Without much power, i can understand that

 

Thats what the 5.4 owner thought.

 

In regards to an '05 limited 6.0 that I'm looking at, the check engine light is on. I've read somewhere, think on sinister diesel, that when you do the egr delete on an '05, the check engine light does come on. I don't remember reading that anywhere else so wanted to know if that is correct? I haven't got a response yet from the dealer in regards to what the reading is.

 

Check engine light on, on a 6.0 would be a huge red flag for me. It means what ever is broke it out wieghs the coast of fixing it on the sale price which means thousands maybe. Diesels are rarely cheap to fix anything. And if the egr deal does cause a code i wouldnt believe it has been done unless they have some docs on it not just a dealerships word.

 

EGR deletes on the Excursion 6.0 do cause a code to be thrown and a CEL. You can get a tuner that will limit the EGR functionality and prevent the code and the CEL from coming on.

The performance shop that did my headstuds said that all Excursion 6.0's were built with California emissions and that's why they are effected by the delete and the pickups are not unless they are California trucks.

Regardless, I would definitely get an ODB reader and find out what the codes are. You can look for the cooler and determine if it's been deleted or not.

Maybe you can use the CEL to negotiate the price. All up to your willingness for risk.

Lots of great information on the 6.0 forums here. I'm no diesel mechanic and this is my first diesel but I have been able to diagnose every problem I've had with my Ex by researching in the forums.

There's a fairly common list of problems and I was affected my most of them.
* EGR Coolers
* FICM
* Head Gaskets
* Wandering

There are well documented fixes for all of these common problems.

Good luck!

 

Be careful getting one with the egr removed if you live in california sense they smog diesels now

 

Thanks EddieEX10, the negotiations is kind of what I had in mind but it really seems the 6.0 engines are so delicate, I may be better suited to get a 7.3. It's tough to know what you are getting. I have looked at a lot of trucks online and some have the carfax which shows some maintenance if performed by the dealer but mostly you're going into the unknown. I guess it's always a gamble buying a used vehicle, or at least that's how I feel.
Let me ask this question, and please anyone chime in if you think I'm crazy. I saw a 2005 on AutoTrader with 375k miles for a little over $8k. It's a limited 4wd. I would have to believe that a lot of maintenance would have been performed on this vehicle to have it last that long meaning that maybe all the typical problems were corrected. If this truck could be purchased in the $7k range, is that worth the gamble?
I guess I would need to think at what point do you have start replacing things like seats, leaf springs, etc because they are wore out and does that replacement cost come close to or equal buying something with half the miles and wear 'n tear for more money.

 

I'm in Kentucky, so that's no problem.

 

If you're on a budget remember that diesel repairs seem to be quite a bit more expensive and harder to find decent shops to do the work... I personally would avoid anything with a check engine light on.

Whatever you do don't get too excited or in a rush just to get one. If it doesn't seem right then it's probably not. I had about a grand in repairs in the first 2 months of owning mine and still chasing some problems down! Love the truck when it's running good, hate the truck when it's not.

 

Take a jack with you and jack up the front end and have someone wiggle the tire back and forth in and up and down motion to check the ball joints and wheel bearings. I got mine and your going to be putting about a grand no matter what unless you find a real gem. I have put most the money into making.it not scary to tow with. By far one of the worst rigs i have towed with in stock form.

 

I have pretty much talked myself out of the '05 with almost 400k miles. I can only imagine what kind of money pit that could be. Although, I am rethinking the diesel vs gas scenario. There are plenty of Ex's out there with the fuel loving V10. I have seen some that really look nice, have lower 100k mile range and are priced around $6-$7k. I know fuel cost will be more but it may not be as much as the additional maintenance cost of a diesel. I really want a diesel though. I found there are far more for sale by owner than at dealerships so that means I need to sale my Explorer. Not how I wanted to do it but if that's what works, then I'll give it try. Thanks to all for the input and advice. I'll keep you informed on what and when I get my new to me ride.

 

with your given use i think the gas VS diesel would be a wash. lots of nice V10s out there. plenty of daily driving power and the fuel mileage isn't THAT bad considering what the excursion can do.

 

Okay so I've found an Excursion that I'm going to test drive tomorrow and hopefully drive home. I hadn't given up the search, it's just that there aren't many diesel Ex's in my area and especially in the price range I'm trying to stay in. I've been patient and found a 1 owner, 2002 Limited somewhat locally that has just under 200k miles. Judging by the pictures, it appears the body is in really good condition but the interior will need some TLC, i.e. driver's seat cover & arm rest, steering wheel and the turn signal is broken, all of which I am very comfortable with replacing assuming the drive train is good. I was fortunate enough to speak with the previous owner earlier today and he stated the mechanical condition is good. He said he only traded it in because of his need for a truck. I quizzed him on things like the transmission and he went on to say it has not been rebuilt and has never shown any signs of trouble. He said he did have it flushed last year. He also mentioned that the truck was re-wired about 5 years ago because of a common wire harness problem, that one I'm not familiar with. Where I'm going with this is my concern for the transmission because everything I have read leads me to believe it is a weak link in the drive train. With just under 200k miles but no previous trouble, is it possible the transmission could last many more miles as is or is it a ticking time bomb ready to go? He went on to say that he was very regular with oil changes every 5k miles and that he has not put a set of injectors in it. He thought this was surprising because these trucks are known to go through them. I thought the injector issue was in the 6.0 diesel engines and not he 7.3 that this is.
Lastly, I was told the 4wd doesn't work by the dealer but the previous owner sounded shocked by that statement. I read that this it would most likely be a vacuum issue which could be an easy repair???
So I am looking for feedback on the transmission, injectors, wiring harness and 4wd.
Thank you in advance.