^ This ^
I live in the rust belt, and I see many trucks - all makes, Fords, GM, Dodge, etc, - that are rust free and many that are totally gone, same truck, same age. I don't know the difference, whether it's maintenance - but who washes the bottom of their trucks? - or the day of the week the thing was primed/painted.

All I know is if I had a good surviving body, I'd keep it. You just gotta watch the wear on the interior, and keep it clean. Yell at people when they slam the doors - when I retire my goal is to become the old guy watching his lawn! I have a few holes in my dash from the PO's CB mount, the cup thrower is broken, but otherwise it's clean. I never use the backseat, I keep it flat with a piece of cardboard to protect the shelf. Looks great when I put the grandson's carseat in the middle back there.

 

Well, I'm in the minority camp of "fix what's broken" and then "sell and replace". That said, I just don't need a diesel and my DD routine is now much better suited to the 2011-2012 F250 6.2L gas engine option. THAT said, I'm going to have to save my pennies for another year or two before I can afford to make my "upgrade".

 

make the small repairs/fixes and keep on trucking. i also doubt the hpop is cause for your leaks... when they leak, you'll notice (dont ask me how i know this). rebuild the turbo, replace some o-rings, make a few small upgrades along the way, and keep on driving.
as much as i want to really tear into mine and do a nice rebuild, like others have said - if it aint broke, dont fix it. my body is worse condition than the motor...
good luck with your choice. keep us posted on here amd join your chapter too.

 

Controversy Alert! {Whoop! Whoop!}

I danced a little dance with my "modern" boat the other day. I was raised on boating, and my previous boat with a V8 had points, condensor, a carb, mechanical fuel pump, and all things found on legacy engines. It may have not had the power or emissions of modern vehicles, but it always ran just fine.

Fast forward to now... and that same sized V8 has 50 more HP and cleaner exhaust, but it does it with variable timed valves, electronic ignition, water-cooled "fuel cell", catalytic exhaust, and an ECM that does self-diagnostics before it give the engine "permission" to fire. If the engine dies or doesn't start, the Diacom software and interface costs $600 just to do what we can with a $10 OBDII adapter, a $5 app, and our smart phone or tablet. Then... with the software, you aren't given an answer as to what's wrong. With some luck, you are given a direction to look with all your other troubleshooting tools and skills. It's far more complex then our venerable 7.3L.

Saying all of that... if you think the newer diesels will be easier or cheaper to maintain as they age, you have enough optimism to keep the world alight. F250_ makes a valid point that if you no longer need the abominable tow monster, then maybe a downsize to a less expensive gasser is in order. If you feel fixing the 7.3L is going to put you at a disadvantage when compared to buying a $70,000 technozilla, I'll say this: You will thoroughly enjoy the power, quiet, and comfort of the modern diesels - but the Buck$Zooka rounds needed to make any of those going 500K miles will simply collapse your estate and you'll have to live in the truck down by the river in your golden years.

 

More to Rich's point - in my opinion - is the fact that even with all of the modern computer controlled high-efficiency engine tech available, general aviation piston aircraft to this day are still fully mechanical systems. Dual magnetos for spark, carbs or mechanical FI systems. You just can't pull over at altitude.

 

Even if I had the $$$ to drop on a new 6.7.....there is no way I'd keep it past the warranty period.

 

This is the bottom line...

The primary reason we decided on a 7.3 is it was the best bang for the buck that I am still capable of fixing myself on the side of the road if need be.

Although, the truck only gets driven for runs to the HD for plywood, to the dump for getting rid of renovation trash and towing the 5th wheel across the country.

Other than that we have 3 other vehicles, the newest of which is 9 years old now...

Modern day vehicles are very complex and if it breaks down, your only choice is calling for a tow.

Don't get me wrong, I think the new 2017 Super Duty trucks look nice and I bet they have a ton of power. Although, my 17 year old truck can pull a 12K lbs 5th wheel up the Rocky Mountains at 65 MPH just fine, and it is paid for.

Just my .02.

 

Aaaaa WTH, might as well...my buddy drives a highfalutin Chebby Duromax with some sort of emissions controls on it. It has a 'limp' mode that he was able to use recently and make it home. He took it to the stealership, it seems that the emissions system took a left turn somewhere. Oh, and he asks me when I'm going to get rid of my old plug. Then he goes on to tell me that he's just having the emissions removed (not so sure I believe that one) at the cost of $2000. Aaaaa just a drop in the bucket on his $50,000+ truck.

 

$2000.... well that is a set of 160/80 injectors for my trusty 7.3 and another 250K miles on said injectors...

 

Assuming he HAD some engine warranty remaining....all gone now.

 

I have a handful of friends..."I'm buying me a 6.7!"

me: But you don't pull anything
them: I know I don't, but this engine will last 500k!
me: you barely ever keep a vehicle past 100k
them: I'm going to on this one!
me: You should research what that platform costs to fix....when Ford isn't paying for it.

 

You are right, he also indicated how thrilled he was that he was at the end of his warranty so he could remove the stuff.

 

My dad bought a new '16 RAM 3500 SRW last year and he made sure to get an extended warranty so that it would outlast him or his need for the truck (he's 81). It is one purdy truck! Heated/air conditioned seats, automatic everything, big touch screen, espresso machine, swimming pool and bowling alley (okay maybe not those last three but it is a beautiful truck). I got to bring it back from the desert with his 42' 16K Jayco 5er in tow. Started out watching EGT but I had to watch the speedometer to make sure I wasn't speeding up the 6% grade (EGT wouldn't go over 900F unless I laid into the pedal). Crazy power (385Hp/900lb-ft), a regal ride, and it's bone stock! Sitting in the truck, though, all I see are $$$ for anything that fails or needs repair. While it's a great truck I don't need to make sure I have a pre-approved loan on standby for repairs. I love my dinosaur. Besides, who wants to break into a 15 year old truck with faded paint? Nobody.

My sentiments exactly and one of the main reasons I made the decision to shoot the buck$zooka at my truck this summer instead of a Mazda 3 (although there have been more than a few moments where I have reconsidered over the course of the summer about collecting insurance money for an unfortunate "random" incident...luckily parts were already purchased so I kept working on it).

 

$2,000 should pay for itself in the recovery of MPG's that the emissions junk robs.

If it weren't for the small percentage of 6.7's that seem to spin a crank bearing around 50k, the emissions stuff might have fallen off of mine already.