Man, every time one of these threads pop up, I always read them, looking for the magic number for the 6.0. It changes every thread. This one is $10k, which MAY be a record.

I'm not going to going down the rabbit hole of gas vs diesel, but I'll say this:

There are plenty of people out there... millions who have 6.0 motors who're oblivious to the problems they're prone to. I meet them all the time. At the gas pumps, at the Home Depot, football tailgates, everywhere. If there's a 6.0 next to me, I feel compelled to ask the owner how they like their 6.0. I can't tell you how many times I've heard that their truck is stock and is problem free. Some have had problems. I bought mine with 127k on the clock and the PO was unaware of the problems the 6.0 had. He had every receipt and record for every oil change, performed at Ford, had always used Ford filters, etc. I made my changes because I wanted the extra mpgs, and most of all, the extra HP that comes with modding and tuning.

The bottom line is you either have a good one, or a bad one. This nonsense of "you have to spend xxxx to get it to run reliably" is just that. Nonsense. $10,000?? What the hell are you doing to the truck for 10k? Specifically, what are you doing to the 6.0 that you wouldn't do to a V10?

There are multiple, reliable power stroke shops around here that do "bullet proofing" to include head studs, EGR delete, oil cooler swap, flush and fill with ELC, coolant filter, and exhaust for anywhere between $3500-4500. The OP has stated he knows his way around a wrench, so he could probably get by for under $2k. How much of that is necessary? Depends on the truck and depends on how you drive. There are a lot of people out there who are oblivious to the problems and just drive their truck every day.

 

Love my V10. A regear makes it come alive and tow like you wouldn't believe

 

We sold it as we didn't need a second excursion around. It had 200k on it and was nearly all stock except the normal wear and tear such as breaks and we did needed to put a new rear sway bar in at one point as my mom was towing her Pilgrim 2500 lite around with it for years with no issues.

We got lucky as we were able to sell it for 12k just this year even though we had it listed at 7500. Traded it for a boat and then turned the boat over for 12.

The guy who bought the excursion was going to use it as a farm vehicle with his dump trailer, so all off-road with a heavy load behind him.

Cold starts were never a problem with it for sure unlike the 6.0 now. I would leave it outside all night in the coldest winter nights, come out in the morning at 7 and not have to wait at all. Just getup and go. A big plus up north.

 

I love my v10. I got my v10 for 10k with 42k on it. I choose a gasser because I could afford to fix it lol

 

Oh the poor 6.0... I have an 03 6.0 and I'm quite happy with it. If you read these forums, they'll probably freak you out enough to not buy any Excursion, probably not any Ford, maybe not a car at all. Most of what you find on any forum is all the problematic trends and you cannot use that info alone to make your decision.

You could find a great 6.0 for sale and a terrible 7.3 for sale. Maintenance history and proper maintenance are so important.

All things considered, the 6.0 has more general maintenance, basically twice as many oil changes than the 7.3. But the 6.0 has a way better transmission and the newer Excursions have better OBD capabilities. I get almost 20 mpg and that's mostly my wife making 10 mile trips a few times a day carting kids around, the worst type of driving for MPG. With an inexpensive FICM tune (that's totally safe), our Ex gets up and goes quite well.

The decision is up to you. You need to consider how you'll use it, if you'll tow and what. To me, the 5.4 is just too small for a car this heavy. No offense 5.4 guys.

If you read about the v10 and how they continually blow spark plugs out of the heads, there's a good chance that will freak you out. But again, that's all you'll read about if you dig into the forums. Same horror stories for the 7.3 and 6.0.

I'd start shopping and see what's available in your price range. Look for excellent maintenance history. Its so important, especially for the diesels.

 

PS

We live in Colorado. Its been below zero the past week each morning and the car starts right up, literally right after the starter cranks, just touch the key. We obviously let the car warm up for 5-10 minutes but no issues at all with cold start. Oh I guess I should knock on wood huh?

I agree with what Hokie said earlier. If the 6.0 was THAT BAD, the millions of them on the road would all be scrap. Most (smart) people with a 6.0 to their regular maintenance, don't go cheap on the engine oil, use Motorcraft for everything, and things go fine.

I also don't want to continue the great debate. I just want the OP to understand that you can find a good whatever or a bad whatever.

 

[QUOTE=HokieHiVPI;13831219.

The bottom line is you either have a good one, or a bad one. This nonsense of "you have to spend xxxx to get it to run reliably" is just that. Nonsense. $10,000?? What the hell are you doing to the truck for 10k? Specifically, what are you doing to the 6.0 that you wouldn't do to a V10?

There are multiple, reliable power stroke shops around here that do "bullet proofing" to include head studs, EGR delete, oil cooler swap, flush and fill with ELC, coolant filter, and exhaust for anywhere between $3500-4500. The OP has stated he knows his way around a wrench, so he could probably get by for under $2k. How much of that is necessary? Depends on the truck and depends on how you drive. There are a lot of people out there who are oblivious to the problems and just drive their truck every day.[/QUOTE]

Not trying to start a fight here. I bought my 04 Excursion Eddie Bauer with 126K miles at $14.5K in Dec 2011. Soon after I saw my coolant delta more than 15* so I did the preventive myself with oil/egr cooler with all the parts need for the upgrade. V/Mod B springs, Rancho Socks with remote, stereo upgrade with backup camera, that's roughly $3K in parts alone. the extra $2K was to pay for the additional tools and lunch/dinner for my helper. So if you can do all this work by yourself and have all the tools in you tools box already good for you. I did not have all the special tools, odd and end to take the dummy plugs, heavy duty torque wrenchs up to 250 ft-lb...

Now it develop injector problem, might cost me just one injector $220 after all said and done. But what about all the little thing I need to buy? O-rings for the rest of the injectors, special tool to work with the nipple cup O-rings, more tools to make my life easier to work on this truck... who know after this will I have to replace more injectors???

Without this 6.0 I didn't have to spend that much money. I like my 6.0L Diesel. All I am saying is, if you don't have the extra cash just incase you need to fixed it, don't buy. If you just have the money to buy the truck at $14K and don't have the extra to get the new stereo with backup camera and upgrade the springs and happy with it by all means go for it.

We all know that Excursion owner here spend ton of money on up grade and made their 6.0L more reliable after the purchase. I don't want to wait until the tax return time to have some extra cash to get toy for my truck. What about the other vehicles? Don't they need some love too?

All I am saying is, after the purchase of the truck, have at least $5K extra to spend with out cutting in the house mortgage, out to dinner, vacation, extra activities for the kids... If you don't need it, you still have the $5K in the bank.

V10 don't need new oil/erg cooler, injectors issue.

 

To be clear, most of what you describe here is not related to a 6.0. Its related to any Excursion. I'm not trying to say you implied that but I want to make sure the OP understands that springs, shocks and the electronics you mentioned are not 6.0 specific items.

Our 6.0 is totally stock except for the FICM tune. No EGR delete, no cooler stuff, and I have a auto enginuity so I can monitor the oil and coolant temps. They are consistently within a few degrees of each other. This is due to proper maintenance throughout the trucks history.

 

Wrxin,

Yes, my point is with Excursion in addition with 6.0L. OP ask about 6.0L excursion.

 

I never said 6.0L is bad. Most of the 6.0L owner I talk too either never had problem or minor only. Only a few told me they had the turbo change and some sensors.

 

I would disagree with that. I have a 2000 V10 Limited 4X4, 135,XXX on the odo. Bought it with 93,XXX, bone dry undercarriage, fantastic paint and interior for just under 13k t/t/t included. After seeing the condition of others I checked out (from the SF Bay Area to the Foothills, from Chico down to Stockton), I think I got just about the most cherry one in the region. Had I been willing to fly out of state I could have found a better deal, but I didn't have the patience to go that far into a deal.

I haven't had any engine issues to date on my particluar 6.8 gasser - only exchanging the battery. I re-did the battery lead connectors at the battery since I was getting a lot of corrosion. A few new copper ends, shrink wrap and solder was a few bucks investment and no more corrosion.

Mechanically it's been sound - I did have the drive line 'clunk' that was solved in 20 minutes by pulling the drive shaft and lubricating the drive shaft splines.

The most expensive "fix" was the suspension (sag and steering wander). I had the 'soccer mom spring sag' (where you only have maybe an inch or so clearance on your front springs between the stops and the frame), so I invested maybe $500 in springs and parts for a V/Modded B spring swap (and a day of labor with a buddy of mine). That cured any steering wander and made it much more comfortable since I had the original factory stance (plus a little) back. I won't say how fast I can take the turns near my house now that I have a proper set of springs under my ride!

That all being said...had I found a good diesel I'd have jumped on it - but every one I found had either paint issues (I found three white models all with paint peeling at the aft side of B pillar up top), or they had been lifted (I don't trust a lift that they can't document). I'm more than happy with my V10 when towing (I carry a good 250lbs in the back all the time (in place of the third row seat) and I tow about 7500lbs on a 16' enclosed trailer...happy with the power, just not the mileage when towing.

Trick question really...have they done upgrades? Were the upgrades done correctly? What needs to be done still? The dizzle owners on here can be counted on to give you a great list of "check this, check that" and can tell you a definitive list of what you should do to keep the motor running.

I know I'll probably make some on the board unhappy with this statement, but I personally wouldn't go with the 5.4 gas if you ever think you'll tow. I'm sure the 5.4 is great for a 2wd that never sees a trailer hitch, but I shudder to think of the mileage and power if you were to throw a trailer on the back of that big of a truck with that small of a motor.

I equate this statement to getting an Expedition with the 4.6 (was that the size?) or the 5.4. The smaller engine was all show, no go (and a very LOUD show at that since it had to spin up to keep speed when pulling)...the 5.4 was a good motor for the truck and I towed the same trailer I tow now but back when it was weighing in around 6000lbs - and for the most part, that 5.4 held it's own. I can't imagine trying to pull with the smaller gas motor.

For a "grocery getter" I'd say go for it, but anything else I'd go with a minimum of 6.8 gas on up the line...I'll let the dizzle owners spar on what versions of the diesel motors are the best.

 

Give that man a cee-gar!

That statement applies to any used vehicle.

Stewart

 

At least twice a week

 

Shucks, gee thanks . I'm blushing right now.

 

No fight interpreted at all. When I bought my 04 it had the same mileage on it as yours. The oil/coolant temps were right around 18 degrees different, so I took it to the shop, had 'em swap the oil cooler, delete the EGR, bought the SCT tuner, and installed the 4" exhaust for just under $2k. If I didn't want to do all the extras, I could have had the oil cooler swapped for $550.

The suspension upgrades and stereo/camera stuff has nothing to do with the engine, nor it's faults, which I'm not arguing it has. You're sure good to your helper!