I let the wife take the F350 to MO to help a friend move. At the time there was a concern that the 6.0l PS had been loosing a little coolant for the last year but that previously had been easily managed with an infrequent top-off. Since the truck was bought new it has only been on light towing duties and then fell into a operational state of only back up transportation until now when it was driven been ILL and MO pulling a 15ft trailer (about 3000lbs).

During her last trip it is my understanding at one point it started to over heat (temp approached red line) when she pulled over into a safe area. She waited to let it cool down and then she had to add about about 2 gal of coolant from our tool box. When started again the temperature read normal while she drove to her destination. With NO signs of external leaks the coolant had dropped another 1 gal by the time but she arrived. She commented there seemed to be some white smoke from the exhaust at times but other then the initial loss of coolant and a little white smoke the truck ran fine. The trunk was maintained normally to the service directives and coolant had been flush twice during operating life and only refilled with Ford Gold coolant.

I am assuming the EGR cooler has developed a crack and failed blowing coolant out thru the exhaust and therefore the white smoke. So the basis of my question is whether any member knows of a good reputable diesel shop to replace the EGR cooler in the Springfield, Branson, Golden, Cassville, MO area?? Thanks.

 

3-4 hours from those locations listed, you have Superduty Service in Grain Valley. Arguably the best shop when it comes to 6.0's.
He has tons of youtube vids and builds a personal relationship with his customers.
Super Duty Service in Grain Valley, Mo

 

 

That's the deal with any good shop really, and for good reason.
I'm sure some have the opinion a good shop is to expensive too. But we know, you get what you pay for.

 

If you want to drive a bit farther, Tri-County Diesel in Godfrey, IL knows the 6.0. He does cab off work, fast, reasonable and solid work. Google them and contact TJ.
He did mine when I had one. Studs, Fel-Pro MLS, BPD EGR, and water pump, updated pipes, 6.4 pushrods. There was more, he is very detail oriented.

 

SDS has done a number of heroic "rescues" over the years and also prioritized "emergency" work over scheduled work, for some folks on the road and in need. I would call them and see if they would fit the truck in so your wife can get back home...

 

Thanks everyone for the recommendations but I am very picky about who works on my vehicles, just cant seem to find the techs that are as detail oriented as I feel am. For the last 14 years I've made the necessary repairs to date myself on my F350 with the exception of tires, I just don't do tires!.

My wife has relatives near the Godfrey area so I think I will fill up an extra tank full coolant and attempt to make a run for it. Hopefully I'll perform the surgery myself or otherwise there is Tri-County Diesel near by to bail me out? Also I was considering Scheid in Effingham,ll as I have relatives near that area. These shops however can be very expensive and now being retired on fixed income its becoming harder to pay those high rates if I can do the job myself. So I can either pay the $120/hr++ for a shop or pay myself that salary? and get my hands dirty?

When I retired I thought I was going to have time to take it easy and enjoy life but it seems that now that I am retired I don't know how I found the time to work a full time job before? Now my hobbies have become the full time job.

 

 

 

You ask for shop reccomendation yet no shops work is good enough.
Uh okay...

 

You said it first, but that is what the rest of us were thinking for-sure, what a waste pos thread...

 

I think the original request was for an experienced and reliable shop not just "part re-placers" within a 1 hr radius to mitigate risks of engine hydro-lock from coolant leakage due to EGR cooler and/or head gasket(s)?? Anyone can guest and replace parts until a new vehicle is built but that approach is not cost effective esp for the end user. It is commonly known in MO... "it is hard to find good help" when you are from out of town.

What a POS response, case and point of lacking detailed comprehension?

There is no point in a 100 point diagnostic charge of unrelated issues only which purpose is to inflate billing and inform the owner that the vehicle is 14 years old with 182K miles on it when the shop is only presented with a loss of coolant issues. This would be liken to telling the owner he needs the have Cooper ATPs, Rancho RS9000s, Air Lifts, Super Hitch, BD EGR Cooler, EC-1 coolant, XDP Coolant Filter, 140A Alt/OD Pulley, Updated OEM: Blue Spring, Oil Cooler, StandPipes & Dummy Plugs, STC fitting, HFCM drain, '08 Trans pan & filter, when the reported problem is only loss of coolant.

 

Some people don't understand chain of events or the extent of the damage caused by running a truck for over a year while it is eating the coolant at a high rate. Plus the over heating to add. So you think it is as easy as changing out one part and everything will be fine. Usually not the case at all, especially on a 6.0.
Super Duty Service is one of the most thorough shops that won't turn out crap, or fix it "just good enough" to get you down the road to only fail again.
Reading your attitude expressed above , you're probably doing him a favor NOT going there.
Good luck with your repairs.

 

Is this a circular thread or what? diesel_dan nailed it.............

 

Some people are just better at running their month dickriding (urban dictionary) and guessing at problems then diagnoses through own personal experience and/or educated symptomatic analysis. One has two ears and only one month for a reason! Unless one is working on a truck that has been previously dinked up by the UN-initiated most often then not it is a single point failure. The "chain of events" as you describe it is usually the uninitiated dinking up what started out as a simple single point failure thereby turning into multi-point failures.

Nope... he is probably doing me a favor by not answering his phone, appears he has his tail into way too many skirmishes which it appears he can not find ways to avoid? Video recording all his repairs ... really?? Novel, but seems a bit of paranoia??

One can not validate the services of a shop 4 hrs away when they don't answer their phone, not even sure they are still in business given the postings?? Probably better off checking out Baillie Diesel (a lot closer), Dews Diesel or not to forget even Absolute PowerStroke (the Ford specialist in town)?? Note: it doesn't have to be a BRAND NEW truck and/or FULLY rebuilt with all new parts to run as it was designed to do. This thread becomes a waste for anyone in the same position if the members are dickering and posting B.S. If one doesn't know then just keep quiet or simple state experiences and reasons why a shop deserves to be given reps on this otherwise excellent Ford Truck enthusiasts blog!