seen is 17 and worst is 9 all hand calculated. so far we love our new 6.4 these things pop off amazing in the winter . if you keep the dpf on keep an eye on the truck oil level as they "make oil' and that the coolant level stays full. these newer trannys are strong unless your tuned and running the high horsepower levels(~500RWHP) all the time beating on it. i love the way the new truck rides even with this many miles on stock shocks. the only thing the idi has and always will be easy to work on and will run with no maintenance compared to the 6.4. severe duty maintenance is highly recommended

 

Mine is tuned with spartan, and is a crew cab long box. It can manage just a smidge over 20 mpg, but the speed limit is 100 km/h here. (60 mph).
With the camper in the back, it's not a real camper, just for putting equipment in... it manages about 15-16 mpg. But, the camper only sticks over the roof about 14 inches or so.
On average, I probably end up at around 10 MPG a lot of the time, just cause of short trips, idling, etc.

The transmissions and engines are really stout, but theres also tunes out there that can destroy everything if you drive it hard enough.

IMHO the biggest issues with these trucks is the emissions system. If I couldn't have bought a tuner for mine, I would have traded it in a long time ago.

 

Oil coolers the EGR cooler issues are rare. Proper maintance of the coolant system and proper oil changes with OEM filters help alot.

this motor is good but it needs proper maintance. You cannot neglect it. I have over 79K on mine most of it with heavy towing.

While it won't net the best mpg's it does not do too bad. Towing my high profile (13'6") 5er I get 7-9.

My lifetime average with this motor is 11.5.

I have the dpf still. It works fine for me as my truck is not a commuter. Commuting will kill the emissions.

 

Actually, when mine was stock, when I used it for all highway driving, it actually didn't do too bad at all...
Driving over the speed limit, mileage dropped off quick, but still does, relatively. It's a super duty, not a prius.

 

did you end up gettin a new truck yet?

 

For what its worth, I'm making 700 horse @ the wheels on my stock trans with custom tuning and it runs flawlessly and I'm not easy on it.

 

No I didn't

Im still in the market but now im considering an Excursion lol. Only problem with those are theyre old and expensive... thus no one wants to give out a loan for em

 

And judging by your avatar you're unwilling to consider a gasoline-powered Ex?

I would read around the 6.4L forum as much as possible before you commit to buying one. They are much more complex than your IDI, and repairs are far more expensive when things break. I believe the 6.4L to be more reliable than the 6.0s were, but more expensive to fix when they break. I would suggest looking into a 2011 6.7L truck if it's within your budget.

 

Absolutely NO gas powered X. I couldn't afford to drive it lol. Id rather spend double and get a diesel powered one that will clear 18 mpg than a V10 or 5.4 that cant get over 14.

And iv definitely looked into the 6.7s. Theyre STOUT motors. Used ones are still hard to come by and I cant get over the sticker shock of a new one lol.

 

My '08 6.4L truck wouldn't get above 15 MPG no matter what I did to it. Later models with 3.55 and 3.31s seem to do better though. Based on that my V10 Excursion is cheaper to drive than my '08 was!

 

Most 6.4s don't get good mileage. The old 7.3s do though

 

Some guys are getting close to the 20 MPG mark with deleted 6.4s I used to but im kind of a lead foot since I turned it into a hot rod..

 

I think it makes a big difference how high the truck sits, and how fast you go.