Hi all - A friend of mine is selling his 2003 Excursion 6.0. I haven't seen it but it is either an EB or a Limited. About 160k on it. I believe it has had the head studs done. Clean / rust free. If the wife likes it ( would be her DD ) I can pick it up for about $11k. I know my way around the gas engines but know next to nothing about diesels. My buddy does take good care of his vehicles. The only reason he's selling it is he bought a 2014 powerstroke F250 CCSB. The Ex was used - by him - to pull a camper and snowmobile trailer. He has has it for 5-6 years to my knowledge.

The reason I'm looking is that my wife HATES HATES HATES the super clean and reliable low mileage 2008 Honda Odyssey minivan we bought from her Uncle's estate. It is really a great machine considering we have 2 girls who we are constantly chauferring around town. But...the wife just isn't diggin it. And I think she will hate it more once the snow starts to fly. Her past 2 cars were Explorers ( 1993 XLT, 2001 EB ) which she LOVED. Had her Uncle not passed we would probably have another Explorer, or perhaps an Expedition. That being said, it would have to be several years old, as money is definitely a factor and those things are just silly money when new. She doesn't want to spend any more $ than we can get out of the Odyssey, which I figure to be about...you guessed it...$11k. So that's why my buddy's Ex entered the picture.

My wife drove a 2011 Expedition EL last week ( neighbors' car ) and liked it - but I know the 2003 Ex has the leaf spring front end so it is much worse in the turning radius department. Not a big deal, but I figure the 2003 Ex to be a LOT more truck-like than the 2011 Exp EL. My wife has driven my 2005 F250 CCLB (5.4 gas) and does fine with it - but it has the coil spring front end and turns a little better than would the 2003 Ex.

Please offer your opinions / advice on what I can look for & things I can ask when I look at & drive this 2003. I know the 6.0 got a LOT of bad press back in the day. In the last 2 days I talked to two 7.3 owners who said they'd never touch a 6.0. But I'm taking that advice with a grain of salt.

Any info on suggested maintenance would also be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance for the help.

Ron

 

Ron,

The 6.0 can be a great engine, and I have the 2003 Limited version of one Just know that these things being a diesel need to have their legs stretched from time to time, so if it is only going to be a daily driver, then I would recommend that maybe you pass on the diesel and get a gasser.

11k seems like a good deal, but make sure you can verify all that has been done to it. there is a lot of info over on the 6.0 forum page, it may be worth taking a look over there to ensure you know what you are getting into. If it needs work, you can easily end up spending several grand more then you planned for.

Good luck, if you decide to get it. An Ex is a great vehicle!

 

Ron, as far as the ride the 4x4 Excursions are more truck like than the vehicles you have mentioned above. For some reason a sports bra just came to mind.
If he is your friend and has maintained the 6.0 and studded it chances are good you may have a winner there.
Usually, I would recommend checking things like coolant color, check EOT/ECT temps etc.
find out where he had the maintenance done.
If you had to bullet proof a 6.0 you can be looking at 5k (with head studs).

Post some pics if you can, include picks of engine compartment etc.

 

Thanks guys - sounds like I need to learn about EOT / ECT here.

I will ask him a bunch of questions when I take it for a ride. Please keep the advice coming!

I'm pretty sure the Ex is bone stock if that helps.

How durable are the transmissions? I'm sure they are stout, but other than regular fluid & filter changes what should I worry about?

What about oil changes? I will look on the 6.0 forum - just curious as to the oil type / viscosity / frequency of the oil changes. Is full synthetic needed? Thanks again fellas.

 

The tans in the 6.0 is fairly bullet proof, not much needed there beyond regular scheduled maintenance. As for oil, that is your call. Some are running normal oil, some blend, and some (like me) are running full synthetic.

My opinion there is run what you are comfortable running. With all the work I have in mine, I like the idea of synthetic, which I switch out every 5k miles.

If everything is stock, not studded or any other bulletproofing, be careful and ensure you have some extra cash set aside for future projects as needed. Michael is right in the potential for 5k or more in expenditures if bullet proofing is needed. But then again, there are stock 6.0s out on the road, with nothing more than scheduled maintenance, and they are doing fine. It is just best to know where all the cards lie and what to potentially expect.

Good luck!

 

No worries on turning radius either since you mentioned it a few times. Especially compared to your CCLB, the Ex will turn tighter. Are you sure you'll be ok with your wife's rig being substantially faster than yours though? Just poking the bear Also, this question was asked close to six times in the last week to 10 days. A simple search will pull up a ton of information, look the posts by myself, Toreador_Diesel, USCG_PA, and LivingLarge.

 

Haha thanks Matt. Well, the wife's DD will always be faster than my F250. Luckily, I have the 2014 GT or my 486 RWHP '66 coupe when I feel the need for speed. :-)

 

Update - I'm borrowing my buddy's Ex tomorrow for a few days so it will be nice to check it out. It is a white Eddie Bauer with 149k on it. From pics it seems to be very clean and rust free. Interior is great except for the driver's seat which shows some wear. I will have to ask about wear items like brakes and ball joints / tie rods / shocks. He did mention it was bulletproofed but it does have a problem of not making power when cold. Once it warms up he says it is fine. I will do some searches on the cold start / low power issue and see where that leads me. A friend has a dealer-type scanner that I might try so I can see if it is throwing any codes.

 

Injectors are probably on their way out if it runs poorly when cold

 

Mine has similar problem. I just got it a couple of weeks ago and about to change the oil on it. You can look into rev-x and synthetic oil 5w40, I went with rotella t6. From all the reading it should definitely help and is suggested to use in the 6.0 powerstroke due to the injectors we have. It sounds like a good deal on it other than that. I can't believe I bought my 03 limited 6.0 2wd for only 7000.

 

This. I had the exact same problem, switched to Rotella T6 synthetic and no more issues. Also starts a lot better in cold weather. With the oil firing the injectors, it makes sense why the one you're looking at doesn't seem to have power when cold.

I will say, mine did fine cruising until it warmed up if I absolutely had to fire up and drive immediately. If I tried to mash it or scoot, it wouldn't have it. Just another reason to not beat on your rig when it's cold, which is hell on internals.

 

Holy crap, I'm coming to your area with 7k ASAP! Hello new friend

 

Count me as another former 6.0 owner who will never own another one. And the 03s were the worst.

 

I don't know about that. My 03 has been great once I put the cash into it to make it bullet proof, and there is nothing like the 03 turbo whistle!

I say, buy what you want and are comfortable with. This is my second 03 6.0, and I knew (to some extent) what I was getting into. I would not change a thing, at least until something else breaks, and as we all know that is bound to happen sooner or later.

 

Yeah I live in Tennessee and found it in michigan on craigslist where the dealer the bought it from another dealer in Missouri. He saw excursion diesel rwd and thought it was 4wd. So, he had to get rid of before winter hit there. I was able to get a hold of previous owner and had it no problems and got 6500 as trade in so I got a great deal on it.