Is this a normal start?
Posting Guru
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 2,169
Likes: 3
From: SW Florida
It sounds like your truck hasn't been running right since you bought it. If you hang in there and get it fixed to where it performs like it should....you will be amazed with it's performance.
Thread Starter
|
Senior User
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 117
Likes: 0
From: Annapolis, MD
We dropped the truck off today. The guy was definitely familiar with the 6.0L, even made a hilarious comment about it being Ford's most interesting engine or something along those lines. I asked him about switching to the 5W-40 and he recommended against it since we tow mostly year round. I described the issues (rough start, coolant out the recovery bottle, and transmission shifting), he took a lot of notes (always a good sign), and said that the issue that worries him the most is, of course, the coolant blowing out, because it could be a head gasket. But, he said they'll check all the modules and go from there. I had a good feeling as I left the shop. We'll see what happens.
Posting Guru
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 2,169
Likes: 3
From: SW Florida
Thread Starter
|
Senior User
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 117
Likes: 0
From: Annapolis, MD
After we dropped off the truck, we went to the Baltimore car show. I'm pretty sure my wife would've driven the Dodge 2500 with the Cummins home from the show if she could've. We both liked that truck a lot - the Ford and GM trucks were good, too. But I did some math and I'm pretty confident a brand new truck isn't in our near future, unless we get one hell of a trade-in value on our F-250 (we still owe a good bit on it, unfortunately).
Hotshot
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 15,369
Likes: 121
From: Stuttgart, Ar
5W-40 has a much lower temp starting point and the same top temp towing point as 15W40 and is MUCH better for your injectors and cold starts. PERIOD. Sorry, but your mechanic is telling you wrong.
Posting Guru
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 2,169
Likes: 3
From: SW Florida
Hopefully he's more educated on the 6.0 than oil.
Fleet Owner
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 27,927
Likes: 3,651
(you too Tim)
FTE Stories
Ford Trucks for Ford Truck Enthusiasts
Top 6 Best Deals Available on New Fords & Lincolns Right Now
Brett Foote
This Hennessey Takes the Expedition Tremor's Off-Roading Capability to the Next Level
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Fords at 2026 Carlisle Ford Nationals
Joe Kucinski
3 Best / 3 Worst Parts of Modern Ford Ownership
Brett Foote
10 Amazing Upgrades That Solve Common Ford Truck Owner Headaches
Pouria Savadkouei
Every 2026 Ford Engine Explained
Brett Foote
10 Ugly Ford Trucks That We Still Kinda Love
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Every Truck Owner NEEDS (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalyptic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Verdad Gallardo
Posting Guru
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 2,169
Likes: 3
From: SW Florida
No personal attacks...we're just responding to what you said....that he said. If he did say you're better off with 15-40, he's wrong.
Just tell him the guys on the Internet said so....we'll back you up.
Just tell him the guys on the Internet said so....we'll back you up.
Thread Starter
|
Senior User
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 117
Likes: 0
From: Annapolis, MD
Also, although it seems like this winter won't end, we're actually not that far from warmer weather. By the end of February, the average high is already 50 around here. I can run the block heater for those colder mornings remaining to help offset the heavier oil.
Senior User
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 341
Likes: 1
From: Texas
Well don't feel too bad. I replaced a head, both gaskets and an oil cooler before I even made it home when I bought my '06 F-350. Just gotta love "as is" sales. I also had Ed rebuild the FICM and loaded a tune from Matt at Gearhead.
Bad news, it would have been more fun pulling my own teeth with a pair of pliers than do all the repairs. Good news, I have a bad *** F-350 now that hauls 30,000 gvw at 80mph without blinking an eye. You have to look at one of these trucks as a long term investment, so hang in there. It does pay off eventually.
I'd definitely look at switch to 5-40 synthetic. It changes nothing other than making for easier starts and anything to make starts easier is what you want.
Bad news, it would have been more fun pulling my own teeth with a pair of pliers than do all the repairs. Good news, I have a bad *** F-350 now that hauls 30,000 gvw at 80mph without blinking an eye. You have to look at one of these trucks as a long term investment, so hang in there. It does pay off eventually.
I'd definitely look at switch to 5-40 synthetic. It changes nothing other than making for easier starts and anything to make starts easier is what you want.
Thread Starter
|
Senior User
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 117
Likes: 0
From: Annapolis, MD
Well don't feel too bad. I replaced a head, both gaskets and an oil cooler before I even made it home when I bought my '06 F-350. Just gotta love "as is" sales. I also had Ed rebuild the FICM and loaded a tune from Matt at Gearhead.
Bad news, it would have been more fun pulling my own teeth with a pair of pliers than do all the repairs. Good news, I have a bad *** F-350 now that hauls 30,000 gvw at 80mph without blinking an eye. You have to look at one of these trucks as a long term investment, so hang in there. It does pay off eventually.
I'd definitely look at switch to 5-40 synthetic. It changes nothing other than making for easier starts and anything to make starts easier is what you want.
Bad news, it would have been more fun pulling my own teeth with a pair of pliers than do all the repairs. Good news, I have a bad *** F-350 now that hauls 30,000 gvw at 80mph without blinking an eye. You have to look at one of these trucks as a long term investment, so hang in there. It does pay off eventually.
I'd definitely look at switch to 5-40 synthetic. It changes nothing other than making for easier starts and anything to make starts easier is what you want.
Also, something someone else said in this thread got me thinking - I notice that Ford and Dodge (at least) offer larger alternator options on the new trucks, sometimes even dual alternator options. Unfortunately the websites are good about letting you pick options, but terrible at explaining why you'd want them. It hit me that a bigger/dual alternator might be able to recharge the two batteries more quickly - is that why they have them? And, is a larger or second alternator a good investment for that reason?
Hotshot
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 15,369
Likes: 121
From: Stuttgart, Ar
Yes, a larger alternator IS a good investment. The stock 110A alternator is marginal at best. A 140 is better but not great, especially if you do a lot of short trip intown driving stuff. The batteries just don't get charged properly. A 185A is a MUCH better investment and will provide insurance for the vehicle electronics (FICM being the biggest).
Postmaster
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 4,424
Likes: 12
From: BC Canada
You need to go with a 5w40 synthetic oil for more reasons than the cold start. For starters, the towing of that beast of a 30 foot trailer, is hard work, better oil by far. Also, you will be amazed how good the injectors sound over the 15w40 not just for start up cold, but all year round, remember those injectors are fired by high pressure oil, this is what makes them last longer. At 200 bucks an injector plus labour, it's a valuable protection. Now add your turbo is not water cooled, the bearings run in oil, that pulls heat from it. So, hot shut downs when towing, are better protected by the better oil. The benefits of the better oil are far more, judging by earlier posts, pulling in mountains and cold starts, long sitting times, outside parking ect, you would be money ahead. You are likely only changing oil 2 times a year, so it makes a lot of sense to me. I am doing between 4 and 5 changes a year. You also need to look into a good fuel additive with antigel, given the time your truck sits and the temperature changes when it's not being used. There is clearly more maintenance cost to a diesel, but you get the performance for pulling you have already noticed.